‘We are unable to accommodate you’: UK retailer Flannels reluctant to apply Irish vouchers law

For the second time in a year a reader has contacted us about a British retailer’s apparent misapplication of Irish law when it comes to gift vouchers.

Last time out it was JD Sports and this time round it is Flannels, a shop that is owned by the Fraser Group in the UK, that appears to misunderstand how things in the State work.

Before we get to the new story, it might be worth recalling the one from earlier this year.

Back in January Pricewatch was contacted by a father who told us his son tried to use a gift voucher in a JD Sports outlet only to be told it expired after 12 months.

This was a clear breach of 2019 legislation which makes it clear that all gift vouchers sold by all retailers and all service providers operating in the Republic must last for at least five years.

So we contacted JD Sports on our reader’s behalf and it quickly acknowledged that it had got it wrong and it apologised and reinstated the voucher.

But the story did not end there.

It subsequently emerged – following an investigation by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) that was prompted by our queries – that the Pricewatch reader was not alone and in fact 5,500 gift cards sold online by JD Sports had carried the wrong expiry date and it was forced to issue refunds amount to a quarter of a million euro.

[ JD Sports to reissue thousands of ‘expired’ gift cards after watchdog talksOpens in new window ]

So that takes us to the here and now and a new story from a reader that has echoes of the JD Sports story.

This reader contacted us on behalf of his wife Audrey and in connection with a shop by the name of Flannels.

Audrey had been given two vouchers worth €100 each for Flannels in January 2023 and January 2024. In case you are wondering what British-owned Flannels is, it is a high-end retail chain that stocks all manner of designer labels.

Audrey had not used either of her vouchers but after hearing that the retailer was planning to scale back its physical presence in the Republic she was spurred into action.

She took herself into the Flannels shop on St Patrick’s St in Cork with a view to treating herself to something lovely. It is currently having a closing down sale, having opened in Cork three years ago. It closed its Blanchardstown branch during the summer.

But it wasn’t to be.

Instead of leaving with some high-end designer clobber, Audrey walked out of the shop with steam coming out of her ears.

She was annoyed because when she had presented the two vouchers, which, as we said, she had been given in 2023 and 2024, to the shop assistant, they were both declined on the basis that they had both passed the store’s two-year expiry limit.

This didn’t sound at all right to Audrey so when she went home she contacted the customer service department via email feeling pretty sure that what she had been told in store must have been an error.

She knew full well that the Republic has a five-year limit on gift vouchers. She got nowhere there either.

When he was sharing Audrey’s story with us, her husband helpfully included the correspondence between her and Flannels.

In one of her salvos, Audrey pointed out that “the two gift cards were purchased in store in Ireland and are fully protected under the Irish Consumer Protection (Gift Vouchers) Act 2019”.

She stressed that under Irish law “all gift cards purchased in the Republic of Ireland must have a minimum validity period of five years”.

And she pointed out that the Flannels “two-year corporate policy is legally void in Ireland and overridden by Irish statutory law. Enforcing a 24-month expiry date on vouchers is a breach of Irish legislation. So please can you get both vouchers reinstated to be used in-store in Ireland if not online.”

[ Dig out that gift voucher and spend it this weekend – it’s only sensibleOpens in new window ]

In response to her email, a Flannels customer service agent, in a very mealy-mouthed way asked Audrey to “first and foremost, please accept our sincere apologies for any disappointment and inconvenience caused”.

They continued: “We understand your concerns regarding the validity period of the gift card and appreciate you taking the time to explain your position and raise the relevant consumer protection legislation for our consideration.”

The agent said that “following a further review of your case, we regret to inform you that we are unable to approve your request to extend the validity of the gift card. Our records confirm that the gift card expired on 20 December 2025, in accordance with the two-year validity period applied to the card under our terms and conditions.”

She acknowledged Audrey’s “reference to Irish consumer protection legislation and understand that you believe a longer validity period should apply. However, having reviewed your request, we are unable to offer a further extension or reinstate the expired gift card on this occasion.

“We appreciate that this is not the outcome you were hoping for, and we sincerely regret any frustration this decision may cause. Please understand that our decision remains unchanged following the review, and we are unable to make any further exceptions in this matter.”

Audry pushed back and, in response, the Flannels agent said that “following a further review of your request, we regret to inform you that we are unable to approve the reinstatement of the expired gift cards.

“We acknowledge that you disagree with our position and have raised concerns regarding the applicable statutory requirements. Nevertheless, our decision remains unchanged, and we are unable to reinstate or extend the validity of either gift card.”

[ Gift vouchers: know your rights and the charges that might applyOpens in new window ]

The response from the retailer went on to say that it “sincerely regret[ted] that we cannot provide the outcome you were hoping for and appreciate your understanding that we are unable to accommodate your request on this occasion. Thank you for bringing your concerns to our attention.”

Now Pricewatch is no legal expert but when it comes to gift vouchers but we are pretty sure that Irish law trumps any individual company’s terms and conditions every single time, which would mean Audrey was correct and the customer service rep from Flannels was wrong.

So, we contacted Flannels on behalf of Audrey.

We asked why Flannels and its owner, the Fraer Group, did not appear to be applying the law as it relates to gift vouchers sold in the State correctly?

And we asked how long it had been in breach of Irish law.

We also wanted to know how many vouchers with an expiry limit of just two years had been sold by the retailer in the Republic since 2019.

And we noted that while the query was specifically connected with Flannels, was the expiry limit of two years applied to vouchers sold by other businesses under the Fraser Group umbrella trading in the Republic of Ireland?

What followed was a drawn-out exchange between us and them.

In one communication we were told that “as a goodwill gesture, we would be happy to offer the customer an extension on her vouchers, provided she can confirm the relevant voucher numbers or references”.

We had to go back and point out that applying a five-year expiry limit is not “a gesture of goodwill” but adhering to the law as it exists in the State.

In response to that we were told that if the vouchers were sold “greater than five years ago then as a goodwill gesture we would give a little extra on this occasion as it seems they have had a confusing experience”.

Fair enough, but the mails from Audrey had made it clear the vouchers were received in 2023 and 2024.

And Audrey was definitely not the one who was confused.

Anyway, moving on. We understand that as a result of our correspondence that the vouchers in question would be corrected so that they were for a five-year term and that the retailer’s customer service agents and staff members would also get a reminder that Irish law mandates that gift vouchers must have an expiry limit of at least five years.

We did go back and point out that the problem could not possibly have rested with staff either in-store or manning the customer service email desk as the original vouchers sold two and three years ago would have been input with the incorrect two-year expiry limit.

At this point the tone of the correspondence shifted and we were told that no further comment would be forthcoming.