Terrible Service from Mamas & Papas

[TAcrazy]

Has anyone else had problems ordering from Mamas & Papas and actually getting the items delivered? I ordered a cot bed and some other bits and pieces from them at the end of July and finally I had a text this morning to tell me that the items were out on the delivery van. I then had another text half an hour later telling me that the delivery had been attempted which was strange because my husband and I had been in the house the whole time and no-one had rung the bell or knocked and there was no card for the door!!

I phoned them up and had to wait just over half an hour to speak to someone at M & Ps and get a response. I was told that the delivery company said they attempted to deliver and will not try again until Monday!!! But it's only Friday! I'm really furious about this. Does anyone know the best way to complain to them?

Would be grateful for any suggestions. Thank you x

Is it Home Delivery Network by any chance?

I had major problems with them too, in the end I got fed up with the really long hold times and emailed them. They called me back a few days later and had sorted the problem (the store then messed it up again though) so you could try emailing them.(it took 2 months, 2 40 mile round trips and a home devivery, when the original date was just a few days after I'd ordered and they text me to say my item was ready the week after I'd order) I've vowed never to order anything from them again. Perhaps phone and email them and tell them you're really starting to worry that the baby will arrive before the cot and plead with them to help?

I recently had dreadful service and for this I would 1) demand a refund if you were charged for delivery 2) demand proof the driver came (where is the attempted delivery card?). If they cannot produce any evidence of attempted delivery tell them to send the driver back.

Don't be fobbed off, once you are through ask to speak to a supervisor or manager. I had to do this. Things improved after that.

Keep telling them how many people you see slating their Customer Service on Mumsnet!

I'm really sorry you're having probs, but I'm not surprised. Unfortunately they have a truly awful reputation when it comes to customer service.

I was lucky when I ordered my pram for dd, but I wouldn't order anything now I'm afraid. If it's not in the shop, then I get it elsewhere.

We wanted to order some spare parts for a cot and a new mattress - tried calling and got fed up on hold so filled in the query form on the website to wait for a call back/email - nothing. Giving up we then drove 40 mile round trip to store for them to find out that they don't keep spare parts over 3 years so no replacement parts, and that they didn't have the mattress in stock - so they have placed it on order for home delivery at no charge in the next few days - watch this space! We did mention that we hadn't been pleased with the lack of response, to me it would seem that the quickest way to get a response is to go to a store, but that is quite extreme.

I also had massive problems with them with delivery of our cotbed - this was over 2 years ago and I still haven't forgotten it! They arranged a day, then cancelled it, re arranged another day and the lorry allegedly broke down, third time, they showed up at 10.30pm at night!!! Bearing in mind I'd paid to have the thing assembled by them as well, it was gone 11pm by the time they left - having discovered that one of the bits was missing. 2 years later and I discover the cot bed which was sold as turning into a toddler bed, does no such thing - it turns into a sofa. WTF use is that to my 2 yr old? I have, and will continue, to give them a wide berth ever since. But yes, I would call back and insist the driver returns today - I did that with some curtains from John Lewis once and having ranted like a mad woman at the delivery company, they did. But that's John Lewis for you I guess, M&P should take note.

Yup. They are useless. Took 6 weeks and a phone call- on hold forever to get internet order delivered. They said they were waiting as one of the items was not in stock. Still had to wait for other item to come into stock.

Then ordered Moses basket and stand in store. Told it would take 1 to2 weeks and they would ring me to let me know. Took a phone call from me 3 weeks later to say I was 'lucky they had just come in' and I could collect them the next day.

In store have been big queues. Only one person on till whilst others mill around.

Only kept buying off them as ashamed to say seduced by nice products. However have learnt my lesson and never buying off them again.

Really badly organised company. In flagship store in London the woman in the maternity department had no idea where anything was and was really unhelpful. Also they discontinued the cot we bought 2 years ago for our first child and now we aren't able to buy a replacement mattress for the new baby we are expecting so will either need a new cot or a custom-made matress. Also when they delivered the nursery furniture (admittedly 2 years ago now) there were quite important pieces missing that we then had to wait several weeks for.

Thank you for all your suggestions! I'm sorry to hear you have all had crap experiences of them too. If I'd known they were so bad I never would have ordered from them in the first place and like you, I won't be ordering from them again. After all that hassle, two packages mysteriously turned up from Citi Link late yesterday afternoon so I have my cot bed and mattress but not the drawer that goes underneath or the cot top changer. Apparently there are more packages coming but the driver insinuated that this was the first time he had come out as there was a mix up at the depot and he realised he didn't have the packages on his lorry. So in fact, they never tried to deliver yesterday morning in the first place and had blatantly lied and just said that they had!!

Truly, truly awful. I really hope the rest of it turns up otherwise I will be cancelling, demanding a refund and sending a letter special delivery to M&P's chief exec. Of course I could spend 30 minutes trying to get through to customer care which is not even free by the way - BT standard rate - but I can't bear to spend any more time on this. Don't they realise that the majority of their customers are pregnant women who just want everything to be ready for their baby? ......I think they have a total lack of respect for their customers

Had the same exact experience as you TAcrazy when we ordered our cotbed from them! Supposed delivery driver had rang buzzer, although neither I nor my husband had heard it. Also, there was no missed delivery card. This happened a few times. When I called up to talk to customer services, I was told there delivery warehouse wasn't too far from my home address, if I just wanted to go pick it up myself!!! (I was 38 weeks pregnant and it was a cotbed!)

The delivery took 4 more weeks than expected, which by this time my baby had been born. I complained and was eventually given vouchers, although the woman who gave them to me only emailed me a voucher code, not an actual voucher, which M&P wouldn't accept until I was nearly in tears in their store.

I haven't bought anything from them since and don't plan on it again.