Just looks like normal wear to me, which you often get on the arm rests, surely if there was any damage as such it would be patchy and all over the suite not just confined to the arms!
any suite with a piled fabric is surely going to get wear in the high contact areas, esp if its a few years old.
i expect like alot of customers they just didnt notice it before, or hidden by the dirt.
Hope you get it sorted
Regards
steve