Shockingly bad service from Discovery Vitality partner

Giving 1 star because 0 is not an option.

Totalsports are a Discovery Vitality partner, so you can use a Vitality discount voucher to purchase a Vitality device or pair of shoes from them.

HOWEVER...you cannot do this on their Bash linked online store. You can only do this instore.

The local stores (and I checked all the stores in both KZN and the Eastern Cape) did not have the item I had decided on in stock.

They are unable (apparently) to order it for me to collect instore.

You cannot use your Vitality discount voucher on their online store (yes, I logged a fault, and they responded to notify me that this is the case).

The proposed solution? Apparently you need to order the item from the online store. Then bring it to a local store. Then return it for a refund (we'll get to this just now). Then buy it again so that you can get your discount voucher app****.

This is ridiculous, and I feel, borderline *****.

But after much argument back and forth, and asking my local store to check for the item everywhere, I agreed to try this insane method.

They returned the item, no problem, I rebought the item, and they app**** my Vitality discount, no problem. Then I awaited the refund...which arrived only 5 working days (and 8 days in practice later), and only after I had to phone them for 4 days and jump through innumerable hoops to prove that it was not being held' by my bank.

This item has cost me twice in terms of time, telephone calls and considerable inconvenience what it would have cost from another online vendor or any other vendor. Unfortunately it was not in stock at all with the other Vitality sports partner, or I'd have chosen them in a heartbeat.

To top it all off, after logging a complaint about this situation with Discovery Vitality, who referred it to Totalsports, the ongoing and relatively brain dead response from them has been that "this is not a valid SKU", which has absolutely NOTHING to do with my complaint about not being able to use my Vitality discount voucher on the online store or my local store being able to obtain the item I want so I can pay for to instore.