Ikea Customer Service: Rude, Abusive and Unhelpful

Bought a Stockholm Table and Three Chairs in January. They have been out of stock ever since. Obviously three chairs are no good to anyone!!
I checked at the time if they would be getting more in and I was told
"yes". Oh the joys of Ikea (ie. you don't have to buy everything at once but - buy when you have the cash)! I checked again two months later in the Dublin shop. "Looks like they're just out of stock". Cool. Another month or so later went on line to check if any were in stock. They didn't seem to exist so rang helpline (UK). "Oh no, they just took them down from website because they were out of stock."

Finally decided after visiting the Dublin shop and getting nowhere last week to call the helpline today.

Spent the day on the helpline getting abuse from staff and their supervisors because as far as they can tell from their system "Stockholm Dining" range never existed and I was imagining it...or lying. they asked me to send photos....I couldn't believe it... I offered to send a link showing photos...but they couldn't accept that...only photos of my chairs in my living room would be accepted (implying that I was lying, etc, etc).

I am totally livid having being lied to and fobbed off by staff for nearly nine months I am now stuck with an expensive table and THREE chairs although I need at least five more. The customer care staff basicly told me "Tough" and it's my own fault (oh it's now my fault) that I didn't keep my receipt.

I refused to take and send photos (feeling like a criminal) and am going down to the dublin store tomorrow with my chair under my arm which has a sticker on its underside saying "Ikea Stockholm" range!!!!!

Help!!! I might kill someone....or at least scream loudly at them...I'm feeling taken for a ride.......

I had an issue with IKEA last year when I purchased two items there. I had to phone customer service to get an address to write a letter to and send them the same letter via email. I got an automated response to say the matter would be looked into. Still waiting a response.
When I phoned customer service to get the address I found them to be rude.
I never stood in IKEA since and never will.

Thanks for your reply! I used to love this company and have spent thousands of euros in their shops over many years. Depending on what happens tomorrow I also am preparing to end my 'love affair' with this shop!

Does anyone else have any advice re my rights etc. in this matter? Thanks.

If I may just make a small suggestion to you when going to Ikea with the chair under your arm. Rather than walking into the place all guns blazing (and I know frustration with service is a real anger boiler), try and remain calm. Staff will react to aggression, more than likely, in a negative way. Yes it is their mistake and you know that, but they are waiting for you to show this.
You have dealt with several different people so far and I find with companies the more people you involve the less service you get. Especially when done on the end of the phone. My advice tomorrow when you get to Ikea is find someone on the "Returns/Customer Service" and simply ask "Please can you help me". Then explain your entire situation without getting annoyed as detailed as you can. Deal with the one person. Get their name and use it when talking to them. Make it more personal. I bet this will make things a little easier.

Also look at the whole picture. You think you are now left with a table and 3 chairs. Discontinued product. Maybe suggest to Ikea (If you like the table) that you return the 3 chairs for 3 chairs that are in Stock and match the table. And then buy more chairs from the new range as required. You can match the chair under your arm for colours etc.

By all means do not let them dismiss you or walk all over you. But remember, that the staff member you are speaking to will try to help you if you are calm and in the right. No staff member gets an extra bonus to "screw you".

Hope this helps and you get sorted

Blake

Good advice from Blake. It's difficult to remain calm but can really make a difference to how you are treated. The people working in IKEA (or anywhere else) are not paid to be yelled at or fought with and will often go the extra mile to help a customer who asks nicely and looks for a solution rather than a row.

Sybil

Its not really their problem that you bought less than you needed at the time, did not keep your receipt and waited 9 months to complain in the actual store. I find it hard to believe that everyone you spoke to gave you "abuse" unless you were shouting at them first. You should have gone to the store months ago with your reciept.
Ikea have a very generous returns policy and IME the most polite and helpful staff around.

Thanks for the replies but I think my request may have gotten lost in translation. I am actually looking for advice on....

..... my rights regarding faulse advertising of a particular product....

not.....

for advice on how to behave........(I think my mom sure raised me well already!!!).


Cheers!

flusteredma said:

Does anyone else have any advice re my rights etc. in this matter? Thanks.

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Your rights hinge on the strength of the initial "yes" you received when you asked whether the chair would be restocked. If it's mutually accepted that this is what you were told, you could reasonably insist that they take back the three chairs.

If, however, they deny you were told the chairs would be restocked (and if you've no way of verifying that you were), there's not much you can do other than appeal to their good nature. You could take a case to the Small Claims Court but it would ultimately be your word against theirs and there would be a chance, therefore, that your action would fail.

And Magpie,

I only bought three chairs at the time because that's all they had in stock...as I didn't want to buy something that they wouldn't be getting in again....I checked with the staff at the time to make sure they were not being discontinued and I was told "No they're not being discontinued....they're just out of stock".

And everytime I enquired over the last nine months I was told the same thing "They're just out of stock". Until yesterday...when I learned from the helpline...

"What dining table and chairs? We never carried a range of this name?" Also the chairs are 185 euro each so I wasn't in a rush and just took them at their word.

Isn't there someone here who can understand why I'm feeling duped as a customer and can accept that because I'm feeling duped and badly treated by such a large international corporation....that I'm not a raving lunatic!!!

Thanks Staples!

I'm pretty sure when I go down to the shop and show them the chairs and explain they will remember. I have no reason to lie about holding onto these three chairs so long...it doesn't make sense! But I will let you know how it goes. Thanks again staples. I was starting to feel pretty put upon there for a moment!

The staff would have told you what they knew, their system said out of stock. They did nothing wrong, nobody in the store made the decision to discontinue them.
If you had gone into the store months ago and explained the issue properly I have no doubt at all they would have accepted the return of the chairs.
Go in to the shop, be reasonable and see if they can help you at all. There is nothing else you can do.

As you need to know your legal rights it may be best if you phone www.consumerconnect.ie and get their advice before heading to Ikea.

Hi All. Thanks for the replies. Even the ones about me being some kind of 'slovenly maniac' customer...with no receipt etc. were at least amusing!!!

I'm glad to report that, as expected, I got a very good hearing out by the customer services supervisor and all has been resolved.

Yes...

there was a range called 'Stockholm' Dining Table and Chairs...
even though the Uk helpline insisted there wasn't (insinuating I was a lier in the worst possible manner).

Yes...

I was given incorrect information over a long period, due to a fault in
in the system, which meant I didn't act sooner and just waited...

Yes....

it seems that the staff on the helpline treated me badly by asking me to send in photographic evidence before giving me any kind of customer advice/service.

The Dublin staff member was totally professional (as I would have expected from Ikea) never questioned me for a moment and headed off to investigate whether they could get me more chairs or not.

No, the range had been discontinued but never registered...I got a credit note for the chairs (without a receipt). I was offered to try out my chosen new chairs to see if they matched the table with the option to return them no questions asked. I was also offered to return the table at my discretion if I decide to just go for a new table also.

The incident is being thorougly investigated by the Dublin branch as they say they are depending on the Uk callcentre to help their customers not to alienate and insult them basically and I am currently putting this experience in writing for the Dublin office to help them improve the phoneline customer service for future.

Just for the record...I have been working in callcentres/sales/customer service for many years and am well aware that conversations are recorded so I know how to put my case forward over the phone without becoming abusive...as some have here suggested I must have been. I am very confident that if the phone conversations were recalled in evidence of this episode that the people involved, if not fired on the spot, would at least me missing out on a Christmas bonus and kept a very close eye on!!!!!

It's also quite telling that there are some amongst us who are naiive enough to belive that if there's a problem...it must be the customers own fault..so 'niceoneted' and 'Staples' thanks for not being so naiive as if to believe I must have deserved all the abuse and rudeness that I got...
And thanks to Clare in Ikea Dublin for restoring my faith in my favourite shop that I've been spending money in for over twenty years....

Glad you got it sorted. Maybe you should rename the thread now!

I've had great customer service from their managers - not always terrific from the staff on the desk or on the helpline/internet.

Yes Gnubbit...I think that's why I was so shocked with the helpline...ie being hung up on when I asked for a supervisor...and the supervisor eventually calling me back and treating me like I was some kind of dodgey character....and I mean in the worst possible sense!

I love Ikea...I lived in Germany for ten years (many years ago) and have been furnishing my homes with them ever since. I've shopped in their Frankfurt, Berlin, Seville, Belfast and Dublin shops! So to have a bad experience with them was something totally alien to me. Personally, I feel like a valued customer and I certainly didn't feel like one when I tried to explain that I did actually have a Stockholm Dining table and Chairs that I'd been holding onto waiting for new stock to come, as 'promised'...for a whole nine months...that tells you my level of faith in the company to say the least...and to feel like I was being punished for this blind faith..oy, yoy, yoy!!

I think Ikea has gone very downhill since it opened - was in there last Sunday and there were 5 queues about 20 people deep and everyone fed up - another till opened but was taking cards only as "the till had no cash".

Complete chaos and bad management in my view - you wouldn't get it in McDonalds & considering the average spend per family must be in the hundreds they should pull up their socks.

I have to say I've only been in the shop a few times, rang the helpline once about bulbs not fitting into a lamp and found them completely unhelpful, a total waste of time. I've been working in sales for years and can recognise when I'm getting *absolutely nowhere* with the person on the other end of the phone . . . .I would never even bother ringing them again.

blueskie said:

another till opened but was taking cards only as "the till had no cash".

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I has much the same problem about 3 weeks ago. The teller told me she was card only (pointed at sign, indicating I was blind) and did not have any change. I showed her the exact money and told her I did not require change, she got all huffy. I ended up paying by card as I had two trolleys loaded and two kids in tow and was not going to wait another 10/15 minutes queuing again.

In any event, AFAIK it is illegal for them not to accept cash.

Towger said:

In any event, AFAIK it is illegal for them not to accept cash.
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No it isn't.