Reply from Whsmith
[REPLY]
- Reviews (38)
-
- Jackie Moar
- 1 Review
Un-helpfull
On a recent holiday in Aberdeen I wished to purchase a book by Anne Cleeves, after searching the book section and not finding what I required, I saw an assistant at the front of the store who I asked for assistance " Excuse me, can you tell me if you have Anne Cleeves recent book" the reply was "the book section is up there" I replied and said "I've already looked, but didn't see it" again she replied "the book section is up there" before walking away, I at least expected her to come and look, or ask another member of Staff if she didn't know.
Needless to say I won't be shopping in W H Smith in Aberdeen when on holiday there again.
-
- Ian Mucklejohn
- Newbury, GB
- 5 Reviews
Read the 'T & Cs' and avoid
My 11 year-old son used his godfather's present of a W.H. Smith gift card to order a white Parker Pen for school on 15 December 2012. By the time the new term was well underway on 13 January, he bought a pen elsewhere and asked me to cancel the order. My request was 'not allowed'. The 'terms and conditions' tell me that: 'If we can't supply your order within 60 days, we will cancel the order.' So, although the site has a 'cancel this order' button - the customer can't. Only W.H. Smith can.
If a child places an order, the T & Cs state that W.H. Smith 'may seek compensation from you where you are not 18 and we have suffered financial loss as a consequence' and 'when you place an order this means you are aware of any age restrictions on the products and agree that you are old enough to buy them'. All this is in spite of children not being legally responsible for a contract.
I had seen W.H. Smith as a friendly High Street presence and they may well be so. Their web site is as unfriendly as can be. The threatening nature of the admonition to children is just awful. I shall not be visiting the site again.
-
- Ren Kelly
- Manchester, GB
- 3 Reviews
Absolute rubbish - will never order from them online again!
I ordered The Official DSA Complete Theory Test Kit (2012 ed) online from WH Smith on 23rd December 2012. On 29th Dec 2012 I had an email saying the order has been dispatched and will be with me in 3-5 days. It is now 3rd January 2013. No order. Tried to call the 0845 number - was on hold for at least 20 minutes before giving up. Called a local store - staff member said the 0845 number is the only way to enquire about online orders. I ordered online as I have been ill; I have a chest infection and have been in bed for days. I then had to call a local store & the staff member there took my details & the product details and confirmed they have the item in stock & are putting it aside for me with my name on it so I dont have to get out of bed with this chest infection and get into a taxi for a wasted journey. I tried to access the website which promptly stopped working and went into some kind of weird format where HTML seems missing and none of the links work when you click on them. I have no idea how to go about getting a refund for the item they have not delivered as the website doesnt even work properly and nobody answers the phone. Absolutely shocking 'service'. I will never shop with WH Smith online again and will tell everyone I know - facebook, twitter, the works- to avoid them.
-
- Gareth Kelly
- Manchester, GB
- 2 Reviews
Awful
Ordered some books for store delivery over a week before Christmas. When I did not receive a delivery date I tried in vain to cancel the order the same day before it was sentout. There was no option to cancel online and the phone line is constantly busy. It is now the 29th December, I still have no books and have not managed to speak to anybody at this shambles of a company. Will never use again and advise anybody else to do the same
-
- Malcolm Horlock
- 1 Review
Dreadful website
I have wasted several hours trying to access 'Manage my orders'. The screen-page doesn't work at all. (And I do have the latest Java installed on both machines I have used.)
-
- Sharron Claire Elliott
- Buckland Monachorum, GB
- 1 Review
Shocking!
I am currently trying to spend a giftcard online. Upon entering the card details it keeps coming up with a error so i can't use the card. It then states invalid card and the gift card has been locked!
The website is very slow. Tried contacting customer services only to be told via message that they ony work Monday to Friday!!! Come on i think we need to move with the times and have a maned customer services on a Saturday.
Then tried ringing two of my local branches to which both nobody bothered answering the phone!
WHsmith i think its time you upped your game!
- Sarah Kitchen
- hull, GB
- 5 Reviews
Terrible customer service
Bought a popular DVD set in Leeds for my father in law for christmas, only to be told he already had it.
Returned it complete to Scunthorpe Shop, the manager was very rude and initially said she would not refund me and I had to take it back to Leeds where I bought it from. I stood my ground and said this was not stated in the terms and conditions, she eventually agreed to credit me in this one instance. The reason she gave was that that branch do not stock DVD's but then slipped in that the company kept sending the shop this particular one anyway. She was very rude and I will not be shopping there again...
-
- Alesa Maher
- 2 Reviews
A diabolical company riddled with incompetence
I ordered a bag for my son, waited 3 weeks then discovered when I checked online that the order had been cancelled. I went to their 'contact us' section and where they provided me with a number that is no longer in use.
I eventually contacted them via facebook and the customer relations team got back to me and thanked me for contacting their Twitter team! They proceeded to explain that they had contacted the publisher of the book I ordered and they had told them it was currently out of stock. I replied telling them it was a bag, not a book and they then got back to me saying that my item was no longer required and therefore cancelled. By whom? I didn't cancel it.
They are a shambles. I have since discovered that they are renowned for being one of the worst companies in the country. How they are still in business is beyond me. I'd put money on them
being extinct by this time next year and good riddance if they are!
- Pranay Mishra
- London, GB
- 1 Review
Pathetic customer service and frustrating advise for Kobo
Doent it dound funny when the WHS staff suggests to keep KOBO on frozen screen until it's battery drains and use the same device, that too after 2 days of purchase. When I tried to put my point , the staff blames mishandling the Kobo as the reason of fault. The smae person claims him to be a Kobo trained support member, but when reported to Kobo help desk they think the piece is faulty.
WHS would not replace the Kobo even when it was sold faulty if we dont have packaging. whatever, an item if goes faulty on 2nd day of purchase must be refunded, no matter what happens to the packaging. And the staff should be polite, unlike WHS Hounslow
If you want to but Kobo, just don't go to WHS.
- Ray Wlaker
- Colchester, GB
- 1 Review
Cannot be trusted for fair pricing - beware of shart practices
I recently took advantage of an offer of "buy one get the next at half price". However when looking at the receipt I discover that craftily they increased the price of the single item by 25% over the recommended list price and therefore the offer was nowhere near as good as it seemed. When I contacted customer relations about this sharp practice they replied:
Dear Sir
Thank you for your further email regarding the pricing of products in our stores.
To clarify, the Recommended Retail Price is given as guidance to the retailer of the selling price of the product by a Publisher. However, as a Retailer we can charge whatever prices we decide.
I am sorry for any disappointment caused and thank you for letting me explain.
If I can help any further, please let me know.
Kind regards
Louise Fox
Customer Service Coordinator
-
- Joe Wlitshire
- Birmingham, GB
- 27 Reviews
Best for Magazines
I can easily send an hour or two investigating the magazine racks in WHSmith. They always seem to have a new magazine about something that I didn't know even existed. Obviously if you find something you love then you're better of subscribing as you'll save a fortune, but for ad-hoc purchases and new ideas WHSmith can't be beat!
- Mrs Harris
- 16 Reviews
varied
Can have some good bargains sometimes. You can pick up from store or have them delivered to home. Packaging is either poor or just adequate. Store don't even give you a bag!
- Lauren Dodd
- 4 Reviews
Job search difficult
Haven't used the website for buying any product but found the job search un-neccesserily complicated and gave up.
- Gary Legg
- 25 Reviews
why can't you solve the problem
of browsers ruining the mags and blocking the aisles while getting a freebie read and pissing off those of us that actually buy them
- John Davies
- 5 Reviews
- Mick Juchnowicz
- 11 Reviews
Great deals
Always some great deals avaiable on books and stationary. Regularly pop in to see " what's on offer"
-
- Christian Jennifer Passy
- Cheltenham, GB
- 49 Reviews
-
- Mary Chan
- Hong Kong, GB
- 1 Review
too expensive
I like the WHSmith goods. They are very convenient and handy. However, the goods are too expensive. The Berol Handwriting Cartridge Pen costs 4.99 pounds on WHSmith but on Cult Pens in costs only 1.52 pounds!!!
-
- Gilles Vronski
- Chester, GB
- 6 Reviews
Good selection
Good selection of books, no hassle shopping and fast delivery. I had no problems whatsoever with this website.
-
- Andy
- Sutton Coldfield, GB
- 46 Reviews
Pricey, but a good choice
Large choice of magazines, pricey for certain things but books are real cheap!
-
- Will Marsh
- Didcot, GB
- 1 Review
5-7 Days - you'll be lucky
Nothing will be delivered - ever...
With so many online businesses getting it right these days I foolishly assumed WHSmith (being a large company) would offer some level of customer service - this is not the case and I would strongly recommend anyone considering ordering from them to think again and go with anybody else. From this experience I will certainly never be using them again.
I ordered a pen from WHSmith online on 19th January with stated delivery of 5-7 days. Following no delivery I sent numerous emails to the customer services (more than half of which remain unanswered) and the responses I did receive stated that they were still awaiting stock from their supplier. Some of the email responses might as well have been automated since I was once advised that the "book" I had ordered was out of stock - not very informative since I had ordered a pen!
At this stage the item was still listed on the WHSmith website as 5-7 days when I had already waited for over 2 months. I sent a final email requesting if this item would ever be delivered since I would be prepared to swap to an alternative. This email was also unanswered and, subsequently, having checked "My Account" on 5th April it would appear that the order has been cancelled (no notification of this was sent via email) and the alternative is now also out of stock.
Advantages:
They have a website
Disadvantages:
No delivery, customer services lack of response, customer services lack of intelligence
What a shambles! Spend your money elsewhere - you'll get more for your money from a wishing well
- June Hollinghurst
- 18 Reviews
This is a really good shop
I think whsmith is a really good shop because it has shops in lots of different places so you can go where ever you live and it sells a good veriety of books and stationary things like pens, pencils, rulers, rubbers etc.
- Ed Link
- Fife, GB
- 1 Review
Rip-Off Merchants
I paid £109.99 for a Kobo Touch eReader at WH Smith Travel Heathrow, being assured this was a really good price only to find that everywhere else, including WH Smith the price is only £79.
Goodbye Wh Smith, last time I will shop with you
- Dave Fisher
- Aberdeen, GB
- 21 Reviews
A bit old fashion but a good shop
Despite the ups & downs they have come out firing on most cylinders. The shops I find slightly dated but that isn't always a bad thing.
- thereader
- 1 Review
Very poor after sales service
I bought a kobo touch before Xmas and didn't really start to use till recently.
The kobo touch has become almost unusably slow and unresponsive. I contacted WH SMith who said that as it was after 4 weeks they would not exchange but that I would have to send the item back to kobo.
Compare this with John Lewis who also stock the kobo and would offer a very different level of service. Buy elsewhere!
-
- Sarah Mullett
- Portsmouth, GB
- 3 Reviews
Will never use them again
I ordered a diary from whsmith.co.uk. I ordered it on Monday as their website states that if you order by 9pm on Tuesday it will be delivered to store on Friday. I went to collect the item on Friday at 4:30pm and was told by the store that it had not arrived. However, I called Customer Services who called the store and they said it was there but hadn't been scanned in yet. I now have no chance to get it until I am near the store, which is my closest but 4 miles away. I wouldn't mind but this is the 2nd time I've been told an item has been delivered to store but the store claims it's not there. Why can't they confirm by email when it arrives at the store?
- Carl
- Leighton Buzzard, GB
- 3 Reviews
Abysmal service
I ordered a book online to be delivered to Leighton Buzzard store. The online status was that they HAD THEM IN STOCK and would be delivered to the store in 5-7 working days. I chased up the store 3 times, but their response was "it's nothing to do with them, it's the online people". I contacted the 'online people' only to be told they never had the item in stock and have no idea when they are getting them in.
In summary; online stock status is a lie, no order updates emailed through, no continuity with the high street stores they are supposed to be delivered to. I will be 'voting with my feet'.
- Pavel
- hinckley, GB
- 1 Review
very disappoing
On December 15 I ordered a photo album for Xmas present. I chose store delivery to Hinckley shop. After receiving an email that my order has been dispatched and will be there in 5 working days, I went to the shop 3 times, but it wasn't there even on December 23. I asked to buy a similar album which was in stock in the store, but was denied this possibility as it was more expensive than online. The staff told that they don't know anything about online orders. After my third visit the store manager called me and asked to drop in the store again. She asked either anybody could take the order instead of me, which could not be the case. She said that my order came to the store yesterday (December 22) and was collected by somebody else!!!Which means that the store staff does not check any paperwork. After all, they gave me the album they had in the store. Very, very disappoing experience and will never order anything there again.
-
- Shelley Soon Ward King
- 14 Reviews
brilliant staff and store
the staff are great in my local store so friendly and always willing to help. ours is a small store but its crammed with everything you need
-
- Stan Still
- Edinburgh, GB
- 33 Reviews
Good stationers
They are probably the best stationers and bookstore around at the moment. They still seem to keep their head above water, perhaps because the diversify into so many different products. Good for gifts, but the music department seems to have dwindled due to most people getting music online.
-
- Barbara Fowles
- 32 Reviews
excellent
they are an excellent store and their range of cards and books is excellent, the staff are very helpful and efficient, i have always found it a joy to shop in this store mainly in the high street.
- AlfA
- Lancaster, GB
- 3 Reviews
my downloads in limbo
I purchased 4 ebooks online on 8 January and received an immediate confirmation email. But the download site had no link to download these latest purchases (all previous purchases were, however, still available for download). Emails went unanswered, except for the automated notification of receipt, for 5 days. Meanwhile I phoned and was told there was a technical problem because I had paid part of the amount using WHSmith giftcards (the online process said this was OK) and technicians were urgently addressing the issue. It is now 8 days since my purchase was confirmed and download is still unavailable. There seems to be no facility to cancel the order because the website treats the order as confirmed! They have my giftcard money and I have only frustration. Why invite the use of giftcards before the process has been properly debugged? Why not tell the customer immediately that there is a problem? Why not offer the alternative to cancel the order? Waterstones could tell them how to handle the whole process painlessly!
- John
- England, GB
- 1 Review
WH Smiths gift cards a waste of time (as of Jan 2011)
I received a WH Smiths giftcard with £30 on it for Christmas. I tried to order something online (after spending am age trying to navigate their hopeless website to see if they accepted cards online - they did).
On their help page it then said Gift Cards not currently accepted online due to some problems they've been having.
Waited a week and tried again yesterday and the error message was no longer there. Proceeded to order a book (which was under the amount on my card @ £19.59). Came to the payment screen and all went in OK. Bear in mind one has to scrape off the bit on the back of the card to get to the security number.
Later received an email saying my card had been declined, and to get in touch with my card issuer.
HELLO????!?!? This is YOUR CARD WH!!! An email to them a day past has yet to be replied to.
Not impressed at all and I wish I'd been given money instead of their hopeless 'gift' card. Oh and if you're on their website, and want to buy a DVD or a CD it takes you to an 'external' site called WH SMith entertainment. And guess what - your login details from WH Smith do not work, You have to register AGAIN with that site.
Appalling organisation all round! No wonder superb online shops like Amazon are obliterating the competition - they know what they're doing and are first rate at customer service.
- John
- Jay
- Beds, GB
- 1 Review
Shockingly poor service!
I ordered and paid for a HP C500W 4GB Flash Drive online but was provided misinformation by customer services regarding collection in store.
I went to collect the following day as advised, with all the relevant paperwork. I was not permitted to collect my order with the shop assistant stating they had not received my Flash Drive in store yet. Upon me pointing out the product was currently on the shelves in the very same store we were standing in the reason changed to my order not being on their system yet. The assistant contacted the Customer Service Team and was told not to supply me the product from the shelf, despite prior payment, paperwork etc.
I wasted nearly an hour of my time reasoning and it was only resolved when the store assistant saw the obvious common sense solution and personally intervened to rectify, going against the Customer Service Team. In my opinion the WHSmith Customer Service Team tried to flout the Distance Selling Regulations. I think that WHSmith do not fully understand Distance Selling and the tailored Customer Service required.
The new HPC500W 4GB Flash Drive is itself working perfectly.
Jays73
- Geoff
- 1 Review
Why accept managed bad customer service?
I would like to voice my complaint about the way the gift cards work.
I was given a gift card for my birthday. As it is awkward me to get to a shop I tried to use the voucher online. I budgeted so that I wouldn't lose too much of the non refundable part and clicked to order to find out that the gift card wasn't accepted online. I telephoned an opertator from Whsmith who told me 'the facility to accept gift cards wasn't ready yet' and 'to try a high street store'.
I then phoned up a high street store and asked to order some books. I ordered the 5 books and was then told that giftcards weren't accepted over the phone and that I had to come in to the store.
The following week I made time to go into town and started to order the books at which point I realised the prices were much higher than the ones i'd found previously.
I asked the cashier if he could price match WHSmiths own prices and i was told no.
I suggested that technically I was still ordering online, just through the store computer instead because it is the only way to have my 'GIFT' card accepted.
He informed me that there was no way he could help in this situation other than for me to call customer services who might be able to see the customer running around in circles.
Customer services told me there was nothing they could do.
By now, i'm getting annoyed.
1. WHSmith confirm that the money is 100% kept within WHSmith at the point of Giftcard sale.
2. A huge amount will never be redeemed due to 'complications'
3. Any change from a not exact purchase is conveniently kept on the card which will be most likely lost or thrown away due to the insubstantial amount on the card.
And yet with all this money coming in, the receiver (birthday, wedding,happy occasion etc) is clamped with as many restrictions as it is possible to get away with to minimize their chance of getting a good value product back for the change in currency.
Who is Mr/Mrs WHSmith and why is this slight of hand allowed and enforced?
Thanks for your time
- John Faulkner
- 3 Reviews
Quite a disappointment
Not only did they sell something they did not have in stock, but they also took 2 weeks to refund the money I paid. To be fair to them this was most likely partly down to the banks but still... Banks is a completely different topic of discussion for me. I do not like them either.
- the moon pixie
- 3 Reviews
Erm........still waiting for a refund
I recently purchased a book from WHSmith for my gran for her birthday but returned it after my uncle had also got the same book. Great minds think alike eh?
Well I returned the book to WHSmith and I am still waiting on them to refund the money to my account. They were quick enough to take it but now won't give it me back. Really poor service on the phone too.
- alan spence
- 1 Review
Total rip-off merchants
I am contacting you about my order which was a xmas present and which we still have not received. The above order was placed on 8th December and I was advised by Amazon that the item would be delivered between 12 - 16 Dec.
It had not arrived by 22nd and I emailed Amazon who said you would be in touch. Nobody contacted me.
24th Dec I rang your customer services and I was assured that Royal Mail had a backlog, but would deliver by that afternoon.
The item still hadn't arrived by 29th Dec and I went to check at my local sorting office and there was no sign of the item. I checked on your website that the game was no longer available
I then phoned your customer services again and was told by another representative that he had been told, that all items would be delivered
by New Years Eve. When I advised your colleague that the item was out of stock according to your website, he still insisted that the game would be delivered by New Years Eve because my order had already been processed.
Your colleague also said that Amazon had given me false information and that your company does not know what Amazon is telling your
customers. Really ! I have already expressed my concerns to Amazon.
I requested a refund on postage and packing as the item was supposed to be for Christmas and I was told it was not possible.
I could apply for a "Lost in the post" and would receive a refund. Your terms and conditions state that:
We will debit the payment from your chosen method of payment at the time we despatch your goods.
Well you have had my money for 6 weeks now, you have not bothered to contact me once and when I have contacted your company, your
'service' as been appalling. What does your website say about you......?
It's our burning desire to source the most innovative contraptions from all over the world. Which is simply splendid. In fact, as you'll discover, we've something for every eventuality and any number of tricky situations.
So what I expe
Is Whsmith your company?
Get to know your customers. Simply claim your company now. Get real customer insight and respond to your reviews. It's free.
Try out Trustpilot's exclusive tools for gathering reviews-- get started with our Kickstart service! And remember, responding to your reviews is absolutely free. Learn more
