Carphone Warehouse Reviews

Name: Carphone Warehouse
Address: The Carphone Warehouse, PO Box 375, Southampton
Rating: 1.57

1.6 Rating 1,636 Reviews

13 %

of reviewers recommend Carphone Warehouse

1.6

Based on 1,636 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Postal Service, Courier
Average Delivery Time	Within 5 Days
On-time Delivery	Greater than 25%
Accurate And Undamaged Orders	Greater than 85%
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Live Chat, Email
Queries Resolved In	Over A Week
Customer Service	1.3 out of 5
Returns & Refunds
Refunds Process	Difficult
Returns Process	Could Be Better

About Carphone Warehouse:

The Carphone Warehouse was founded in 1989 to bring mobile services to consumers. The market has always been complex and our aim from the very beginning has been to offer our customers simple, impartial advice while also offering outstanding value. As a result we have grown from a handful of stores operating exclusively in the UK selling mobile handsets and contracts, to a European-wide platform of over 1,500 stores in 10 countries, providing a wide range of mobile and residential telecoms services.

Visit Website

Phone:

0870 111 6565

Location:

The Carphone Warehouse, PO Box 375
Southampton
SO30 2PU

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Carphone Warehouse 1 star review on 14th June 2025

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Carphone Warehouse 1 star review on 14th March 2025

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 1 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“I recently popped in to Carphone Warehouse to see if they got any good sim only contracts. I have been offered this £15 a month contract with very generous amount of 4G data which I was looking for. So after getting this contract from the first day got very disappointed. I would say there is hardly any internet. I work around Oxford street in London but every single day I struggled to download even dailymail page with news. I'm not even talking about trying to use internet banking or goole map that's impossible. I don't think they have a right to advertise they provide 4G they definitely mislead customers. When I finally got enough of this rubbish service and called there' brilliant' customer service I have been told they do not have 30 days cancellation period, after been reassured twice I asked my new provider to start my contract earlier. The next day I made a phone call to ID customer service to cancel their services but been told there is 30 days cancellation period. After numerous conversations and complains I been left to pay for additional month of their non existing internet services after there incompetent operator provided me with wrong information. My advise do not waste your time with ID”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“I got my contract in August 2015.. And Iv had nothing but trouble with them they are an absolute nightmare! They were taking money out of my bank when they shouldn't be! Leaving me with bank charges! Over 40 messages had been sent to them regarding my contract and I sometimes get useless messages sent back to me that had nothing to do with my situation! Talking to a wall! I cancelled my direct debit because I got sick to death of the charges so I asked for another option.. I asked for a payment slip so I could pay my bill... I never recieved my paper bill.. Instead I get statements sent to me which is a further £2.50 on my contract! When I threatened them with court they turned my phone on for 3 days then cut me off again! Absolute joke!! Yesterday I recieved a statement saying my bill is now over £500!! Baring in mind Iv hardly used my phone and on the statement columns it shows 0.00! So how in the hell do you work that out?! I will be taking them to court & also the papers.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Car phone warehouse is one of the worst companies that I've dealt with in a long time. I took a contract out with them as my phone had crashed. Unfortunately, the SIM card that came with the phone became inactive on purchase (the fault).They said I needed to call the network provider during working hours and it will be activated. This was car phone warehouse way of passing the buck, after a few hrs of going back and forth, I got fed up and returned sim and handset to them. Which they refuse to accept return as it was not the store it was purchased. Although their policy states returns and refunds accepted at any store. After my husband putting up a fuss, miraculously they accepted refund. I'm been back and forth for days trying to get contract and phone cancelled, so my old number can be reinstated as it was in the process of being transferred to new line. It's caused me so much distress, all I've got is empty apologise. If possible avoid car phone warehouse and go direct to network.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Ridiculous service. Tried to upgrade twice online in the past two days. The first time they 'failed to process my order' so I tried again the next day. Now 36 hours later and still no email confirming that my order had been processed and no money has been taken out of my bank account! I wanted to upgrade online because I thought it would be the easiest option but my advice to anyone is NEVER UPGRADE WITH CARPHONE WAREHOUSE ONLINE!!!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Poor communication via the email process, making it unclear whether my product had been processed or not and very unhelpful staff in customer service who refused to tell me whether my product had been accepted or not.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“So I broke my phone screen then I took it to carphone warehouses they did what they need to do I go the phone and and it was the wrong phone.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Absolutely appalling customer service, bought a phone paying cash on 27th December, I was told it was not in stock but would be there next working day which was Tuesday as Monday was a bank holiday. In my opinion it was never ordered I went in to collect on Tuesday and was told it would be in on Wednesday. No explanation to why they would not give me my money back or check local stores for stock when I told them I was going away on business the next day. I spent the next two to three hours on the phone after being cut off four times. Only to find out the had twelve in stock in a local store, but I was told I would have to go and buy one from Hanley then go back to Tunstall to get a refund. So basically pay for it twice. I emailed a complaint and they do not want to know and will not accept responsibility that they were in the wrong, I will be taking it further and never buying from there again. And I will be sending them the bill for my phone calls when it comes through.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Just after Chrismas I decided to buy a Huawei P8 lite to use it as a dual SIM phone. Found a good price online at Carphone Warehouse and as New Year eve was just 2 days ahead I dropped into a store to buy it on pay as you go SIM. I mentioned to the selling assistant that I plan to use it as a dual SIM phone but she never mentioned that the phone has the second sim slot disabled by the firmware version installed. I found this myself when second day I opened the box and saw the second sim slot accepts microSD cards only. I didn't even peal the foils from the phone or take out anything else from the box. In less than 48 hours I was naive enough to believe in Carphone Warehouse customer service. When I tried to return the phone in store and I found out that Carphone warehouse does not offer a refund for the pay as you go phones bought in store. I was a bit shocked as everything every other major accepts returns if the customer is not satisfied with the product or changes his mind. I called the customer service and explained my situation mentioning that apart of the fact the box was opened nothing else was removed or used. They could not help and asked me to liaise with the shop I bought the phone from. Very, Very disappointing customer experience and Carphone Warehouse - NEVER, EVER AGAIN!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Care Phone Warehouse are without doubt in 35 years of working in the retail head office sector the worst business retail customers services I've ever experienced and I question exactly what Andrew Harrison is actually doing other than having his head firmly buried in the sand. I signed a contract on the 19th Dec for a new upgrade with a promise on delivery by the 22nd. Nothing happened. I contacted their customer service provider, only to be cut off halfway through, and then the phones disengaged when I tried to ring back. Contacted the store to make arrangements for an internal transfer with the local store at Hinckley for collection on the Saturday morning, but was promised a delivery by Monday (Bank Holiday!). Arrived to collect it only to be told it was not possible and there was nothing they could do. On the 29th Dec, contacted their dispatch and was put onto again customers services as Leamington Spa were not picking up the phone, which turns out to be in South Africa! Failed to resolve the problem to get the phone delivered, but managed to transfer me to some unfortunate sole woken up in Asia....nice one. Went into the store in Leamington Spa to only be told there was absolutely nothing they could do as it was an IT problem. Also refused to cancel the contract due to the same problem. So with some choice words explained my feeling towards to business and the service provided to date. Completely useless. So, to summaries. No phone and no indication as to when it will be resolved and delivered. Contacted my provider EE who promptly arranged to send me a new phone and contract the next day and explained the conditions of the contract with Carephonewarehouse, you'll be cancelling this contract with no costs incurred by me. As for the service, shockingly bad. Useless in store advisories without any capability to resolves customer problems. Pathetic off shore customer service. No service in that. My advise to anyone thinking of purchasing a phone from this business, what ever the deal, don't. Because if it goes wrong you are on your own. To anyone considering joining the business, based on experience, there are better businesses out there. And for Andrew Harrison, you have got some serious issues to resolve in your business and you need to get yourself out the office and on the ground to understand the mess you've got! Having said all that, I wish you all a happy New Year but sadly can't convey this personally as I'd didn't get your phone! Mr R A Dale”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“I have been trying to cancel a monthly phone contract since August. One month after I took out the contract. It has been a nightmare trying to talk to someone to find out why they won't converse with me to end my monthly contract. I have given them 3 phone numbers to contact me, plus my address so they can write to me. They have given me the run around on the phone and keep sending me a monthly bill. I have never been in debt with anyone, and this unused SIM contract is just racking up. I wish I had looked on this forum before I had taken this contract. What should be simple just isn't. I advise anyone to read the experiences here before dealing with these people!!!!!!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“I am completely shocked at the treatment received by a member of staff and the supervisor/manager as I tried to pay cash for a Samsung S5 neo at Plymouth's Drakes Circus store. First of all I was bought out a unsealed box and when I asked for a sealed one I was told that I would not be covered for a refund as the unsealed boxes are the 10% that are checked and it is ONLY these that are refundable ??? After I had insisted and the member of staff had bought out my request of a sealed unit I was then told that I could only buy items with a total of £150 cash (I was holding the money) and that I would have to make a deposit to my bank if I were to make the purchase of £300 ??? I had the previous day bought a Nexus 5x for £350 cash at the New George Street store and received a complete refund in CASH two hours later after coming to the conclusion with the staff it was in fact used previously as it had been set up and was most likely a returned product. I felt very angered and frustrated with the treatment I received by the Drakes Circus staff and it was clear that because I didn't want to take a unsealed unit this had obviously annoyed them and that it was this that had caused them to suddenly change the stores policy on returns and cash purchases. I have since tried to make a complaint with them through the correct channels and have had no luck, or any kind of compensation or apology even though they agreed I was unfairly treated and the manager had lied about paying in cash and the refunds on sealed units. The store was not very busy but I was made to look stupid and was embarrassed and will never return. I would advise to go elsewhere as in my experience the phones are not always new and even Samsung and Apple state not to take an unsealed unit which makes sense.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM CAR PHONE WAREHOUSE!!!!!! Worst store ever!! I bought a Samsung Galaxy J5 from their Stirling store on 27/12/15. I found them very nice while I was buying the phone but after I left the store with my new phone I tried to assign a basic ringing tone, NOT some nonsense " wind in the trees" ringtone and couldn't find one so after 5mins of leaving the store I returned and spoke with someone called Kenny and found him arrogant and cheeky. He told me it would cost me £15 for them to help me. I explained I only needed a minute of his time. Again he told me it would cost me £15 so I told him I had just spent £185 in his store and was he telling me that now they had my money they couldn't care less unless I partted with more. He arrogantly replied "yes, that's exactly what I'm telling you" I told him I was gonna write a review about my experience to which he replied "good, thanks now. Have a nice day" If that's how that store trains their staff, what chance have you got?? I'm going to write to their head office but I'm really not expecting them to be any different. I'll NEVER go near that store again and I'd advise anyone else the same. I'm disgusted with their service.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Would not give me my money back when I returned a phone charger thatI had bought the day before as it ddidn't work. I explained to the shop assistant that I had a right to a refund if the item was faulty but she said their policy states no refunds to be given. She would not listen and was adamant that I could not have my money back. How do they get away with this?”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“OK here's what my situation is regarding carphone warehouse is and be warned if your goods malfunction as this is what I've experienced . I recently started a contract for an iPhone 6 plus then 4 months in the phone develops a fault. On returning device to the car phone warehouse shop I'm verbally told that the repair would take between 7 and 14 days. Now I have been calling every few days and each time I'm informed that its gone for repair its being repaired its waiting to pass quality control till at 12 days in its now on transit from a repair centre in wednesbury. All seemed well until day 15 of my wait when I decide to go back to the shop and ask where is my handset. I'm then told its not been repaired at all. Its now being given a 3 days urgent repair health ticket. Yes folks this takes a repair through Christmas day and boxing day. Its obvious they're lying again I'm never getting this phone back. I'm also given the cheapest most horrible handset to use while my iPhone is away and when I proper get angry with them they give me a slight improvement of a handset that is still no better than rubbish but has an internet access albeit with such a small screen you can hardly see what you are doing. I've had to buy another phone because this company is incapable of offering a decent replacement and cannot be trusted to repair a device in good time. Definitely a company you should avoid at all costs. I currently have a 2 year contract with o2 but have had to go out and buy a phone to use the simcard for.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“After sales care is nothing short of rubbish! Would not recommend this company. Once they have your money they are not interested.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Just got back from the Leckwith store in cardiff, That is the last time i ever use carephonewarehouse. Worst customer service i have ever experienced, i only wanted to buy a phone as advertised on there website and all the sales Woman wanted to do was sell me waranty & top ups. also even though the phone was 24.99, she said i had to pay an extra £20 for a top up. i didnt need a top up & ive since learned that i could have had the phone for 24.99 as advertised and that she was liying to me. When i rang customer services to make a complaint, they just kept on hanging up on me, OMG What a cowboy outfit they are. im telling everyone i know.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“I was unfortunate to be given a gift from my wife (a tablet) and took insurance. Their customer service is beyond appalling!!. The left does not what the right hand is doing.They pass you from one person to the other They answer in a very robotic manner,they patronize you and extremely unhelpful. All i can say that if you have to purchase an item pay a bit more and buy from John lewis where the service is excellent. For your sanity do not purchase from them ,you will regret it!!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Common thread here I think of rubbish customer service!! I had my first experience of Car phone warehouse on the 30th of November in the Kettering Store I had a terrible customer experience and e-mailed my complaint to their complaints line and haven't heard a thing in reply I purchased 3 items for my I Phone 6 a total of £42.98. I tried to pay with my company visa card twice which was declined the assistant explained that it was a company credit card their terminal would only accept personal cards not a problem paid with my personal card. I got my company card statement which was charged twice and my personal card charged again. Tried to phone customer complaints and was cut off twice. Come on Car Phone Warehouse sort your customer service out I will never spend another penny with you your service is absolutely crap !!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“I was a customer in Clarks talbot green store,shopping with my little cousin when a memeber of your carphone warehouse staff came barging in shouting across the store! Slightly unprofessional, and made all their customers feel intimiated!”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Ordered phone on Monday, existing phone disconnected Tuesday , dpd lost phone Thursday , now told new phone will be delivered Friday. But we don't have a working phone and we are paying for it. Who's running this company, never use them again.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

Carphone Warehouse is rated 1.6 based on 1,636 reviews