“Beware the returns policy! I am nearly £200 out of pocket and have more than 30 hours in personal time including a lost day at work trying to deal with Victoria Plum's customer service team about refunds and collections of unwanted items.
I've been chasing this for three months. They have under-refunded me for items, cancelled refunds with no explanation then when queried admitted that the refund should be due, disputed the amount I've paid and admitted to overcharging me for delivery.
It's impossible to speak to a manager directly - so everything is done via laborious emails. The phone lines seem to be faulty so on almost every occasion, I've been on hold for ages, explained the situation to a customer service person and then been cut off - so have to start the whole process again. I have spent hours every week trying to get this resolved.
Then the final straw is being told to wait in all day for a collection, having to take time off work to wait and then the driver not turning up. I was told he 'attempted a pick up' then cancelled it. There was no ring of the bell and no knock on the door. Would that seem like an attempt at a pick up to anyone?
To give credit to the phone staff - apart from one man who gave his name as 'Thomas' who was exceptionally rude- they are brilliantly friendly they just don't have the authority to be able to do anything to help.”
“We placed an order for a shower screen on the 24th January 2019 and received a confirmation email the same day confirming delivery for the 9th February 2019. We had no further contact from the company until the 7th February, when we received a reminder email to confirm our delivery on Saturday 9th. We also received a text the following day (8th Feb) also confirming delivery for the 9th. On the 9th we waited in all day, our delivery slot being between 7am and 8pm and no shower screen arrived. When we called to find out the reason for no delivery, we were told the item was not in stock and could not be delivered until the 21st February!! Awful service, no offer of compensation and no guarantee that the order will even arrive on the 21st as they cannot confirm if the item is in stock until the day before delivery is due to take place. Waited in all day, and now have a bathroom with no shower screen! Definitely would not recommend!
Victoria plum have stated that compensation will be discussed after the item has been received, which I imagine will be a discount or voucher for our next purchase; a ploy to get us to spend more money with the company...Based on our current experience we would not be interested in ordering from them again!”
“Wouldn't waste my time with them . Customer service is a disgrace and put the phone down on me when asked about standpipe and tap set that has no way to fix it to one another . My plumber told me it should have a thred or grub screw to secure it . Explained this to customer service and he said you had 2 weeks to ensure all parts are present then call went silent. Unfit for purpose item being sold and unfit employee answering phones. Disgraceful.”
“Never again will I buy anything from this company. 3 calls to customer services to replace a faulty tap which cost me over 100 pounds. Every time I ring I get different excuse. Now they want a photograph of the tap dripping to prove it's faulty. Won't even take the word of a time served, qualified plumber (whom I am paying a daily rate while this fiasco is going on) that said tap is a manufacturing fault. I will make sure I never recommend this company to anyone. Furious, and still without a working bathroom.”
“Ceramic basin arrived completely shattered. Nothing in the packaging to protect it adequately in transit. This was not discovered until the box was opened for inspection the day before the fitter was arriving to fit the sink. VictoriaPlum have refused to replace it because it was reported after 14 days of delivery (notwithstanding that it was reported as soon as it was discovered the item was obliterated).”
“Had a bath & shower screen delivered at the end of November but couldn't get installed until January. Inspected the goods on arrival but plumber found a small crack in the shower screen hinge when he came to install. Contacted Victoria Plumb who just didn't want to know as the goods had been delivered over 14 days ago. I would recommend avoiding this company at all costs!”
“Absolutely terrible, do not order from them. Ordered a fu. Bathroom, two corner sink sunjts later and still no joy. Sink is not fit on unit. Victoria plum unwilling to refund or replace. Sink waste unit then leeks. They also sent the cheap toilet seat and no the one that was ordered. The cistern system also did not work and had to be replaced. They insist on live chat and refuse to speak face to face. Do not order from these people. They simply don't care”
“I bought a bathroom suite shower the works, only fitted it late June 2018, a week before Christmas, no hot water from my Milan thermostatic shower , informed Victoria plumb, can't call never get answered,so emailed, what a waste of time, you'd think I made it up ,what is the point having a warranty, they still haven't come back with a reply ,I'm sure it's a robot not a human to let a family who's only way washing is this shower, go all this time with cold water DONT BOTHER BUYING CON ARTIST”
“Pray you do not need to retuen or refund anything
If you buy and item is good you may be lucky, however if you need to return anything its a horrendous nightmare.
Dealing with customer services is a joke, it takes ages to get through on phone, then when you do and tell them you want a return and refund they will try everything to get you to buy something else or not to do it, including making the phone call go feint so as they do not get the refund on their personal stats.
When I finally called back several times, got the collection and refund arranged, was told refunds take 14days, the collection of a toilet cost me £49.99 !! absolute thieves.
Had I seen the small print on returns I would have never ever used these rip off merchants, avoid at all costs”
“Complete shambles from the offset
1) first delivery missing an item with repeat delivery arranged
2) second delivery didnt show up despite 3 calls reassuring me it would be coming with the last advising me to stay in for the evening as they 'could' be running late. Complete waste of a day
3) third delivery showed up at the wrong time with forgotten item
4 ) quidco cashback declined for no reason
5 ) unused item needing to be returned £40 collection fee for this small box that weighs literally nothing. (2/3 of the price of the item)
All in all dreadful service considering we had spent nearly £3000 with them and would never use again or recomend to anyone.”
“Crab, received damaged wall panel because client away that we can’t check package after check customer service Charlotte say is after 14 days and do not care any more.
No recommend any one this company, first and last ordered from them!!!!”
“This company has the worst customer service and product I've EVER known. Delivery of broken tiles are acceptable apparently. All work stops because they will not ship replacements the same day. You get cut off the live chat, fobbed off on the phone and they just repet the over and over the same thing... We can collect and replace at somepoint this week!! So all work stops.... DO NOT BUY FROM THIS COMPAY AS THEY SHIP BROKEN AND RETURNED ITEMS.... SHOCKING CUSTOMER SERVICE.”
“If you call you get held in a queue for over 40 mins each time with no reply. You can only chat online. We had a faulty shower door and they required photographs (which I gave) to be reviewed by ‘a panel of experts’ rather than observe the consumer rights act and replace or refund a faulty item. The onus in the first 6 months is not in the customer to prove the fault with endless photos. Quality of products is variable. I’d steer clear of using them 100%”
“My customer bought sanitary ware from Victoria Plumb for their downstairs Toilet.
They was told to buy fittings they did not need. the Basin trap does not fit standard Solvent weld waste pipe!! Every plumbers merchants in the country sell traps that fits standard waste.
Customer service is useless as they do not know what they are selling. The sold far to many unnecessary fittings to my customer and the quality of the products are very cheap and nasty.
I know i will be back within a year to replace taps etc.”
“The information on the website was v scant. The pipework didn’t fit so I needed to return the cloakroom sink and wall hung cupboard.
The cost 0f the item is less than £70. They want £49.99 to collect the item.
Members of the public are NOT ALLOWED to go to the warehouse to return items.
I would not buy anything from this company unless you are 100% sure that all the dimensions etc are accurate and you have enough product information to work with.”
“When you buy something with a good warranty you expect it to last not fail within the first year. Then the problem starts as VP are not interested. They keep you hanging on for months hoping you will just go away but Citizens Advice has just told me to take them to court.”
“The company misled me by offering next day delivery. I placed the order worth £700.00 and also got confirmation of delivery being on time. However the delivery did not arrive. On my inquiry they said it will be after 4 days. I cancelled the order and was told that refund will take 14 days.
After 1 week of cancellation the company tried to deliver the same order under a different order number.
The conclusion of my experience with them is as under ;
They dont have an effective complaint handling system.
Excessive delays in phone call
Operators hang up after making you wait for more than 30 mts.
Absolutely hopeless company in dealing with orders and refunds”
“Ordered £800 of bathroom furniture. Tall cabinet is dented after finally getting through on live chat I was told 2 days over 14 day period. The delivery note doesn’t show anything about checking and the 14 days only about returns. Apparently you have to read all the terms and cond. whilst placing an order. They refuse to exchange despite sending pictures. Plumber not started yet. THIS COMPANY IS RUBBISH !! Customer service doesn’t exist.”
“Don't buy from this company! In February this year, I purchased everything to refurbish my bathroom, shower tray, screen, toilet, basin etc. My bathroom fitter repeatedly let me down and eventually in May told me he could not undertake the job due to health issues. I then had to wait until the end of October for another fitter to start the job - all good bathroom fitters are booked solidly for months. There was a problem with every piece, parts missing, broken, chipped shower tray.... and because I had purchased these items back in February, even though they had remained in the packaging they had arrived in, Victoria Plum would not accept any responsibility or help resolve the issues. I then found out from the fitter that if he had known it was Victoria Plum products I had, he would have refused the job or added £500 on to his fitting quote because their bathrooms always mean trouble. He told me most bathroom fitters he knows, have the same attitude towards them. Based on my horrendous experience, I would urge anyone looking to purchase bathroom furniture, not to waste their money on such poor quality products and service.”
“I wouldn't even give them a 5 star. Broken tiles sent and WRONG tiles - a huge cost incurred for cancelled tiler and to have a day off.... and still waiting on them to return my calls, live chat and emails. Chat time wait is 15mins - it's totally unacceptable. Don't bother, go to tile giant or topps tiles and get the goods and service you deserve.”
