“This is why I cannot in all good conscience recommend Hammonds.......
We were firstly mislead by the Sales Consultant regarding the installation date which after paying our deposit was extended by 2-weeks. Not a complete travesty but nonetheless it was less than honourable.
Hammonds automated communication service was excellent from the time of quotation through to the imminent arrival of the fitter.
One week prior to the fitters arrival we received a text message confirming his arrival between 8am - 10am on day 1. The duration for the fitting was scheduled to last 2.6 days.
On day 1, the fitter text at 8.30 to advise he would be arriving between 1pm - 2pm. Not what was agreed and somewhat frustrating because I had a booked a whole day off work. 2pm came and went as did 3, 4 & 5 - NO FITTER! NO EXPLANATION!
I had been in touch with a lovely lady called Karen at Hammonds who had text me earlier on day 1 to introduce herself and advise she would be looking after me whilst my installation was underway. Karen appeared to be as frustrated as I when the fitter failed to arrive. She advised me he was not responding to their messages! No one even knew if he had collected the furniture from the Hammonds warehouse earlier that morning. But at 2pm it was closed and no-one could check.
To cut a very long and frustrating story short, the fitter arrived on day 2 & 3 long after the time he advised us he would be arriving, he proceeded to work for 6-hours each day, leaving by 3pm and was often talking on his phone. Because he hadn't completed the work it was necessary to return on the Saturday taking up more of my time.
As of today (7-days post installation), I have not received any contact from Hammonds to check if the fitter actually arrived on last Saturday and completed the work, to ask if I am happy with the installation, to apologise for the stress endured and the time that the fitter wasted or to apologise for eating into my Saturday! This is very poor customer service.
The quality of the fit was very good however, I have previously used Sharps and Mark Baker Bespoken Wardrobes in previous homes where I had the equally good quality and the fitter arrived on time and finished in the time period agreed.”
“After an enthousiastic start to an under-stairs cupboard it unfortunately all went downhill. The sales, survey and build staff were nice polite people, the products is per spec, but despite 2 measurements by both the same person and the surveyor, the doors were wrong (too short by over an inch) and also work prep had failed to include runners for 2 shelves and a door magnet. I was then given 3 different days for the remedial work, had to suffer a disengenious helpdesk person who refused to connect me with a manager, had to clear my corridor 4 times and wait 27 days after the agreed delivery day with a half finished job to get what I had ordered. I found out this design issue with the wrong doors happen in more than half of the cases, there is clearly a flaw in the measurement system, most likely the plinth alongside the stairs above the doors, I am satisfied with the end product but not with the company.”
“On the Hammonds webs site they say that their furniture is made to last and they pride themselves on their quality and customer service.
Well not so, we spent allot of money on bedroom furniture, the 4 door wardrobe in the toilet, experienced all the laminate on all 4 doors coming off. All were replaced under warrenty, now 3 years later the same has happened, Hammonds now say they will not replace the doors and we cannot even buy new doors from them.
I have asked to speak to a senior manager, they said that I wlll be called back within 7 days, but two weeks later no call.
So much for their claim of quality and service.
Do not buy from this company”
“The furniture was very expensive and was well installed & we've been happy for 20 years. We look after things e& this was in a spare bedroom. BUT the glue used in manufacturing has failed so 60% of the veneer is now lifting badly. I asked for this to be reglued and was told NO. So NOT happy.”
“Hammonds make it very difficult to get in touch with them about an issue. The doors have shifted so much that all attempts to re-adjust using there awful instructions are not possible, and as this is not covered on the guarantee, I think they chose to ignore me.You have to send them a message to get them to call you back. it never happened. I don't know how you would go about challenging the 10 year guarantee if I needed to as there is no one to physically talk to. This 5 star product is now a 2 star due to poor customer service.”
“Two stars only because the fitter has done nothing wrong (in my view) and what he has completed so far - he has done an excellent job. The company itself is at fault and they must be incredibly frustrating to work for. Delivery company failed to deliver all parts on time and one item was delivered damaged. The fitter was booked out back to back meaning another two weeks delay until we could be offered another date for him to return to complete the job. The company seriously lack communication skills and have failed to inform the fitter on whether the missing parts are due to be delivered or to be picked up by himself at the warehouse. Incredibly unprofessional considering the prices they charge. We are left not knowing if the job can now be completed as promised tomorrow (April 12th) as the fitter does not know where the parts are and nothing has been communicated to him. Our other home renovation projects have been delayed due to this mess. If you choose Hammonds, I would suggest to allow at least a month for the job to be complete, even if it's only scheduled to require two or three days work. I'm waiting close to 3 weeks for a 2-day job to be completed at this stage. You should presume that there will be hiccups and delays with these guys and the fitters seem to take the brunt of it all as they have to face the unhappy customer on site. Fitters seem overworked and the company uses an incompetent delivery service and lack overall project management skills which is not reassuring. I am hoping that I am at least happy with the work once it is finally completed but this is certainly not a good start at all.”
