Pathetic Service! I want my refund!

I purchased some clothes from Woolworths Centurion on 24 September 2022. I subsequently returned one of the items on 12 November 2022, at the Mall@Reds branch. All of the transactions were processed through my account (to register some activity on the account), and my account was immediately settled via EFT.

As of today, 25 November 2022, the credit note for the items returned is still not reflecting on my account. The clothing returned was valued at R1,799.00 and I want Woolworths to refund me for this amount.

I have requested a refund from head office, but they say my account balance is sitting at R0.00. Yes, because you haven't allocated the credit note to my account yet!!

I have been to the Mall@Reds branch again to query why the credit note is not reflecting on my account yet and they indicated that the transactions has been processed from their side and that the problem now lies with head office.

I phone head office and they tell me they can't see the credit note on their system and that I should go back to the store for assistance. I do that, the store provides me with a printout showing that they have in fact processed the transaction and tells me I need to take it up with head office as that is where the problem lies.

I send copies of the invoice, credit note, a screenshot of my account from the app, and a copy of the document the branch gave to me to head office and request, again, that they sort it out.

Head office now informs me that the credit note has been processed against my account and that my account is sitting at R0.00. I go and check on the app and the transaction is not reflecting on my account, so they are obviously looking at the wrong credit note (despite having sent them a copy of the credit note in question. The incompetence and lack of effort/care is astounding!).

So I send an email to head office again telling them that the credit note is not reflecting against my account and send them copies of everything again. I also decide to go back to the store to see if they can help me somehow. The store gives me the same story, telling me I need to contact head office (i.e. We are too lazy to try and assist you. Contact head office.).

I then call head office again (right after being at the store) and give them the whole story again, for the umpteenth time. The lady I spoke to then informed me that I need to send all of the documents in pdf format (some of the things I had sent previously were in .jpg format). Why was I not informed in the other email correspondence that I needed to do this?! She then proceeded to call another department and then informed me that they couldn't see the credit note on their side and that I needed to go back to the store and have them call head office on my behalf. What difference does it make who calls them??

So to sum it up, a credit note has not been allocated to my account. Head office tells me I must go to the store, and the store tells me I must contact head office. Apparently there is a difference between me contacting head office and the store contacting the very same number for head office, for the exact same issue - How? I don't know! Woolworths owes me money, but until the credit note reflects against my account they cannot process a refund. It has been almost two weeks now since I returned the clothes and the transaction still does not reflect against my account.

This service is absolutely pathetic and the level of incompetence and lack of willingness to get things sorted out by Woolworths store and head office is shocking!

I want the credit note to be allocated to my account and for the money that is owed to me to be paid to me.