'Hanley B&M bobble turned my daughter's hair blue'
THREE-YEAR-OLD Scarlett Belfield has been left with blue streaks in her hair – after a bobble discoloured her blonde locks.
Blue dye from the bobble ran into part of Scarlett's hair as she played near her Smallthorne home over the weekend.
The bobble was included in a £1.29 pack of hair accessories bought from Hanley's B&M store by her mum before Christmas.
Now Scarlett's mother Charlotte Hollinshead is demanding compensation from the store.
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The 22-year-old housewife says she has washed her daughter's hair 15 times since the incident – without removing the blue streaks.
Charlotte said: "I bought the pack because the hair ties and clips were pretty and I thought they were good value for money but I can't believe what it has done to her hair."
"The bobble has stained Scarlett's hair blue and nothing will make it come out.
"I have tried everything and even contacted a hairdressers' for advice. They told me it may need professional colouring to get it out.
"It is absolutely ridiculous that a child of that age should get their hair coloured because of a hair tie."
Charlotte claims that when she complained staff told her the blue bobble is not suitable for girls with blonde hair.
Charlotte, of Croft Court, added: "I couldn't believe my ears when they told me the bobbles weren't made for blonde children – how would I have known that?
"When I saw Scarlett I could see part of her hair had been covered in blue dye and I just thought 'Oh my God'.
"I took her straight upstairs to get it washed but it hardly made a difference.
"I am very angry because we have had to send her to the nursery she attends at Smallthorne Primary School looking like that and with it being bright blue it is very noticeable."
Scarlett's dad Nathan Belfield, aged 22, who is an unemployed bricklayer, said: "We had just been out in the street enjoying the snow when it happened.
"The dye was very dark blue at first and we are trying to get her hair back to normal.
"We are angry with what the shop said and we don't want to have to dye a three-year-old's hair, it's just not right.
"I have had teachers at school asking me why her hair is a different colour and I've had to explain we haven't done it.
"It is embarrassing to explain and we would like an apology from the shop and more than a refund."
Staff at Hanley's Old Hall Street store have refused to comment on Charlotte's complaint.
The firm's head office declined to comment.
52 Comments
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by Anonymonkey
Thursday, January 31 2013, 9:10PM
“She smells moneyyyyyy and Compooooo stupid woman she wont get a penny the courts will laugh the moment they read the complaint...”
by az34fgh
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 10:46PM
“Not only did the Sentinel print this rubbish, but they put the photograph on the front page! I will not be buying this rag any more, it's getting as bad as the Daily Express - according to their health corresponents we can live forever by taking statins and aspirin. Is it possible to delete our login details to escape this trash?”
by stevenweiss
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 10:17PM
“The stain will grow out in days. Get with it, Sentinel. This is not news, not even gossip. A couple of good washes in Ariel will render this hairy accessory benign. You are obviously desperate for news. Here's some breaking headline: Yesterday i cut my fingernails with the wire cutting portion of a pair of pliers. Print that!!!”
by Bonbonforever
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 10:04PM
“is this cr*p really news? come on!”
by boboclown
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 9:14PM
“http://tinyurl.com/32djv4 it was just a compo excercise”
by Polvaliant
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 8:46PM
“Whether you think this is trivial or not, there are such things as Trading Standards. An item should be fit for purpose and of merchantable quality. It should do what it's intended to do and any problems or possible defects which may occur should be warned about so you can have an informed choice to buy it or not. This little girl needs a refund and the cost of correcting her hair paid for by B&M and the products should be removed from sale until warning stickers are attached. Or should she just go and get a horse burger to go with them?”
by dougalcross
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 8:41PM
“Of course the mother should receive compensation! She should be awarded £1.29 without delay.
And I bet that sales of the bobbles have gone through the roof because of the numbers of little girls wanting blue hair.
Our recently adopted compo culture sickens me. This set of circumstances is hardly threatening to life or limb. Or to hair.”
by 123family544
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 7:52PM
“well what a load of muppets!!!! what on earth as their employment status got to do with it???? shes 3 and its dyed her hair blue! i suppose if she had dyed her hair intenti****ly she would be a bad mother???? grow up u narrow minded people!!! i work and i would not want a bobble to dye my hair!!! would that make it any better??? obviously she as washed her hair and it will NOT come out! thats the whole point of the article! and bnms lack of customer service and bad attitude! ill come dye all your hairs without permission shall i???? or is that not allowed because u all work!!! idiots!!!”
by Corinne_
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 5:57PM
“Cheap bobbles have always needed to be washed or kept dry as some dye will come out when new, that's true of most colours and has been for as long as I can remember, it usually says on the packaging that the colours may run if wet, how many kids have used coloured hairspray in the holidays and if they are blonde still have some colour left in by the end of summer, getting b@m to pay for a visit to the hairdressers (there are plenty in smallthorne) is reasonable after all the trouble she has gone to contacting the sentinel but to waste cab's time when they have things like families being made homeless and other important things to help with is beyond a joke. I do hope that no self respecting solicitor takes on this case”
by A_Reader
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 5:52PM
“I can see £ signs in her mother's eyes!”