loreal pro color would not take

i did a friend's non damaged hair in loreal and it did not take at all....i even tried leaving it on for 40 min, the reccommended time is 25 min and it still did nothing....anyone have this problem with loreal professional color?

you know what susan?  she did have some shades eq on her hair.....we were going darker by 1 level....the shades had been in for quite some time and i figured that it had (and it had faded out) been long enough to apply something else....it was weird....we tried the excellence in the tube and the preference in the bottle....we even got the loreal precolor cream to put on.....she does not have well water....but you think it could have been the shades eq?  i know it is silocone based.....do you know how long it stays in your hair?  thank you for responding to my question....i have to tell you, i was baffled.