Takealot refuses to refund item and refuses to communicate

I have not had to do a Hellopeter review for Takealot before but the most recent interaction with them was enough to warrant it.

I purchased a laser pointer, and experienced many difficulties with the process from purchase to my request for a refund.

Firstly, it took twice as long to receive this item due to miscommunications between the seller and Takealot. Takealot did not communicate with me about this at all until I queried why I had not received my item on the delivery date.

Secondly, the laser can cause retinal damage through general, reasonable use which is not good. I can understand that someone pointing a laser straight into their eyes will cause damage, but I was getting a headache just from pointing it on the ground and walls for my cats to play with. The seller should put a warning on the description that the laser is that powerful so that buyers can make a more informed decision.

Thirdly, we requested the return and refund of this item less than a day after receiving it. As we purchased it for our cats, we did not want to cause damage to their eyes or our own. However, the seller refused to accept our request for a refund.

We returned the item to Takealot in exactly the same condition as what it was sent to us, and yet Takealot/the seller is claiming that we are not adhering to the rules for the item to be undamaged and in its original packaging (it came unsealed and open, with dirt on it; we even returned it in the same Takealot box it came in with all the original packaging).

Takealot customer service then proceeded to ignore my emails regarding clarification of why the refund of this item was denied.

Due to their lack of clear communication and willingness to adhere to resolving customer disputes such as this one, I have resorted to sending an email to every email address of Takealot's that I can find and posting this Hellopeter review in the hopes of having this resolved.

There is no valid reason for my request for a refund to be denied. The item was returned with all the parts and packaging it came in.