Takealot sent me the wrong shoes, accused me of using them, and ruined my Sanlam Run plans...

I am extremely frustrated and disappointed with the shocking service I have received from Takealot. I ordered a pair of New Balance FuelCell running shoes on 7 May 2026 and received them on 8 May 2026. The very first issue was that Takealot sent me the wrong color immediately logged a return on the same day and requested the correct color. Despite the fact that the shoes were never worn, my return was later rejected because the item was allegedly "used." This is completely unacceptable and simply untrue. I opened the box, saw that the color was incorrect, and put the shoes straight back in the box. To make matters worse, the photos Takealot used as evidence appear to show signs of wear, which suggests that they may have sent me a used or damaged item and then tried to blame me for it. I had to contact the call centre myself just to find out why the return was rejected, and the first agent advised that there was no note attached explaining the reason. A second return was then logged as a damaged item. Incredibly, Takealot scheduled a courier to collect the shoes before they had even been returned to me. Naturally, I could not hand over an item that was still in Takealot's possession. The shoes were only delivered back to me later that same day. After that, no courier arrived to collect the shoes, despite the system repeatedly indicating that collection attempts were being made. I then received an email claiming that four collection attempts had been made and that I was unavailable each time. This is absolutely false. I specifically purchased these shoes for the Sanlam Run this weekend, and due to Takealot's repeated mistakes, poor communication, and disorganized return process, I am now unable to use them for the event. This entire experience has been beyond frustrating. I was sent the wrong color, accused of using an item I never wore, and forced to deal with a completely chaotic and misleading return process. I expected far better from a company of Takealot's size and reputation. This level of incompetence is unacceptable!