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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to think Hello Fresh are a bunch of utter robdogs and should refund me?

48 replies

barstewards · 02/10/2014 17:29

Probably going to get handed my arse now but I'm so upset I am crying and need to vent

Got a voucher for £25 off Hello Fresh with an Amazon order back in July. Ordered a box, which cost me £11 after the discount. Then tried to cancel but its really hard to do so. Even harder on a phone screen which is my usual method of internetting - it involves tiny print and multiple clicks and ticks in tiny boxes (presumably its intentionally hard to cancel to make sure people keep getting boxes whether or not they want them), so I ended up pausing the deliveries for 2 months with the intention of going back to cancel asap.

Things happened, I forgot to cancel, mea culpa.

But today I got a PayPal notification that I'd paid them £36 for next weeks delivery.

No email from Hello Fresh themselves, to tell me a box was due or to offer me the chance to do a meal swap etc. I had no idea, the first I knew was when Paypal told me I'd paid for the fucking thing.

Within moments of getting the Paypal reciept I was online trying to cancel it but it wouldn't let me, so I emailed them but they claim its too late to stop the one that is being sent out NEXT FUCKING WEEK my arse.

I am actually weeping, we don't have thirty six fucking quid to spend on 3 meals at the moment. I'm self employed and my workload is low at the moment, we are on a £40 a week food budget, I simply cannot afford this box.

AIBU to think that they should email customers BEFORE a box is in transit to give them the chance to cancel, especially after a 9 week pause in deliveries?

OP posts:

Original poster

barstewards · 03/10/2014 13:35

I honestly didn't realise they were going to do that.

I knew I hadn't cancelled completely but because there were no green delivery dates marked on my account, I thought that meant there would be no more deliveries. I'm not fucking psychic!

OP posts:

windchime · 03/10/2014 14:33

I am sorry £36 has tipped you over the edge.

wobblybobbly · 03/10/2014 16:17

Hi, I have been using Hello Fresh for a while (9 months) and am so sorry you had these issues. Apart from one late delivery we haven't had any issues at all, and I have found their customer services to be very helpful. They have never sent me a reminder email when my deliveries have been paused and restarted, but then neither do Graze who I also use. Its up to you to manage your account online. Hope they get it sorted for you!
We have tried Gousto and never found their recipes to be so varied or inspiring as the ones Hello Fresh do.

Caramelkate · 03/10/2014 16:25

I found them rubbish too - sent me the wrong recipe cards, when I complained ( after spending ages trying to work out what ingredients went in what), they resent me ingredients but no cards. Their customer service person was casual and matey rather than professional, and u did the pause thing too because it was tricky to cancel. They keep phoning me at tea time to make me go back which really pisses me off. Hope you get your refund x

TweedAddict · 03/10/2014 16:38

I like them, I am very safe in what I eat and cook and it's opened a lot more food for me. Never had any issues.

Original poster

barstewards · 03/10/2014 16:47

I did manage my account online. I paused every single future delivery that was showing on their online delivery schedule, which left no boxes scheduled on my account.

No, I didn't actually cancel, I thought that was a formality, to completely close the account. Because no deliveries at all were showing for the future, I (naively as it turns out) thought that meant there would be no future deliveries

I'm not sure how you are meant to know that even after removing every delivery from your account, leaving your online delivery calender empty, they will start them again months later with no warning

OP posts:

LeftRightCentre · 03/10/2014 16:53

I cannot believe actual businesses like this exist.

Notfootball · 03/10/2014 17:16

Wow, they sound terrible. They knocked on my door about half an hour ago, telling me that their meat was from Spitalfields market and their fishmonger supplies fish to the Queen. How wonderful...no thanks.

domesticslattern · 03/10/2014 17:26

I hate them bc they woke me and DD2 up earlier this week with their insanely annoying door to door sales. Having read this thread I'm glad I sent him packing. Though I couldn't get DD2 back to her nap. Grr.
Can't abide door to door sales. So intrusive.

Birra · 05/10/2014 10:44

Just got this email from them

I just wanted to drop you a quick message about your delivery this Monday.

Last week we had a serious hiccup when we tried out a new delivery company and they let us down. We are so determined not to let this happen again and we'll be working right through the weekend to make sure things go smoothly this Monday. We will bring them to you personally if we have to!

To make sure you get your box we've temporarily extended the delivery window between 9am and 10pm, but we've also lined your box with our recyclable sheep's wool and some ice packs which will keep it as cool as a fridge for 30 hours!

Of course we don't expect you to be home during the delivery slot but our drivers are very good at making sure your boxes are put somewhere safe. If you have any special 'leave safe' instructions please drop us a line today.

Thank you so much for sticking with us. We're a young team and we're all working our socks of to give you the best service possible so we really appreciate you being flexible while we go through our growing pains!

Have a lovely weekend!

Meloria · 05/10/2014 12:14

To be fair to the company, even on their tiny flyers it's clear that you have to cancel really far in advance. I got a flyer at a train station this week and immediately thought they'd make their money through the extra week you have to cancel before you even get your first delivery.

Try ringing to speak to an actual person. My friend did this with an equivalent food delivery company and they were so scared of the bad publicity she had all her spend with the company refunded. I bet they'll be double scared this week.

mindingalongtime · 05/10/2014 13:14

My box had smelly chicken and very manky salmon for the fishcakes, I gave it to the cats. Limp rocket, rancid butter. The insulated blanket acted like a duvet too! Not impress at all, so have cancelled any future orders too.

sweetboysmum · 08/11/2014 14:49

I planned on cancelling after a trial box. The trial box was actually lovely, but I don't eat red meat (eat chicken and fish) and so I couldn't justify spending £63 on a box of veggies and rice.

I was about to cancel several days before the delivery was due and then I also got a Paypal message saying I'd paid £63! I began frantically looking on their website and even emailed them to explain that we only ate veggie options and chicken and fish. They told me I couldn't adjust a 4 or 5 meal selection and could only do this if I ordered a 3 meal box. I'd never spend £63 on 3 meals though. Anyway, I just ordered the 4 or 5 day box (can't remember which). I've now given away lamb and have sausages, pork, mince and pancetta in the freezer. a lot of money spent on stuff we don't need. My fault though.

Chandon · 08/11/2014 15:14

gosh, I was almost tempted to give this a try, but my natural suspicion protected me and I threw the card in the bin...

hope you get your money back!

EhricLovesTheBhrothers · 08/11/2014 16:38

I'm afraid that you were completely to blame here. Of course you have to cancel, you can pause deliveries but it's quite clear that they will start again automatically when the pause ends.
I didn't find it hard to cancel after I did a trial at all, not sure why you did. I was very careful to make sure I did it because I also can't afford £36 for 6 meals.
Their food was so so but a couple of the ingredients were not fresh enough. Manky old onions.

BravoDelta · 15/05/2016 15:39

Why use these ridiculous services, just go out, buy a cook book and fresh ingredients, save yourself a fortune, I really don't get it!

BravoDelta · 15/05/2016 15:41

People must have more money than sense.

MaccaPaccaismyNemesis · 15/05/2016 15:49

Hopefully in the two years since the OP posted this she got it sorted out!

Reggybalboa · 15/05/2016 16:21

I had exactly the same issue with them last year. Wanted to cancel after a weeks food planning and cost went up in smoke with a box of dodgy ingredients (gone off prawns). They could not have cared less when I complained. Tried to cancel but couldn't so held the deliveries for two months and then forgot all about it until the money went out of the account and it was too late to cancel or change menu options. After that I did cancel and properly but they still kept on calling me up every week to try to lure me back in. I agree, that complaints on FB always seem to work.

QOD · 15/05/2016 17:35

The veg is rancid by now

Zombie vegetable alert

teafortoads · 15/05/2016 18:20

Ask for a Paypal refund. If they want a reason say you cancelled the subscription but goods are still being sent/money taken. All those sorts of offers seem to have a massive catch/trap you into paying over the odds for some service or other.

AllPowerfulLizardPerson · 15/05/2016 18:24

Is 'ask for a PayPal refund' the new 'cancel the cheque'?

Because PayPal won't refund on a transaction that is 18 months old.

(Do zombies eat veg?)

Stargazey44 · 01/06/2016 18:27

Ive had problems with missing ingredients. Every single box. Irritating, because I do think its a good idea and works well especially as our au pair often cooks for herself and my kids during the week, and it means they have much more variety, and she practises her English following the recipes, which she loves. I agree its irritating that they don't warn you prior to taking your money.

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