is this botch job? New kitchen

[Crappykitchen]

Would you be happy if the feet of your newly installed kitchen looked like this? New quartz worktop due to go in shortly, wickes installation manager thinks this is absolutely fine.

AIBU to think I should be getting a better install for a kitchen I have paid wickes £15,000 to supply and install?

I used to work for their main competitor.

You've a long hard battle ahead unfortunately.

You're credit agreement won't kick in until you sign the completion certificate.

So don't. Do not sign it. Then they will be chasing you to fix it. As soon as you sign that form, they've no reason to fix and you've no recourse.

I have no intentions of signing it off as completed. I'd rather muddle along with a half finished kitchen for months than let them get away with this and face problems further down the line

I just showed it to DP an avid DIYer! He says you should small claims court it. Those chip board bits propping up the legs are going to disintegrate if they ever get wet & the units will collapse in time. That's if they don't collapse as soon as the worktop goes on...There's bodging but this seems more like stupidity to me. Go legal, it's proper shoddy.

@Crappykitchen

We have paid a deposit and for some extras that were added. The rest is on interest free finance so not sure what happens with that if we are not happy

That is good news that you took the credit option, get straight onto the finance company, they will act as a go between between you and the supplier and help achieve a resolution.

I cant believe everyone is saying this is fine at Wickes OP. It's clearly not!! Keep complaining. I'd be asking for the cabinets to come out, the floor screeded all over as it should have been and then everything put back in. You shouldn't need to ask them to sweep up the broken tiles thats just basic sense. Shows how bad they are. Wickes must have really really low standards for their work if they all think this is OK.

The standard is shocking! Also it looks like your flooring tiles are laid incorrectly. The second row shouldn't be staggered to half way along the length of the tiles of the first row it should be a third of the way along, hope that makes sense!

The tiles are long gone, we made them take them up a few days after they were laid. I agree though they should be staggered not just standard brick bond layout

I would be telling them in no uncertain terms that you will NEVER sign off that certificate that will trigger finance.

There is no way I would accept a leg of that plywood piece.
That will not take the solid work tops long term.

Make it clear to them that you will sign nothing, so the sooner they fix it the better.

Keep posting on their SM.

Just shown these to my husband who is a kitchen fitter. He strongly advises that you do not fit the work top.

The problem with the "approved fitters" for places like Wickes are that Wickes cap what fitters can charge and pay per unit as such. This means that if there is any extra remedial work/adjustments needed/ missing parts then it is the fitter who makes that financial loss- not Wickes. Wickes are renowned for washing their hands of any fitting issues and blaming the fitter.

Kitchen fitters are massively in demand at the moment and any who are any good will likely be working independently.

The store manager and another designer are coming out to have a look and take some pictures on Wednesday, apparently only store staff and installers are doing home visits due to covid, installation managers are not no wonder the installers do such a crap job, they don't have to answer to anybody.

I've made it clear I am in this for the long haul, you have to wait 12 weeks before the ombudsman get involved and I'd rather wait that long than have a kitchen that falls to bits in a few years

Good for you OP!

@Crappykitchen I'm sorry you're having problems. We had a terrible bathroom installation through Wickes nearly 4 years ago. It took weeks before the area installation manager came out to inspect as apparently the one for our area had gone long term sick - I was calling customer services every week. He did arrange for another installer - I said I wanted their best installer, the one who does the remedial work and I don't mind waiting. He came round and I had an A4 list of wrong things, and this guy found even more! Said to start over and he'd put his findings to Wickes. Wickes wanted to charge us more but this installer really helped and told them they couldn't do that. In the end, it took 6 months to resolve but I'm now really happy (and the original installer lost his Wickes contract).

I always have bad luck though, my brother and parents have used Wickes (not local to me) and had amazing fitters with no problems.

Keep calling customer services and follow their complaints procedure. Don't pay the installers. Ask the designer (if you're still on speaking terms!) who their recommended fitter is - they'll have one that they know is the best - and then ask customer services to arrange for that person to come and inspect. They don't work for Wickes so should give you an honest opinion.

Best of luck - it looks like it will be stunning when it's finished.

A few times I have come across efforts to give me bad service/product and I have made it cystal clear to each organisation involved that I will devote myself to bad mouthing their business in any way I can if they don't rectify the situation and that they personally will be my point of contact.

You need to be relentless in your displeasure at their awful service and product.

I have NEVER come away disappointed.

You need to make it very clear that this is personal to you, and you will go all the way with this including inviting the media in to see EXACTLY the appalling work that Wicks do.

Make it preferable to them that you go away quietly happy.

I've spoken to barclays this morning who the finance is through, they are raising a section 75 and assured me wickes will not get a penny until it is signed off as complete

OP you're such a legend. So many times on here I read this threads and I think bloody hell please get a backbone. You definitely have that!

Brilliant update. Stay strong

Excellent.

Do not budge.

Be as difficult as can be.

You will be paying long enough for it if you have taken out a loan to pay for it.

I've just read this and you've made me very glad I decided to go for local independent supply and fit over Wickes. This is really shoddy work

That’s absolutely disgusting. I hope you get sorted. That would be bad if it was costing £5k never mind 3 times that amount.

Really pleased about your latest update, OP; not getting the money is about the only thing that can motivate companies like this to act, though sadly sometimes not even then

Trouble is you've got the inconvenience of this hanging over you, but at least it's not costing you a packet in repayments

Hi did they come out and agree to rectify it to your satisfaction ?

Christ the tiling is awful

We did our own tiling and it's far better than that.

Nothing to really update at the moment, we have been at a complete standstill for over 2 weeks.

The fitter is meant to be coming back to try and sort the issues out but they are waiting for a replacement panel for one that is chipped, they've known about this for weeks but haven't managed to get it delivered yet

Keep discovering other bits of shitty work the more time we spend in there, this is the cupboard housing the extractor, completely butchered

We're finding our own tiler, wickes can't find us one. Had someone quote this week who was really thorough and gave us loads of ideas and advice

I'm so invested in this thread!

Well done for standing your ground with them. I so hope they eventually are forced to take this seriously and be accountable for the shitshow of a job!