The Consumer Forums

Odeon Direct.

Well I signed up to them a year ago now. I have to say all in all a very good company, not had too many problems. They are run by Lovefilm.

I signed up for my 4 weeks free on there website and added my movies to my "basket/queue" and away I went.

You can also refer friends for the free trial, by doing so and as long as they continue on after the trial you get an additional 4 weeks membership free. Not too bad and you can do it as many times as you like.

There are one or two problems I encountered, when i've sent a DVD back it gets logged back in on their computers and they don't send me a replacement for two working days which isn't in their customer promise. So I complained, didn't really get much of a response. No compensation offered as they say most of the time they are sent back to me most of the time within one day.

All in all I would give them 7/10

One after the other, we are seeing Samsung slider phones pouring in with lots of features – business, entertainment as well as connectivity. Samsung G600 comes with an astonishing 5 Megapixel camera, auto focus and flash. Its compact and sleek design makes it possible to carry it anywhere. Moreover, the Multimedia feature has an in-built FM Radio, a multi format Music Player. It also comes with the Bluetooth capabilities with a wireless stereo headset, or transfer your music at lightning fast speeds using USB 2.0. Product of Samsung G600 comes in the following platforms: EDGE/ GPRS Class10, Quad Band supporting GSM 850+900+1800+1900 Mhz, WAP 2.0 and Java MIDP 2.0. The Display property is 16M / 240 x 320 pixels / TFT LCD. The Samsung G600 is set to create a huge impact, as the current stigma that high quality camera phones should be oversized, over weight and bulky is about to be exorcised, as the Samsung G600 will be the latest mobile phone with a 5 mega pixel camera to hit the streets, with one big difference, its only 14mm thick. Samsungs reputation for producing high spec handsets in small packages is only going to be further enhanced in the Samsung G600 as their latest venture. Compact and ultra stylish in its design, the Samsung G600 is not only breaking conversion, it is set to smash the current pretenders off of the high spec camera pedestal.

Memory of a mobile phone is another aspect that is of importance, it has a 40 MB of User memory. Getting into the Connectivity part, the Samsung G600 comes with the Bluetooth 2.0, SyncML, USB 2.0 and WAP 2.0. The Personal Information Management consists of Calendar/ To do list/ Scheduler, Clock/ Worldtime/ Alarm/ Stopwatch, Calculator, Currency converter, Memo book and Call functions. For office goers the Samsung G600 comes with Document viewer and Voice memo. The messaging feature comes with the array of tools that includes : SMS/ MMS, Predictive Text Input T9, Email (POP3 / SMTP / IMAP4) + OTA setting configuration, vCard / vCalendar / vNote.

Samsung G600 being the latest member of Samsung’s range of handsets is made to capture quality pictures of priceless moments. Samsung has sparked a revolution in the world mobile market by unveiling some spectacular handsets in slider forms. The Samsung G600 comes with every features that he or she feels to have in his or her mobile phone. It has EDGE/ GPRS Class10, Quad Band supporting GSM 850+900+1800+1900 Mhz, WAP 2.0 and Java MIDP 2.0. The Display property is 16M / 240 x 320 pixels / TFT LCD. It also comes with Speakerphone, Dialed / missed / received calls, Call forwarding / barring / waiting / holding, CLIP / CLIR, Multy party and Call time / Call costs.

Samsung G600 is well-built - the battery cover and plastic covers for the multi-function jack and memory card slot are all very easy to open and close. Encased in an elegant and sexy slide design with metallic finishing the G600 is the latest innovation from Samsung that fits perfectly in your pocket. One of the sleekest phone in the market, it only weighs 3.7 oz. With it’s black shade and slide form factor, it is indeed simply stylish and totally eye-catching. The LCD screen measure 2.2” that can display 16,000,000 colors with a resolution of 240×320 pixels. Samsung G600 has a radio with RDS, so you can be sure that this phone will give you good music experience.

Guess What - we bought 3 pieces of brown furniture from ScS way back in May 2007 who sold it to us with a 8 to 10 week lead time. Some 12 weeks later we got a phone call saying they want to deliver our furniture to an address in Bolton, we live in Leyland. This furniture, according to ScS company policy, had passed through 'STRINGENT QUALITY CONTROL PROCESSES. When it arrived it was two pieces of brown and one of cream, which we refused to accept. We made numerous calls, we had time off work to take delivery all after days traipsing round the stores trying to select that product that would fit our expectations. ScS offered to replace the furniture but it would take another 8 to 10 weeks which means 12 weeks, refused firmly to make any change to the lead-time, made it quite clear that compensation is not a ScS policy. And Guess What - Here we are with no furniture heading in to November as we have had to start all over again after ScS let us down and refused to prioritise our replacement order that they got wrong. We did eventually get all of our money back but that was not easy, even the store manager was playing games with us stating that the system was down, the system could not raise a 'refund' order etc. For those hunting new furniture before Christmas good look, my advice is beware of promises that ScS sales people make because they can't keep to their word and they don't care about customer satisfaction

I've sent about six registered mail letters to companies over the last month, and although they were delivered, not one of them was signed for.

What's the point of registered if the postman never asks them to sign?

Body kits, lexus lights, angel eye headlights, lowering springs, alloy wheels, M3 mirrors and backboxes

I paid for rear lights(£98.00) in early February & have had no lights-one email telling me they would deliver in next few days-in beginning of March.
There is no phone number to contact.
I have asked upteen times for a refund-no answer or refund.
Completely unreliable & many threads on web about being dodgy.
Have got on to Trading Standards as they are not interested.
BEWARE of modding with this lot-You could get fleeced for more than what He ripped me for.

In 2005 (55 Plate) I bought a new Swift Sunadnce 590RL Motorhome at about 30k
You would think at this money what can go wrong. Well just about everything expect the kitchen sink although that was dodgy as well as it would drain away. All windows needed to be replaced, Cooker is rusting, Fridge packed up, Electrics kept blowing, Electric Entrance step failed, Gas regulator fell apart, Flyscreens didnt fit so we got bitten by midges and the roof leaked. The van is still under warranty and guess where it is now, yes back with the dealer and I wont see it until mid August

Please contact me if you have had any probs with your Swift Motorhome in particular those on a 55 plate.

Thanks

I bought a Simplehuman bin 3 years ago. Expensive, but it had the soft touch lid I wanted as well as lots of other details which make it more hygienic to use... Anyway...

Unfortunately, the inner hinges in the lid broke within a year and it was one of those things you always mean to get round to do and never do, even though the bin has a lifetime guarantee.

I finally e-mailed Simplehuman 3 weeks ago with my details after coming across the paperwork for it, without holding my breath, I have to say, having had far too many experiences of guarantees and warranties worth less than the paper they were written on. In this case, you were supposed to have registered the product with them, etc... and I have to admit it is not something I'm particularly good at doing.

To my surprise, I got a reply within 2 days and it simply said: "thank you, sorry you've had a problem, replacement lid is on its way." No fuss, no questions asked, no hassle, just a straightforward replacement. The lid arrived 2 days ago, it's obvious the hinges are now of a different more solid design, so maybe there's been an issue, who knows?

Either way, full marks to Simplehuman for customer service the way it should always be but so seldom is. The result of this is that I will buy their products whenever I can and will recommend them to all and sundry.

Companies which argue, try to deny customers their rights, pay heed: Good customer care brings its own rewards.

My wife recently bought a dishwasher from Currys she was charged for delivery and installation and was not told about the fact that currys would not connect it for any variety of reasons.When the machine was delivered the driver/fitter stated (within about 2 seconds) that it could not be fitted for health and safety reasons.
I called a plumber in at massive expense then phoned Currys to complain that my wife had not been warned about any possible difficulty with fitting the dishwasher and regarding a refund of the fitting fee.
Customer services immediatly adopted a defensive posture but did say that "mmmm maybe the store could have explained this better".During this conversation the customer advisor stated "Well you dont expect us to pay your plumbers bill do you?".
I phoned the store and the following day i was informed that if i bought a waste and water pipe the they would fit it (I thought that was odd because surely me buying a couple of pipes which i would not have a clue about would be a health and safty issue in itself).I declined this offer because i know as much about plumbing pipes as currys seem to know about customer care.
I was advised by currys that my wife should take her receipt to currys to get the £14.00 refund.
She tried this today (A saturday) and was told that she had to come back during the week to carry out a refund,My wife explained that she could not attend currys during the week because of other commitments and thats why she had come to the store on Saturday.The member of staff then questioned my wife about her work hours explaining that the store was open till 8pm so she should be able to get there!!.
I phoned currys customer care who stated that the "system must have been down at the time",I explained to her that my wife was not told that and that she was told quite clearly that this kind of refund had to be done during the week.I explained to the customer care rep that i felt that we were being picked on because we had complained about this service or lack of it but was told that this was not the case.
£14.00 is not an earth shattering amount and i dont care so much about it.I am however concerned that currys do not think we have a valid point or do not seem to care that much.Perhaps if they stopped for a moment and considered what the word "care" actually means and they would cease to exist as a company without "customers".

I have ordered a steam mop priced £29.99 from a mail order company called Health & Home. I ordered it on 1st October 2008 and payment was taken on 3rd October 2008. I still have not received this order. The company is refusing me a refund. Has anyone else had problems with this company? The worse thing is they are still taking orders for this steam mop they claim on their website it is their best seller.

The power sockets we use in the UK were first introduced in 1947. One of the most important considerations in their design was that they must prevent children poking things into the live connections. For that reason they have always been fitted with internal shutters which automatically cover the live contacts when there is no plug in the socket. They are the subject of Government regulation to ensure that they are safe.

Plug-in socket covers which claim to "Prevent little children inserting their fingers or objects into sockets" are:

Completely unnecessary.

Unregulated.

Potentially dangerous.

The moment you insert a socket cover into a socket you are replacing the fully tested insulation properties of the internal shutters with something which is untested and unregulated, why would you want to take that risk?

All plug-in covers provide the perfect tool to disable the built in shutters, it is well established that small children are better at removing socket covers than their parents, if they then put them back in upside down they will leave the socket completely unprotected!

But worse, the most most popular types on the market, far from preventing children from poking things into the live connection, make it possible to do so!

A group of Electrical Engineers, Doctors and Child Care Specialists have established a campaign to bring these dangers to wider attention, and to seek a complete ban on their sale. One result of the campaign is that Ofsted no longer require nurseries and child-minders to use socket covers.

Please visit the campaign website at FatallyFlawed to learn more and watch a video on the subject.

Just completed 6 months as an Ebico customer (Gas only) and could not be happier. My Gas bills have come down over 75% when compared to the same period last year.

Taken from their website:

Quote:

EBICo's guiding principles are a bias towards those on low incomes and stewardship of resources. We believe that these principles are entirely consistent with those of the Christian Gospel. Our initiatives have been making a real difference to households since 1999.

The customer service is excellent, it is provided via Southern Electric.

The best thing is that there is no 2 tier charging, every KWh is charged at 2.59pence, and no standing charge. So in summer when little gas is used, I would get charged almost all KWh's used at the higher rate when I was with my old supplier, simply because not enough was used to take advantage of the 2nd tier. Now I don't have that problem.

The switchover was very simple, and I don't get masses of junk mail from them, as I did with my old supplier.

If there is a downside, and this is only a very minor one, they do not have an online billing facility. Hence the reason I have set up my own spreadsheet to keep track of my balance.

Having just worked out my useage for the past 2 weeks (after setting the timer back to the winter setting as it was this time last year) if the consumption stays the same, I'm on to save at least 55% on last years bills.

Want to give them a try:

EBICo Ltd - using the market, making a difference

BAD BAD BAD BAD. We bought a Freelander for £10,000 (Later found out they were going for £6500 Private) OK... So lesson learned. We'd part ex'd our Picasso and got £3500 for it. (It was on their forecourt next week for £6500... OK.. So they are a business and there to make money.

Now for the real issues. 120 point check???. Our Freelander required a full service to uphold the (Carcraft NAC) warranty so we splashed out and took it to Landrover because my wife would be driving this car with my young son on board and we had to be sure everything was OK. The report came back from Landrover that the vehicle was not road worthy and required £450 of repair to get it so. Carcraft willingly paid for that so I was just pleased that we didn't have to pay the bill.

We took out their 1 year warranty for just under a grand. I read it and it stated that they would only cover up to £750 of the cost of any repair. I was about to walk out of the door because, as I explained to the sales guy, if the head gasket goes it's going to cost me a lot more than that. The sales guy went on to assure me that the £750 bit was per part repaired. I.E. If your head gasket goes it would cover each part of the engine that was damaged as long as each part didn't exceed £750.

On the strength of this we went ahead. We were in there for 9 LONG hours. We were told we were getting £2000 cash back. Realized two months down the line that they had just added £2000 to the back end of the loan in an unobvious cleaver way.

8 Months down the line, head gasket went. Took it straight to Landrover as I have this fantastic warranty that would cover everything. Landrover called me back a day later to tell me that the cost of the repair was just over £2500 and Carcraft would cover £750 of that cost. Getting worried now. I called Carcraft and spoke to the big boss(I think). He informed me that they would never had said anything other than they would only cover up to £750 of a total repair and that it was my word against his sales guy(When these sales are taking place they are in an enclosed room so nobody else can hear anything).

Anyway, £2000 3 weeks before Christmas. Thanks Carcraft. That was sure a year to remember. I was told by the guy who delivered my car back from Landrover that he see's at least two of these blown head gaskets per week and that I should get rid of the car asap because it could go at any time again.

I sold the car 2 weeks later and got £5500 for it. I am still paying the remaining £6500 I owe on the car to this day.

It only had 50K on the clock and a full Landrover history. I'm not blaming Carcraft for the inherent Head Gasket problem on the K series engine, but I am MAD at Carcraft for making me feel such a Fool. Yes... I feel so so stupid because I was, obviously, stitched up big time and fell for everything they told me.

I don't take comfort in learning that thousands of other Carcare customers are having the same such experiences now and in the past.

Carcraft is a good place to visit if your not sure what sort of car you want or you just want to browse but I would Highly recommend that if you do buy from there, take you own mechanic and use cash but before you do buy, check Autotrader. I GUARANTEE you will find the same car for at least £2000 less than Carcrafts price.

Many thank for listening to me.

Regards

Un-happy Carcraft (customer)

I bought a voucher for This is Venture, had the photographs taken and when we called back to arrange a date to come and pick up the picture the number was dead. I have called head office numerous times now and no-one has got back to me. Whatever you do don't buy from them!!

The Consumer Forums

MilkandMore - a total shambles!

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New Motorhome Faults Galore

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SimpleHuman Bins, Kitchen and Bathroom accessories

Currys

Health & Home Mail order Company

"Safety Socket Covers" are DANGEROUS!

Ebico

Save Money Via Cashback

Banana Shack

CHEAP BLUETOOTH hands free kit

Car Craft Carcraft experiences.

10% off at Kodak

topcashback.co.uk

Laptop from PC World (Advent 8112)

This Is Venture Photography