Super poor customer service from Takealot

I bought myself a Milex Airfryer on Takealot as a birthday present to myself in May 2020. I read reviews and saved a long time and finally decided to buy the Milex. I took special care to read the instruction manual and cleaned and cared for the unit according to manufacturer's instructions. In August 2020, the safety latch (a small plastic square that slides over the release button) broke off. I was sure that the unit can operate quite find without this piece, but since it was only three months after purchase, I decided to return it. I noticed on the Takealot App that the return was declined on 14 August, but nobody informed me why it was declined, or if they would be returning the item. After struggling to reach an agent, I was told the item was damaged by me and that the return was declined due to improper care. After writing a nasty email, the return was reopened, another ticket number was generated and I waited until 28 August when the status on the App advised that the return was concluded. Again, no feedback as to the outcome of the return. Again I phoned and emailed to be told again that the return was declined due to improper care and damage from my side. I kept asking that a technician call me to explain to me how I damaged the item or at least if they would be returning it to me, but to no avail. Now I'm out R2000, my airfryer is sitting at the Takealot warehouse and nobody can tell me what I did wrong. I keep hoping that Takealot will redeem themselves, but I am beyond disgusted with how this was handled