Sports Direct is threatening shoppers with COURT ACTION over missing parcels. The high street giant, which has branches in Birmingham, has accused shoppers of fraud after parcels were stolen from their doorsteps.
The Telegraph has revealed customers who secured refunds through their banks after packages disappeared or were delivered to the wrong address were later threatened with court action by the retailer.
The Telegraph has seen letters which show shoppers were denied replacements and refunds and then pursued by debt collectors. Customers’ details were passed on to a crime intelligence agency, which ordered them to pay hundreds of pounds more than the goods were originally worth to avoid a County Court trial.
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Adele Peacock, an NHS worker in children’s mental health services, ordered items worth £113 but says the courier left the package in “an unsafe location”.
She said: “People buy things in good faith and pay for delivery, and parcels are not being safely delivered. My neighbours are retired – they would always take a parcel in – but the courier didn’t even try. They just threw it over the fence where anyone could take it, and someone clearly did.”
She said: “The bank arranged a chargeback, and I got the £112.99 back in March. I thought that was the end of it, because Sports Direct had been completely unhelpful. Then the letters started coming.”
In July, Ms Peacock received a “notice of intended criminal and civil proceedings” from National Business Crime Solution (NBCS) demanding she pay £437 by bank transfer immediately or face defending herself from a fraud allegation in the County Court.
The email read: “We are instructed that on March 6 2025, you acted contrary to the Policies & Processes of Frasers Group, totalling £112.99 by claiming that you had not received goods which were in fact delivered successfully.
“As a result of your actions, our member has suffered loss, damages and costs totalling £436.99 and is considering both a formal complaint to the authorities and preparing to pursue this claim in the County Court to recoup their losses.”
A Birmingham shopper, meanwhile, bought a £1,900 bike in 2022 – but the bike was left exposed on his porch and was snatched.
The customer told the newspaper that, later, a letter from NBCS arrived at his doorstep demanding £2,076.99. NBCS also repeatedly sent him emails, which have been seen by The Telegraph.
It read: “We do not seek to profit from the cost of this recovery. Therefore, we will reduce the amount payable to £2,026.99 if payment is made in full within 14 days of the date of this email.”
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