Inferior customer service from Reebok online

I bought my son a pair of reebok trainers for gym. Order placed end January, received first week of February. Within 5 days of delivery and 2 gym workouts of 1 hour each, the inner lining at the toe became loose and he was unable to wear it. I contacted the online store and the shoe was collected on 10 February. By the 21st, I had received no feedback. I called customer service and spoke to ****er who was completely unhelpful until I asked to speak with a superior. He then checked my profile and said he saw there was a hold up, and he would speak to management and get back to me. I received an email this morning stating that my query/ return was at head office and they were awaiting a response as to whether or not my return would be "accepted ". How can there be any issue with the return of a defective product, returned less than a week of delivery? I have bought through many online stores and have never received such inferior service. Even Amazon.com has processed returns and refunds from America faster and more professionally than this.