Mattress troubles
I think I mentioned this before that we bought new beds and mattresses upon moving in this apartment last year. Sadly for us, these mattresses started to sink quite soon after we purchased them, although I already had back issues when buying them, I surely saw a decline in well rested nights because of the sunken part in the mattress.
Back in July, when the hernia was found, I decided that it was time to contact Groupon ES where they were bought because the listing mentioned a 5 year warranty for the mattresses. What can possibly go wrong if this is 9 months after you bought them, right? Soon enough, I received a picture with instructions on how to take a proper picture showing that the sunken part of the mattress is 3cm or more. Easy peasy, without much effort we had a picture of 3,5 cm and I'm pretty sure that was not even the worst sunken part because we just took the easy route to make sure the picture was not rejected.
Waiting
Although very responsive, it took a bit of time for Groupon to get back to me after this. I assumed this was caused by them having to wait for the seller's response first. After several days, an automated email was sent that the case was on hold and they were waiting for the response of the company. I appreciated the fact that I didn't have to contact them in between the waiting. I believe I received this email once more and then the next email came with the result of the request for warranty.
Declined
They were very sorry but the seller declined the warranty claim, which I found odd considering their instructions to show the minimum sunken part, as this was normal. Now let me assure you that rolling to one side and waking up with extremely painful back and hips because of it isn't normal for a new mattress. I remember even buying a spring mattress many years ago which I hate and is often considered painful for me, but even this one was extremely pleasant to sleep on the first few years. No such thing as rolling to one side constantly and waking up in horrible pain.
Groupon apologised and said they wish it was different and I had to process this stupidity first, so I didn't respond yet. This email came a week ago I think.
Caused by mattress
Now that I've been without pain in my back for weeks straight, and without painkillers for the same period, when I wake up in horrible pain due to rolling aside while asleep, I know 100% this is because of the mattress. The best thing I could do was respond to the email and at least try to see if I could fix it through Groupon ES after all.
They beat me to it
I planned on sending that this week because I had a few other things that had priority, but then they beat me to it by sending me an email first. Yesterday I woke up with an email from Groupon customer support that they reviewed the case again and want to offer me a refund or new mattrass, which one I preferred. Holy shit, did they seriously find it unacceptable themselves and pro-actively solved this case for me without me asking for it? This was a new thing to experience, but I'm very grateful, of course.
It gets better
After I let them know that I was very pleased with this news and would find another mattress before they could pick up this one to initiate the refund, I almost immediately received a response. They understood I could not be left without a mattress so I could arrange it by ordering another one, waiting for that one to arrive, then initiate the pick up and the refund following after that. For some reason though, the initiating of the pick up was done really fast.
Thirty minutes (yes, you read it right) after the last email from them, the doorbell rang and a courier company was there to pick up the mattress. I explained to him in my best Spanish that I ordered another one that should arrive within two weeks and that they can pick up the old one once this one is delivered. I asked him to call me next week for news and he said sure, no problem.
I understand they can't really put a date on these orders for pick up from the Groupon side, so it's normal for them to try and get the job they're hired for done as soon as they can. But within half an hour, that was a very new experience. Especially here, lol.
The hunt for another mattress
Although some might say order from another store, I went for a Groupon option again because the previous one we bought there was very good and we had zero issues with that one. This was probably just bad luck and at this way the search would be a lot easier to narrow it down to what they offer.
In the end I went for a slightly different and more firm mattress but still advertised as orthopedic mattress, although I know very well this isn't always really true, so we learned.
Conclusion
Although I don't have the refund yet, I know this is the way all these businesses handle warranty claims, first they need to have the item back and then you get a refund, they don't care that you need a mattress to sleep on so this was the best way to fix the issues as soon as possible.
I'm very satisfied with Groupon Spain's customer service and this is also a reason for me to buy from them again. It's very rare that a business comes back to the client after first declining a claim and then solve it anyway, at least, I never experienced it myself. I'm confident everything is sorted within a few weeks.
If you're considering buying from them, I could recommend it based on this experience.
The header is created with my own image using Canva Pro.