BAD SERVICE BRITAIN

[patkica]

Hi,

I wonder if anyone else thinks the idea of setting up a thread where we tell each other about good and bad service from companies would be a good idea. I for one am sick of chasing up various shops etc... only to be left with pathetic explanations and no real attempt to put things right. Why don't we put a bit of consumer pressure on the companies many of us use.
I for one would love to get recommendations from other mumsnetters before I part with my cash. Please join me.

Wow, I would love this, service is Britain is completely crap, and everyone just accepts it! Why?

What about the trains....I mean come on! I don't even catch them!

Good service: Tesco, Gap, Next Directory, M&S

Crap: Amazon, Argos, Royal Mail, DFS, I could go on and on.

Why hasn't anyone else posted on this thread?

Bad service - Dixons, ELC, Next

Good service - Waitrose, Morrisons, Amazon.

Yeah, I would describe pretty much all British service as bad. I have totally had to adjust my expectations about service, living here.

DH (who is British) gets all touched whenever he is dealing with people in the service industry in Canada or the US, and depressed about British service.

Blimey, I suggest you lot don't visit andalucia then...

Wonderful idea for a thread!

Good service - John Lewis, Ocado, Burns dog food (OK, that one isn't going to be of interest to everyone but they're fab)

Bad service - Amazon, DHL, Mothercare, Boots

I'm going to think of more throughout the evening. I tend to find that local independent stores giver much better service than chain ones. There are lots of those I could recommend.

I would have agreed with John Lewis, until just before Christmas.

I wanted to know if something was in stock, and they said, give us your telephone number and we will call back NEXT WEEK Everyone else tells you there and then. Went and bought it from Debenhams, who told me it was in straight away.

Good- Morrisons, Tesco, Waterstones

Bad- Amazon, Currys (I turn invisible in there)

I turn invisible in Currys too! And i thought it was just me.. Although i went on once to get a specific cable for my decks, the ONE time i know exactly what I need and i was FLUSHED with salesmen trying to help me (maybe it was the very short skirt i had on..)

John Lewis pissed me off just before Christmas too, trying to buy my sons bed and they only had the beds no matresses left (who bought the matress with no bed?) wouldnt order me a mattress as it was too close to christmas?
Then a woman told me there were no drum kits left, and as i was leaving i saw another woman put take one out the stock room and put it on the shelf! Man was woman 1 embarrassed when i walked over to the till with said drum kit!
THEN (sorry John Lewis rant here!) the woman in the wallpaper department completely ignored me, i went over to ask for some samples and she told me to fill out a form. She did not however, give me a form. I found one and asked for a pen and she said she said she only had one and she was using it!! Needless to say i went elsewhere for my wallpaper, which I hope someone from John Lewis reads as we were decorating 8 rooms!! ha ha!

Anyway - whats everyones problem with Amazon? i have always found them to be great - very fast and reliable.

Good - ASOS, Harvey Nichols, Sound Control
Bad - John Lewis, New Look, Zara

Good idea. Bad service drives me insane. We went for a lunch in a wine bar, paid for by my company recently. It had been arranged, 60 people (at prob £15 a head, so not bad for an hour or two) and the bar had ONE waitress bringing the food out from the kitchen and another couple standing around looking beautiful. WHY? And when we complained they said "we've got other customers you know" er no you haven't. I want to shake these people.

Thank god,. I thought no one wanted to whine with me, I posted about Blooming Marvellous elsewhere because I've had a long-running nightmare going with them and I thought that if when we write or complain, we could say 'I'm going to let all the readers of mumsnet know about your service and warn them againist using you' it might make them actually pay attention to genuine grievances. So keep it up. My best and worst are:

Bad: Laura Ashely (furniture) Why are they always in such a bad mood? Just because I actually want to buy something?
Argos: (but they did give me a £20 voucher when I complained so don't give in).
Mothercare: expensive and slow.

Tesco home service: don't go there.
Good: amazon for me. Jojo bebe maman, Kiddicare (overnight potties).

Please keep me company here. I reckon we shoud make this into a proper, ongoing thread which could go under the reviews section and make these bloody retailers know that we're busy, fed up and have turned into consumers with power (feeling much better after that).

Quite agree Patkica, I would love crappy shops to be brought out of the closet.

Would like to add to list of shitty service, Reg Vardy, car dealers. Had to take them TO COURT, because of useless brand new car they sold me.

Someone asked why Amazon were bad. They have a insidious habit of changing delivery dates just before christmas, to ensure that the stuff you ordered weeks ago doesn't arrive until after chhristmas. There was a thread just before Christmas, which had loads of rants about how awful they were

bad: blooming marvellous. ran out of wooden kitchens and didn't tell me til 4 weeks after i ordered it and too late to get one elsewhere before christmas. outrageous.