Wickes Kitchen Fitting Issues & Complaint

amnesiaiom

Hi, I wonder if anyone can help me? I'm looking to find out what my mums rights are and whether anyone else has been through something similar.

My mum had a new kitchen fitted in Apr by Wickes. The washing machine piping wasn't fitted properly and the kitchen leaked. My mum called the fitter and had the leak fixed but she now has a damp wall which is spreading and some of the cabinets have been damaged by the water.

To add to this my mum hasn't received the electrical certs for the re-wiring they have done (part p etc).

We have spoken and written to Wickes several times over the last 6 months to ask for the wall / kitchen to be inspected and fixed but we are getting nowhere. Wickes just keep telling us that there are no fitters available to come round, they are all fully booked. This has now been going on since Jun / Jul and we are worried that the damp in the wall could be getting worse as it's not being nipped in the bud.

I have asked for this issue to be treat as a formal complaint but I really don't think it is. In my last correspondence I have threatened to go to the Furniture Ombudsman but I don't know if this is the next step?

I can't find anything online about what the Wickes Customer Complaints Procedure is so don't even know if the lady who is dealing with the complaint is within the complaints department?

Has anyone had any experience with Wickes complaints and is going to the furniture ombudsman the right next step?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

London50

See link below, personally if I were in your position and had done what you have I would do LBA{ Letter Before Action} and send it to Richard King {address in the link below} and see inf that gets anything moving

http://www.wickes.co.uk/contactus

Furts

As the leak was fixed around six months ago any damp in the wall cannot be getting worse. Instead it will be getting better because the wall will have been drying out. Any spreading damp would have to be another cause - perhaps another leak? If so, what checks have you done to establish if this is the case?

My intuition is Wickes have no manpower available because everyone will be at full capacity fitting kitchens before the Christmas "must have" deadline.

amnesiaiom

Sorry Furts my mum is disabled so she contacted Wickes to get someone to come out and investigate whether there is still a leak or not as she is not able to investigate further personally.

She has not contacted anyone externally so as not to breach any warranty / guarantee conditions. The wall dampness seems to be spreading but we cannot check thoroughly as they are behind the corner kitchen cabinets and washing machine that my disabled mother, nor I can get to - hence the need for Wickes to come out and check their work.

The dampness might not be spreading, my point is the kitchen was installed Apr, the leak not fixed till Jun / Jul and still no investigation into the damage the leak has caused (wall / sodden kitchen cabinets that have split) since.

Thankfully we now have the ear of the complaints department and they've got someone visiting my mum within the week. Hopefully they'll be a plan of action to fix the damage.

Furts

amnesiaiom wrote: »

Sorry Furts my mum is disabled so she contacted Wickes to get someone to come out and investigate whether there is still a leak or not as she is not able to investigate further personally.

She has not contacted anyone externally so as not to breach any warranty / guarantee conditions. The wall dampness seems to be spreading but we cannot check thoroughly as they are behind the corner kitchen cabinets and washing machine that my disabled mother, nor I can get to - hence the need for Wickes to come out and check their work.

The dampness might not be spreading, my point is the kitchen was installed Apr, the leak not fixed till Jun / Jul and still no investigation into the damage the leak has caused (wall / sodden kitchen cabinets that have split) since.

Thankfully we now have the ear of the complaints department and they've got someone visiting my mum within the week. Hopefully they'll be a plan of action to fix the damage.

I understand your situation but please give me credit - I am trying to help. Knowledge is power, and the stronger one's knowledge the less likely it is that the other party can pull the wool over one's eyes. Hence you, or a family member, or a neighbour would be wise to do a simple check before Wickes call by. For example, it is not rocket science to see if a trap, or connector is dripping.

It is folly to go into a dispute without first getting a strategy in place.