Bad buying experience with Oz-Armour

[omnimirage]

I bought this beesuit in July:

https://www.beekeepinggear.com.au/p...oz-armour-ventilated-double-layers-super-cool

One of the things that particularly caught my attention with this suit was this line:

-Unique design Veil has a hard plastic insert on the top of the veil which keeps away its mesh from your face and cannot drop to your nose and you will never experience any bee stings plus it has sun protection.

I friggin hate getting stung through the veil. I need a mirror to see where they stung, they're difficult to remove and the face is sensitive to pain.

As soon as the suit arrived, I went to use it to do some needed work. I ended up getting stung quite a number of times through the veil even when doing my best to avoid such. The veil practically rests against my chin, I need to constantly wiggle my head back and push the veil forward, and brush off bees on the veil. Having emailed the company, they told me that some of the veils were damaged. I took some photos of the veil they sold me:

https://imgur.com/a/TxNXi

As you can see in the second photo, the veil is incredibly buckled out, causing the veil to then rest on the chin. They sent me a replacement veil without telling me first, they sent me a hat veil instead of a fencing veil. It happens to be a particularly good quality veil, but then I have a particularly large head and the veil doesn't fit, it's painful and gives me headaches trying. I said this to them, and they told me they didn't have any larger sizes, but they'd get in new stock in two months time. They then stopped replying to my emails and are apparently ignoring me now.

I'm not sure if I have any consumer rights here, I realised that I didn't handle this well but didn't expect the company to treat me with such disregard. I'm not sure if I can fix the broken veil or whether I should just trash it. Should I be able to find a veil from a different company that will work with this suit? Should I contact consumer affairs about this?

 

[omnimirage]

Here's the email exchanged that happened:



18 Jul
I recently purchased an expensive beesuit that was advertised as having a unique veil design, that's supposed to keep the mesh away from the face. I used it for the first time the other day, and out of the half a dozen or so beesuits that I've used in my life, it's by far the worst in terms of mesh touching my face. I got stung five times on my chin during my beekeeping, and was constantly pushing the veil ahead, and constantly brushing bees off my veil to prevent them from stinging me.

I'm very disappointed in this. I paid the extra money to get a suit that I was hoping I'd be happy with, and the mesh veil was one of the prime selling points for me.

I'm not sure if Oz Armour has deceived me by falsely advertising. Either way, I'm very disappointed, and plan to spread my experience to beekeepers on seven different forums, to local beekeeping friends and to the people at the local amateur beekeeping club, to warn about this product and your business and to advice to steer away.

- an upset customer
31 Jul

[FONT=&quot]Hello[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Firstly, sorry for the late reply, your email went to the junk folder.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If you are not happy with our product, we can give you 100% refund. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Please send us your details, order no, date of purchase.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]We have sold hundreds of them and never had any issue, maybe your suit or veil faulty.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Our sincere apologies for the inconvenience.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Kind Regards[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Azim[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Australia: +612 96497361; Cell: +61 481 146 420[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]USA : +1 346 308 2194; UK : +44 203 769 3593; New Zealand: +64 98896581[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]E: [/FONT][FONT=&quot][email protected][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]W: [/FONT][FONT=&quot]www.fase.com.au[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Address: Building A, 2 Fatory Street, Granville NSW 2142 Australia[/FONT]

31 Jul

Hey there,
Ive used the suit two times since purchasing it and its got a bit of dirt on it. Is that okay? Would it cost anything to return it?
I do wonder if its faulty or somehow just doesn't align with the structure of my face. I was wondering if it'd bend into place with time. Its really quite unfortunate as I love every thing else about the suit. its just awful that my chin is so exposed, its difficult to get stingers out of ones face when wearing a suit.
Kind regards,


to me

[FONT=&quot]Hi[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]


31 Jul
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]There is one possibility about the veil, we had one lot of veils and they were not good.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Could you please take a photo of the veil and sent it to me.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Kind Regards[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Azim

[/FONT]

16 Aug
[FONT=&quot]Hi [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]We have shipped you a veil, please let us know if everything is OK with you.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Kind Regards[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Azim[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Australia: +612 96497361; Cell: +61 481 146 420[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]USA : +1 346 308 2194; UK : +44 203 769 3593; New Zealand: +64 98896581[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]E: [/FONT][FONT=&quot][email protected][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]W: [/FONT][FONT=&quot]www.fase.com.au[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Address: Building A, 2 Fatory Street, Granville NSW 2142 Australia

[/FONT]


17 Aug
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]I like the veil its particularly good quality. Unfortunately I have quite a large head, and its too uncomfortable wearing it, it hurts a little, so such isn't really suitable for me.
Did the photo of the veil I send, indicate it was of the dodgy batch?
I'm considering returning the suit for a refund. If I was to do so, should I wash it before returning? I've used it twice and a bit of dirt has gotten itself over the knee.
Regards,


21 Aug

[FONT=&quot]Hi[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]We are happy to accept the returns but unfortunately, we no one will accept the dirty suit and we won’t be able to sell any one.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]In this case you can buy extra Round brim hat or send the veil back and we will replace with the round brim hat.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Regards[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Azim

[/FONT]

21 Aug
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]What if I wash it and clean it as if it's new?


The problem for me is, you've sent two hats out so far, and they haven't been suitable to me. I'm left wondering if you're actually able to send me a suitable veil.


Do you have a round brim hat for people with particularly large heads?


Which veil should I return? The one where the bees sting me on the chin, or the one that doesn't fit on my head? Where do I send it to? What's the procedure for doing such?


Regards,




21 Aug

[FONT=&quot]Hi[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Sorry, people are very clever and picky, they return the item even there is a tiny spot. They will realize it is a used suit and won’t accept it.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I have a round brim hat but if fencing veil doesn’t fit, round brim hat will also not fit.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]In almost 8 weeks’ time, we will have a new stock with larger hats, once they arrive, I will send you the measurement.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Kind Regards[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Azim

[/FONT]


22 Aug
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]The round brim hat doesn't fit. The fencing veil presses against my chin.


It's quite disappointing that I have to wait two months, basically will get to use my suit after Spring. Pretty disappointed in this service.

15 Oct

I'd really like to be able to use the beesuit that I purchased months ago. Has there been any update on replacing the faulty veil? Having looked at the veil that was originally sent, it appears to be damaged, appears that a broken veil was sent. I can send some detailed photos if such helps.



13 Nov

Can I please get an update? Are you still going to replace the faulthy veil so that I can use the suit? I'm still unable to use it. If I don't receive some sort of reply then I'm going to document my experience to a number of beekeeping forums, showing the emails sent back and fourth and the pictures of the faulty veil that was sold.


[FONT=&quot][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]

 

[charlievictorbravo]

In the UK we have distance selling regulations that protect consumers when purchasing over the internet. Not sure about the law in Australia. How about a visit to the factory in Granville NSW - you could visit the Olympic Park at Homebush while you're in the area?

If the law cannot help you, you could take it to a tailor and have a plastic guard fitted to the front of the veil to ensure it is pushed away from your face. With a well-designed suit, this should not be necessary but you're at where you're at.

CVB

 

[Beefriendly]

I threw the plastic spacer away, when I fitted it the veil rested too close to my face and I knew it wouldn't work. So used veil without insert, veil sat a nice distance from face and never had a problem. Seems I may have had a faulty veil also if the insert is meant to keep it away from your face....but not really noticed.
I find bee suits are are sort of generic fit and usually need a little fiddling to suit the individual, like wearing a baseball cap under a BB fencing veil to keep mesh away from face.

 

[Swarm]

Recently purchased one of these, the plastic strip just holds the veil out at full extension, as far from the face as it will go. If this strip is removed, the veil can concertina and the mesh touches your face. The veil zip fastens a little closer to the neck than BB Wear but it still holds the bottom of the veil away from my chin.
I'm looking forward to trying it out on a boiling hot day.

 

[Beefriendly]

I'm looking forward to trying it out on a boiling hot day.

You will enjoy it!
Strange how the plastic strip seems to vary veil distance from different peoples faces. Without it, on my suit, it's almost impossible for the veil to touch my face, yet with the strip in it's inevitable.
Weird!
Perhaps due to suit and person size?

 

[Swarm]

You will enjoy it!
Strange how the plastic strip seems to vary veil distance from different peoples faces. Without it, on my suit, it's almost impossible for the veil to touch my face, yet with the strip in it's inevitable.
Weird!
Perhaps due to suit and person size?

I'm struggling trying to picture this....
When I zip it all up minus the plastic brace, the veil sits nicely but the mesh will spring back against my face and you just know that this would happen at the wrong time. Slide it in and it pushes the top away from my face and it holds the veil in place. Throwing your veil back to drive will mean removing it so a bit of a PITA.
How did yours work the opposite way?? Sounds like a serious sewing mix up for that to happen.
For any kind of overall, the most important measurement is nape to crotch. Get this wrong and any bending movement will drag the the suit towards your backside and that will pull the veil into contact. Mine is roughly the same size as my BB Wear and I'm happy with the fit.
The sun visor is a nice idea but It's this that makes the brace necessary but no hat wearing is going to be cooler.

 

[Beefriendly]

Pop up to North Yorkshire and I can show you.
If I do a strong backward head flip then it is possible for it to happen, same as any suit.
OP replies from OZ armor suggested their may have been a faulty batch...
All I can say is if i have the plastic insert in veil is guaranteed to be touching my face with little movement. Not saying this is the norm, just what I have experienced.

 

[Beefriendly]

I bought this beesuit in July:

https://www.beekeepinggear.com.au/p...oz-armour-ventilated-double-layers-super-cool

When I reread your post's I'm struggling to see what the problem is. You were offered your money back with no quibbles. "If you are not happy with our product, we can give you 100% refund. Please send us your details, order no, date of purchase.
We have sold hundreds of them and never had any issue, maybe your suit or veil faulty. Our sincere apologies for the inconvenience.
Kind Regards
Azim"
You seem to have declined this offer so they they send you new veils. You still weren't happy....
If I was the seller I'd have you labeled as a difficult customer{ignore mode}.

 

[Hivemaker.]

When I reread your post's I'm struggling to see what the problem is.

Could be to do with this..........

Unfortunately I have quite a large head

 

[omnimirage]

I'll look into what I can do regarding consumer rights here. It's too far to visit. What kind of plastic guard are you thinking of? I was wondering about that but not sure how I'd do it.

I'm not sure if mine has a plastic spacer, maybe that's why it's defective?

@ Beefriendly:

I requested the moneyback exchange but it was denied because I made the mistake of wearing the suit and getting dirt on it. That's when he sent out the ill-fitted veil without asking me.

That's rude Hivemaker.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

I bought this beesuit in July:

https://www.beekeepinggear.com.au/p...oz-armour-ventilated-double-layers-super-cool

One of the things that particularly caught my attention with this suit was this line:

-Unique design Veil has a hard plastic insert on the top of the veil which keeps away its mesh from your face and cannot drop to your nose and you will never experience any bee stings plus it has sun protection.

I friggin hate getting stung through the veil. I need a mirror to see where they stung, they're difficult to remove and the face is sensitive to pain.

As soon as the suit arrived, I went to use it to do some needed work. I ended up getting stung quite a number of times through the veil even when doing my best to avoid such. The veil practically rests against my chin, I need to constantly wiggle my head back and push the veil forward, and brush off bees on the veil. Having emailed the company, they told me that some of the veils were damaged. I took some photos of the veil they sold me:

https://imgur.com/a/TxNXi

As you can see in the second photo, the veil is incredibly buckled out, causing the veil to then rest on the chin. They sent me a replacement veil without telling me first, they sent me a hat veil instead of a fencing veil. It happens to be a particularly good quality veil, but then I have a particularly large head and the veil doesn't fit, it's painful and gives me headaches trying. I said this to them, and they told me they didn't have any larger sizes, but they'd get in new stock in two months time. They then stopped replying to my emails and are apparently ignoring me now.

I'm not sure if I have any consumer rights here, I realised that I didn't handle this well but didn't expect the company to treat me with such disregard. I'm not sure if I can fix the broken veil or whether I should just trash it. Should I be able to find a veil from a different company that will work with this suit? Should I contact consumer affairs about this?

Your description of yourself brought to mind the Mighty Mekon of Mekonta, the Eagle comic foe of Dan Dare. Now that guy really had a large head.

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/67/be/ec/67beec6a9215cd85af2ed7dbd2292cb8.jpg

 

[omnimirage]

Hah amusing. To me my head doesn't look that big, but then it's difficult to find hats that actually fit. I am quite a big person in general so I suppose my large head doesn't look so big because it's proportional to the rest of my body.

 

[Swarm]

Hah amusing. To me my head doesn't look that big, but then it's difficult to find hats that actually fit. I am quite a big person in general so I suppose my large head doesn't look so big because it's proportional to the rest of my body.

How loose is your suit? If it's too tight, it will cause problems. To me, it's either that or you have a faulty veil.

Judging by Beefriendly's description, especially removing the brace to improve the situation, there seems to be a batch of very odd veils.
My own veil fits well, I think the only way to work out what's wrong would be to compare them.

 

[omnimirage]

How loose is your suit? If it's too tight, it will cause problems. To me, it's either that or you have a faulty veil.

Judging by Beefriendly's description, especially removing the brace to improve the situation, there seems to be a batch of very odd veils.
My own veil fits well, I think the only way to work out what's wrong would be to compare them.

The suit itself is a good loose fit. I'm pretty sure the veil is faulty it's buckled out of place.

 

[Stiffy]

If it were me I would find a hood that I liked and fitted my head, then get a seamstress to re-fit. I doubt very much that you are going to get any further re-dress from the sellers.
S

 

[Beefriendly]

Judging by Beefriendly's description, especially removing the brace to improve the situation, there seems to be a batch of very odd veils.
.

I suspect it's more likely due to the suits being all the same (different sizes but essentially the same) and we humans come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.
With 2 of us having the veil pushed too close to our faces using the plastic insert, perhaps you are the fortunate one?
I can see how it's supposed to work with the plastic spacer but when it's fitted on mine it pushes the veil too close to my face. If I can be bothered I'll dig it out and take some selfies.

 

[Swarm]

Beefriendly, do you think I'm having a dig or something? Just to clarify, that's not the case, just struggling to picture what's happening.

Mine has a sun visor along the top of the mesh hoops and the plastic brace slides into an eyelet in this material and forwards until it reaches the front hoop. There is about an inch that still protrudes and a piece of Velcro folds over that to cover it.
So now with the plastic brace fitted, the mesh is rigidly held from front to hood. The veil zips to the suit a bit closer to neckline than my BB Wear, which would bring the mesh closer to my chin, but there is still plenty of room.
Is it the case that when you used the brace, it caused the zip area to pivot towards your face?

 

[Beefriendly]

A picture will be worth a 1000 words....but not tonight, been on a serious river rubbish clean up and cream crackered.
No I don't think you are having a dig, it's always difficult to see what others problems are when you aren't experiencing them with the same gear. In my case it's probably because I'm not tall enough but require an extra extra large, which will affect the size of the hood.
All will be revealed (oeer missus) eventually.