Why doesn't my Belkin wireless adapter have the advertised stand?

About five weeks ago I bought a Belkin wireless adapter from Currys in Norwich. When I opened the package I found the desktop stand was missing.

This item was shown on the setup manuals checklist along with the driver disc and the adapter. The Currys website also displayed the stand.

I sent Belkin an email and phoned the company and was told this model does not come with a stand. I am a bit peeved to find the manual and the information on Curry' site is incorrect.

John Neale

When a buyer receives goods they believe don't fit the advertised description or have parts or peripherals missing they should always contact the retailer first.

This is because the buyer's contract is with the retailer, not the manufacturer. So Mr Neale should have contacted Currys, not Belkin, initially. We would also always advise people to take copies of adverts and keep all invoices, so they can use this as evidence in a dispute.

If the advert is online, just take a screen grab of the page, using the print screen button on your keyboard or using a free program such as Gadwin Printscreen.

We wouldn't worry so much about using the manual because although it may show the stand, very often in small print you will find it stated that with some models, certain items are not included.

We took the information provided to us by Mr Neale and looked up the adapter online. We saw the adapter on sale at many retailers and always advertised with a small plug-in stand. So we have contacted Belkin to verify why it says this model doesn't have a stand.

We could not find the product advertised on Currys' website, so we have no idea if it showed this Belkin wireless adapter with a stand. If the adapter does not include the stand, advertising it with one is a breach of the Consumer Protection Regulations (CPRs).

This law, which was introduced in May 2008, prohibits misleading or aggressive selling practices and unfair or misleading advertising.

If a consumer believes an advert is misleading they should contact Consumer Direct. Consumers can also lodge a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority.