Currys / Team KnowHow - lies, scams and incompetence

project_c

Be careful ordering anything from Currys - we've had a series of terrible experiences with them, if you're thinking of ordering from them online, you're in for a rough ride.

About 3 weeks ago we ordered some appliances from them, and paid for delivery & installation. They gave us a delivery time and date, I took half a day off work (not easy this time of year) and sat in an empty house waiting for it to arrive. Of course nothing arrives. I track it online, and when it gets to the end of the delivery time, the tracking information miraculously changes to a different day. So I phone customer services. I am on hold for 38 minutes with no answer. Someone eventually picks up, then puts me on hold for another 10 minutes. She says the delivery people spoke to me and apparently I agreed to change the delivery date and time. This was a lie. She then puts me on hold again, and comes back eventually to say she can't get hold of anyone, so she's going to email some guy, at which point I just ask for a refund and cancel the whole order. I did eventually get my refund, but I lost half a day's wages for nothing.

My partner also ordered a kettle at the same time as a separate order, which never materialised. Tracked the order, tracking said Royal Mail has it, Royal Mail says they don't. Having had enough of customer services not picking up the phone, we went to a store to complain. They of course said they can't do anything and we would have to phone. So we spend another hour calling customer services, who eventually agree to give us a refund. And then today, a message from Currys: are you sure you want a refund? If you want your refund, you'll have to call us AGAIN. So my partner calls them, and is on hold for another 40 minutes. Someone eventually answers and puts her on hold AGAIN, and then nothing happens until my partner is cut off.

All of this is of course surrounded by endless text messages saying 'how did we do?', 'will you take part in a survey?' and other such garbage. The whole thing is an utter disaster from start to finish, this company is either purposefully scamming people by making it near impossible to get money back, or is incompetent to the point of being severely useless.

Don't put yourself through this, take your money elsewhere.

[Deleted User]

Why did you keep buying products from a "terrible" company? Can you also point out where the scam is?

[Deleted User]

I have ordered a couple of items from Currys (reduced). Both were slower than expected arriving but did arrive and were very good prices as they were reduced. I think almost every company's delivery is pretty yuk at the moment because its Christmas. I've been having quite a time with Amazon ever since December appeared in the date.

I do hope some legislation will be passed to make all courier companies keep proper tracking records. It seems as if they can do anything they like at the moment (had multiple problems with Amazon Logistics saying they don't know where parcels are because they are employing drivers who can't speak English, my parcels can be vaguely in any one of three different places at the moment because drivers can't understand instructions or the map software).

LadyDee

It's not always the drivers. I had a very late in the day delivery because although my parcel was numbered 25 on the list the driver had been given at the depot, it was actually numbered something else entirely. Conseqently all day he'd been searching for parcels in the van by address, added to which of course the route he'd been given didn't tie in with his list and the numbering of parcels. So a driver with little English trying to find his way round the countryside with no clear knowledge of where he was and what he had to deliver ... I must say I was so impressed that he found me at all (at 9.30 at night in the dark) and facing the same thing the day after. Deserves a medal at 30p a parcel!

project_c

camelot1971 wrote: »

Why did you keep buying products from a "terrible" company? Can you also point out where the scam is?

We bought them on the same day, but they had to be delivered separately. The scam - if you read my post - is that they give you a delivery date and time, and then fail to deliver on that day, and then they change the tracking details once the day ends, and lie to say they called and the customer agreed to rearrange delivery. Total shambles, the whole thing from start to finish.

Also - part 2 of the scam is that they make it virtually impossible to get a refund. It takes endless phonecalls with literally hours of time on hold.

[Deleted User]

project_c wrote: »

The scam is that they give you a delivery date and time, and then fail to deliver on that day,

I think you need you understand and appreciate the difference between a deliberate "scam" and simple incompetence..

Gracie84

Incompetence is definitely the right word here.

They are beyond useless, ruse and unable to help in any scenario.

Last year my partner purchased a desktop computer and after 32 days the harddrive failed. They booked a collection date to pick it up and fix it. They never came. When we called them after being on hold for an hour and a half and demanding to speak to a manager 5 times they said they didn't think they could fix it but would call back within 24 hours. Still waiting said phone call and have paid an independent firm to fix it now

macman

Why didn't you just go straight to the manufacturer under warranty? Most PC warranties are RTB (unless it's a business purchase), so they will not collect it.

Gracie84

I really wish I had come here to be honest and actually asked for advice. We just gave up frustrated and wanted it fixing.

It was totally our fault and stupid of us. I know now that if we'd asked around for advice we would probably have got the right outcome. Lesson definitely learnt!

50Twuncle

I know that this is only a minor gripe - but we had a fridge delivered by currys "Team know nothing", 5 years ago - despite measuring up the space thar it was supposed to fit in - and it being correct - they refused to push it in - because it meant having to manouvre it around a sink - we had to do the final push and plug in - they also left all of the packaging (foam and plastic) in a pile on the kitchen floor

We had paid £45 for delivery and installation and I was not happy
I emailed the CEO and was offered a refund !