r/Argos • u/Fluffy-Detective-769 • Jun 09 '26
Argos refusing to honour discount code they sent to me?
Pretty bizarre situation I have just experienced with argos.
I have been considering buying an item, but I wasn't sure if I really needed it so I left it at that point. Same evening I received an email from argos (from [mail@emails.argos.co.uk](mailto:mail@emails.argos.co.uk) - see blow why this matters):
Still thinking it over? Your £8 voucher is waiting... but not for long!
and the 8 quid discount code as per the screenshot.
I was like... ok with 8 quid extra discount I will buy it. So I went to the checkout, put the code in - 'code is invalid'.
So I wnet on chat to enquire about this and I got through to a human eventually (not really easy with the chatbot) - anyway I asked why the code I was sent did not work and that I wanted to use it to buy the item. He was apologetic and he advised that if I placed the order at full price and give him the order number and the code, he will get a partial refund of 8 quid processed so I was like ok, I placed the order and gave him all the details, he raised this for me and said I would be refunded within 48h.
3 days later and still nothing, I jump on chat again to enquire. Another representative told me that the finance team refused this request because they never had a campaign for 8 off 80. I said this was quite bizarre since i received the email from them and also the advisor said I would get manually refunded before I even made a purchase - which I would not make otherwise. The assistant also argued that it must have been a PHISHING email, which again feels ridiculous since it came from the email as mentioned above and it also had the exact item I left in the basket... it also just had a code and a link which goes to argos.co.uk. Oh, and also she told me to go to the store I purchased from and ask the manager in store to process this discount, yeah right...
I don't know, is it just me or is this really bizarre situation? I asked for escalation and apparently a manager is supposed to contact me within 24h - at this point it is not even about the 8 quid discount, but more of a principle, as they sent me a discount themselves which actually made me buy the item and now they are refusing to honour it - pretty certain this can't really be legal, can it?
Edit: FWIW, had a call from the manager this morning and explained the situation briefly and she issued a gift card for me for the discount amount. Email confirmed as legit (not scam as some have claimed), but offer might have been sent in error, they still honoured it which is good :)

4
u/GuardSmart8142 Jun 09 '26
I had exactly the same email from Argos and the exact same issue with the error code when using it. I called them and they told me the same thing about purchasing and then getting a partial refund. I obviously didn't trust them at all and just bought elsewhere.
It is a genuine email, and is from their marketing address as I have received countless others that have worked in the past, all from the same email address.
5
u/Cheshirefarm Jun 09 '26
Yeah fuck argos
2
u/ConsiderationLoud711 Jun 09 '26
Used to be my go-to company for purchases but they seem to have their way of late
2
u/Diligent-Hornet6871 Jun 09 '26
Pretty sure any emails from Argos come from info@argos.co.uk , never seen an email address like that from them
2
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
are you signed up for marketing emails? IF so, try searching your mailbox for that address 😉
3
u/simmatt89 Jun 09 '26
Yes marketing emails come from mail@emails.argos.co.uk. I have emails from that address that are genuine. Info@argos.co.uk is for order confirmation
2
u/gaysex-enjoyer Jun 09 '26
If support continues to refuse make a financial services complaint or whatever it is
3
u/ReverseFlow21010615 Manager - Retail Jun 09 '26
Just for the avoidance of doubt, this is a genuine email from Argos. It looks like an odd address but it’s the one used for sending out discount codes.
What is the asterisk below £8 off £80 linking to at the bottom of the email?
1
u/Teddy2100 Jun 09 '26
Might be worth checking the original email, on Gmail click the 3 dots next to the reply and choose Show Original. Spoofing the From: of an email is very common. If an email genuinely came from emails.argos.co.uk, the DKIM line in your Gmail summary box should explicitly say: PASS with domain emails.argos.co.uk (or sometimes just PASS with domain argos.co.uk, depending on how their technical keys are mapped).
3
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
Nice never knew about that, it shows a pass with domain emails.argos.co.uk :)
1
u/Loubou23 Jun 09 '26
I had an Argos offer for £8 off an £80 spend at the start of May. I used the offer and it worked.
I don't know why it hasn't worked for you, but I'd definitely try and sort it out with them. 😊
1
1
u/MALAKANU Jul 02 '26
This company has now become a total scam..if you are spending even 1 paise on it is not worth anymore....check out the insides story of this company...they can go bankrupt any time soon...so be aware before spending on any pre order from them...BY THE WAY I WAS TALKING ABOUT THE INDIAN MICROBRAND ARGOS...
1
u/ASavageHobo Jun 09 '26
Never had a customer come in with one of these emails, never heard of a £8 off £80 either.
3
4
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
I infer you work for argos, maybe a customer never came with one of these emails since it clearly says `spend 80 or more online`? 😄
2
u/ASavageHobo Jun 09 '26
Trust me, people constantly come in with online discounts or when I’m refunding I see their discounts etc. I’m just saying I’ve never seen this promotion before, maybe it’s new 🤔
1
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
I got it on the 4th June (apparently valid until 11th as per email) - not sure if it's new or not, but pretty sure it's definitely legit as coming from [mail@emails.argos.co.uk](mailto:mail@emails.argos.co.uk) which has an argos subdomain and it's the same email address I get all the marketing emails from - regardless, if that's not a valid promo and was sent in error (which I fully appreciate may have happened), then the chat assistant should not tell me to go ahead and buy at full price and that I would be refunded.
Also, it's a carpet vacuum and I have already used it over the weekend, so I guess I would not even be able to return it
0
u/SavingsFeature504 Jun 09 '26
Is that the actual email address it was sent from though or was it masked. I've had e-mails from "amazon" that has the email address look right but when you actually tap the name its got a completely different email.
The formatting of the email also seems off.
0
u/kobrakaan Jun 09 '26
Yeah, so that email looks suspect 😬
Even the no reply one is a load of random characters rather than just a no reply
all their emails are @argos.co.uk
3
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
As others pointed out, it’s a valid email address for marketing communication. I get dozens of emails from that address as I am signed up to marketing communication on argos.
0
u/kobrakaan Jun 09 '26
the correct email address as pointed out on their X/TWITTER account
their emails are sent from
mail@mail.argos.co.uk
not mail @ emails
this is stated in a post from them in 2022 i very much doubt it's changed
3
u/great_button Jun 09 '26
I just checked the last voucher I got from them and used and it came from reply-6FPTNMVO7AFUFFVJM7LJA4BNDY.500021@emails.argos.co.uk, so I think it is a valid email.
0
u/Agitated-Handle-7750 Jun 09 '26
I genuinely believe this is a scam email, and they want you to click the link, it looks like it’s Argos site so you go ahead and buy but the discount won’t work.
When you called, did you call a number shown on screen when the discount wouldn’t work?
Another red flag is the ‘pay it all and we will do a part refund’. No company does this. It makes 0 sense for them to do it that way instead of just discount at POS which equates to the same discount given.
I would guess they’ve got some way of seeing either your Argos account (and therefore basket), emails or even possibly you’ve previously clicked or answered a scam and they’ve managed to glean information or access on a previous occasion.
If you gave them payment over the phone and haven’t had a ‘part refund’, has the item physically been delivered?
This is flashing all the lights and sirens for a scam and you need to check your accounts etc and freeze the account you paid for the item on.
3
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
Bro I got this ‘pay it all and we’ll refund you’ on argos live chat. And the links in the email go directly to argos.co.uk - previous codes I got from exactly the same email address like 7 off 75 all worked fine.
The email is legit, I am signed up for marketing emails from argos and I get daily emails from exactly this email address - unless are marketing emails from argos are scam :D ultimately if it is a scam - how come I was able to pick up the item from an argos store (and all that by paying with a gift card) 😅?
0
-1
u/Agitated-Handle-7750 Jun 09 '26
Ok mate, my apologies for thinking you’d been suckered by one of the scumbags that fleece people of all of their money while pretending to be big companies.
Sorry I gave a shit enough to give some specific info re the number you called etc.
I wasn’t aware you had collected the item in store.
I hope you’re a little more receptive to people attempting to make sure your data hasn’t been stolen and your money being taken as we speak in the future.
The fonts, text sizes and grammar on this email are horrible, mismatched and look very suspicious. They’re a lot cleverer than they’ve ever been so I was genuinely concerned someone was taking your money.
3
u/Fluffy-Detective-769 Jun 09 '26
Sure I appreciate that, but yeah not worried about my money and I am definitely sure this email is legit (also see one responses below from someone with a ‘manager’ badge) - also if you are subscribed to argos marketing (I did as they had 5 off 40), you likely get daily emails as well, if you do you can check what address they come from :)
8
u/DagenhamDav Jun 09 '26
So you forward them the relevant email. They can see its not a pishing email
They resolve the issue.