By Danielle Kate Wroe

Copyright manchestereveningnews

A woman was left “howling” after purchasing a personalised T-shirt for her son – but what arrived in the post wasn’t what she expected. Courtney Couper paid £3.96 for the item from Temu, which was supposed to feature his name on the front with a plain design on the reverse. When she ordered the item, Courtney had to fill in two text boxes which would then be printed on the front and back of the shirt respectively. However, the printer misinterpreted the instructions entirely and Courtney’s private message to the vendor was emblazoned across the back of the T-shirt in large, bold lettering, leaving Courtney “in shock”. She said: “At the time of writing that message to the seller, I actually laughed to myself thinking, imagine if they printed this message on the back. “I never thought they actually would; I thought my instructions were really obvious. “I was a little disappointed at first, but I couldn’t help but be amused. I still have it, more as a joke. My son can wear it around the home”. The correspondence stated: “Dear seller, I do not want anything printed on the back. I would like the back of the T-shirt to remain blank. Thank you.” However, rather than following these directions, the printer wrote exactly these words on the shirt. Fortunately, when she contacted Temu about the blunder, they were pleased to reimburse her the nearly £4 she had spent. Courtney, from Ahipara, New Zealand, mentioned she remains undeterred from shopping with the discount retailer. Fortunately, the majority of her previous bespoke orders have gone off without a hitch. However, she cautioned other shoppers to be vigilant when ordering personalised products. She said: “I love Temu. I’ve ordered a lot of personalised items in the past and they’ve been great. But I probably would avoid ordering custom items if you want to leave the front or back blank. “I don’t think a real person is reading your orders; it must be a machine”. A spokesperson for Temu responded: “We want to thank Courtney for placing the order. We understand it didn’t meet her expectations and appreciate the good humour she brought to the situation. “She was given a full refund, and we hope to have the opportunity to serve her again in the future. “Customers are covered by our 90-day money-back guarantee for items that are not as described. Our customer service team is available 24/7 to help with any post-sale concerns”.