Dolland and aithchinson made me cry !!

Sssssss

i was going to say the same, if you've paid get your money back and go elsewhere. if you've not paid anything just walk away and try another opticians.

pinkshoes

liz_uk wrote: »

Phoned D&A again on Friday, and again, had to leave a message as `all our customer service agents are on the phone to other customers at the moment .. blah blah `

.. Still haven`t heard anything, either, they are not interested, or they don`t listen to their messages..

Where do I go from here ?? Anyone know who the MD is ?? I will have to do my complaint letter in a pink scented envelope marked `private and confidential` !! haha

Andy Ferguson, Dollond & Aitchison CEO

I presume he's based at their Birmingham headquarters.

And if you'd like to see a photo:
http://www.bitc.org.uk/who_we_are/leadership_teams/cause_related_business/andy_ferguson.html

Hope that helps!!

liz_uk

4th call to Dolland and Aithcinson customer care team this morning... still an answering machine....

This is the WORST customer service i`ve EVER EVER Come across - they must be having a hell of a lot of complaints if I can`t get through to anybody for 4 days !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Number is:
0121 697 2434 if anyone fancies listening to the wonderful message !!

liz_uk

Well, managed to get through to HO. and they said they had no record of my emails.. So forwarded them again.

My partned picked up my glasses for me yesterday, and they are completely the wrong prescription.. can`t focus on anything.. so I`ve now asked for a full refund and to be able to return the glasses to a different branch.

Oh forgot to mention, when my partner asked for my glasses the woman on the desk said `there not in`.. then after arguing that it`d been 4 weeks, they miraculously appeared..

Lovely lady at HO said she is looking into my complaint and will get back to me. So lets see where this goes !

charliecharley2

I can't believe how badly you have been treated both at store level and HQ.

I worked in customer services for years and the way you were approached in the Store would have been enough for a Disciplinary of my staff at the very least!

You need to make a Senior Management Complaint if all else fails go to the Ombudsman

The Optical Consumers Complaints Service
PO Box 4685
London
SE1 8YH

They will sort it out as they have to by Law

JonathanA

I can really sympathise with the poor level of service you've received. I had a nightmare experience with D&A 10 years ago and will never go back to them. I need prisms in the lenses of my glasses and have done for a long, long time. Moved to a new town 10 years ago, so needed a new optician. Went to D&A with my old prescription, had an eye test and waited for the glasses to arrive. I couldn't see properly out of them, but the optician noted that there had been a change in my prescription, so give it a week or so to get used to the new prescription. After less than a day and a couple of hairy incidents whilst driving, I knew I couldn't see through the lenses properly, so took them back. They insisted the prescription was correct and I needed to give it more time.

Went to another optician for a second opinion. He examined the glasses from D&A and stated straight away that the problem was that they hadn't put prisms in the lenses that I needed. Local opticians refused my request for a refund, so approached Head Office, who did refund the cost of the glasses & lenses, but not the eye test. Persevered and eventually got a full refund.

It worries me still that whilst I am strong willed enough to stand up for myself, this could have been very different if that prescription had been for a child who had never worn glasses before (for example). I can imagine the parents saying, wear them, the optician says they're right!

I'll never again use D&A, especially since I have found an excellent optician in our local Specsavers branch. He is very good, explains everything and his team never rush you, even when the shop is busy. Good customer service counts for a lot, so try another optician, go in when they're really busy and see how you're treated!

Good luck!

nearlyrich

I went to D & A for a free eye test with my Nectar card, the price of frames was completely extortionate so I left with my prescription and got 2 pairs from Asda for half the price of one pair at D & A.

Hope you get your complaint sorted.

mum2one

I cant stand D+A either, they use to be ok, but its all making money, my story goes back to 2002, as I was on maternity leave (my daughter was 3 mths old), I had my statoury matenity pay topped up with Income Support, so that meant free eye test and a voucher towards lenses.

Had the eye test, choose the glasses, it was the designer frames with lenses inc in price, while could they get a figure right could they hell as like, eg, the frame +lenses offer £125, in theory that meant knock off the voucher say £45, would leave £80 to pay, it was on no we cant do it that way, as your on benefits we have to charge you the prices seperate, bear in mind we'd been in there an hr, explained needed to go as needed to warm daughter bottle up, they didnt take the hint, another hr later we were still there, the prices ranged from £250 upto £450, that was the same pr of glasses that was £125 all in.
In the end we said stick it and walked out, basically they lost my custom and my parents, as one changes we all go. we went to specsavers and have never looked back.
2003 onwards spec savers
Another lovely D+A example - different store, back in 2005,
I did a mystery shop assisgnment, pay for eye test, go through the procedure but find an excuse, thought while I need an eye test, see how this store was........it was awful, the prescription was appaling, bear in mind that I had an eye test 3 mths b4, they came in with 2 totally different reading, not a difference of say .5, but one eye they diagnosed as 5.5 difference from the other, the service with the glasses was push push push, hense the report was not gd.

We voted with our feet,
I would also suggest contacting consumer direct re the glasses, also is there an obsbumen that deals with opticians?

liz_uk

Well, the verdict is in - I have to return to the store for a refund !!

It`s laughable really !! Had an apolgy from the HO lady (who was in all fairness trying her best).. I explained I`d be sending someone else in on my behalf, with the glasses and that I`m dissapointed that it`s had to end like this.

But oh well.. at least I can go elsewhere now !!

fizzlebottom

Really sorry to hear about your problems with D&A. I have been a customer there for the last 8 years. Last visit was all about trying to get more money out of me, wear contact lenses most of the time but had to wear glasses for appointment. Comments about my glasses were made 'Are you happy with those old fashioned glasses' but I was able to shrug off this obvious sales pitch. Was not happy with the service and ended up paying 70% more for the same checks and lens as 21 months ago!! They are now a franchise and customer service does not exist!