Kitchen fitting advice - Betta Living

Veryfondoftea

Hi all,

My first post here. My husband and I have bought a house that we are doing up. We received a quote last night from Betta Living for our 2 x 3m kitchen of £8175. Price wise we are happy - it's within our budget and includes everything we want. £2500 of that is the installation charge including some plumbing and electrical work. We have a wall to knock down, a doorway to block and the oven main pipe thing to move before Betta Living come in and fit the kitchen.

My question is this - after reading online reviews of Betta Living I am very concerned. The reviews are not great. This is a considerable investment for my husband and I so we want to get it right. I love the kitchen and can't find similar elsewhere, so should we buy the kitchen from Betta Living and get some local to supply it?

Does that seem the best solution to ensure we get the kitchen we want, but hopefully without leaving us at the mercy of a national company?! Any advice greatly appreciated, I'm new to all this so feeling a bit scared!

cddc

Not all fitters for nationals are rubbish though it can be a bit random as to who you will get if it is just left to the company as to who gets your job.

Am not sure how Betta Living work with their installers, but it may be worth talking to the designer and seeing if they can get your fit allocated to a team they know and trust.

katejo

I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole. I had a minor encounter with them several years ago. All i had done was to request a brochure, nothing else. After that I was plagued with phone calls on my landline and mobile for weeks. I had to make an official complaint to get rid of them. I have also read the negative accounts here. Are you in the London area by any chance? I might be able to make a personal recommendation if you are.

Le_Kirk

Ask Betta Living for some recent installation addresses and go and see the installations and talk to the customers. Personal recommendation with visual evidence is always best.

cool_dude_2000

About a year ago we had a south African sales rep from Betta Living come to quote us for fitted sliding wardrobes about 4 metres across.

I made clear from the start that if they look after me I would look after them, no gimmicks no sales techniques just a decent competitive price.

Anyway towards the end of his pitch he pulls out his phone and speaking to his manager out aloud for my benefit proceeds to say that he quoted £16k for the wardrobes and whether he was authorised to offer me a 60% discount!

I promptly showed him the door.

Very poor unprofessional company with poor standards. Would avoid completely.

bigfreddiel

First get a local person who has a reputation to look after.

Check his work if possible.

Check his way of working, adequate protection for your property such as carpets and decorations of areas adjacent to where the work is taking place.

And most importantly a penalty clause for late completion.

Cheers fj

Cloud09

I'd also advise against using Betta Living at all costs. After booking a design consultation at the Ideal Home show I had the misfortune of being called by rude and aggressive sales people who I ended up complaining about. I did get a grudging apology but after some forceful complaints. There are bad apples in every company but seems the culture in BL churns out these types.

Davesnave

What is it that you love about the kitchen?

I find it hard to believe that they will have anything so remarkable that you won't find it elsewhere.

If the reviews on supply & fit are that bad, what makes you feel that the product itself will be superior?

Veryfondoftea

Thanks. I don't know really, they just look nice quality in my (very limited) opinion. And all bad reviews I've read have been about the fitters and problems with installation rather than about the product itself. The kitchen we want is a kind of pale sage green integrated handle one, and it's matt finish rather than gloss. Elsewhere I've found a Matt finish but only in white or cream, or the colour we want but in a gloss finish! Thanks for all your advice.

Furts

Veryfondoftea wrote: »

Thanks. I don't know really, they just look nice quality in my (very limited) opinion. And all bad reviews I've read have been about the fitters and problems with installation rather than about the product itself. The kitchen we want is a kind of pale sage green integrated handle one, and it's matt finish rather than gloss. Elsewhere I've found a Matt finish but only in white or cream, or the colour we want but in a gloss finish! Thanks for all your advice.

The guidelines to this Forum say please be kind and pleasant to new posters. Please bear in mind all the above posts are diplomatically advising you to avoid Betta Living.

A saying comes to mind as I type this. It goes "Fools and their money are easily parted". Nobody has dared type this in response to your query. I have now said it, and am prepared to be the fall guy for you to let rip against!

There are numerous kitchen companies out there. The wise move is to use a local source. Post your location on this forum and someone may be able to offer some guidance.

I will offer a constructive example. My kitchen comprises three room areas totaling around five times the size of yours. It is constructed to a high standard - solid oak, Silestone Chrome worktops, window cills, feature panels, Rangemaster and Miele appliances and so on. Yet it was about twice, or perhaps two and a half times, your quoted figure. From this you can see that you are not receiving value for money.

Hope this helps!

Veryfondoftea

I feel as though I'm missing something here....not sure what the necessity of quoting the forum rules was. I posted for some advice and people responded, and yes, I have worked out for myself that people are saying Betta Living are not a great choice. But thanks for the clarification! And don't worry - I don't feel the urge to 'rip against' anyone who gives me advice that I have specifically asked for. Thanks again!