Magazines Direct Avis 809

Very poor customer service, took my subscription out July 2024 at a special offer price plus a free gift, after 8 months and after a dozen emails and messages telling me the gift was on its way, I’m still waiting, so I’ve decided to cancel my subscription, which is easier said than done, so far I’ve sent three messages requesting a cancellation but still no response, your better getting your magazines from a newsagent or downloading a disc version plenty of places to get them.

Ordered a single issue of a magazine for April 2025 and heard nothing despite it being out. When checked with customer service was told my order was for the June 2025 issue, even though my confirmation email states April 2025.

Rang up and explained this and rather than just sending me the issue I want they said I would need to cancel the order and re-order. A magazine company that can't change an order after getting it wrong in the first place is a joke.

Was promptly transferred and was on hold for over 15 minutes (no wait to actually get through to customer service originally though). Requested a ring back but doubt it will actually happen, once I have cancelled I shan't be re-ordering since the website clearly can't be trusted to put an order through for the correct item.

Shambolic experience over a single issue of a magazine.

If only we could give Magazines Direct 0 stars! Truly awful company to try and deal with. We ordered a magazine from then which never arrived. No way to actually speak to them only an email address which they ignore. Customer "service" never replied to any of our emails. No way of getting a refund it would seem. Avoid this company at all costs and do not believe their website details especially the bit that claims to have thousands of 5 star reviews!!!

Finding it very hard to cancel my subscription. Seems you can't cancel on the website. They've ignored my email request, tried to call and was told they have unusually long wait times.

Update:

I have emailed Magazines Direct and not received a reply.

I have filled in a cancellation request and not received a reply.

I have sat on hold on the telephone for quite some time, finally got through and asked for a cancellation, I was told I needed to be forwarded to another department.

I sat on hold again. I was offered a callback and.... I have not received a reply.

I have cancelled my direct debit.

I have had a running Christmas present subscription for Country Life for mother for a number of years. I was reminded last year by an email for a re-subscription which I agreed to for another two years through the link provided. The magazine was sent to me (in France) instead of my mother (in the UK) and when I sent an initial complaint on 31 Jan i was told I had more than one account and so they merged the accounts and changed the delivery address to my mother’s address and that she would receive the magazine from 12th Feb and onwards. It is not clear to me how this can have happened as I used the resubscription link that they had provided in the email. No magazines have been received (in France or in UK) since the change they said they had made and I have sent a number of emails and complained on the online system but have received no response - not even a response to say they would get back to me. I find their lack of response surprising considering I have paid for two years subscription.

Be aware before adding a subscription. They have targeted my mother twice. Start of with a small subscription, they have taken thousands. In just one month Jan 2025 they took £568 in magazine subscription. These have now been stopped with the bank, and reported as fraud. Targeting a older generation.

They ignored my request to cancel the subscription and took the direct debit anyway. I then cancelled the direct debit to ensure that they could not take any further payments. They have now emailed me to say there is a problem with my payment details so they won’t send any magazines until it is resolved even though they have taken payment for this year.

Subscribed to a 1 year offer for Digital Camera World late in 2024, lured by the offer of a free Lowepro backpack.

Subscription Number: 39347123

Got the January issue, then spent ages chasing the backpack.

February issue turned up wet and mangled. Had to request a replacement. I ended up reading it on my Readly account.

Then, after chasing again, I'm advised the backpack was out of stock and, if I agreed, I'd be sent a comparable replacement.

This arrived but was garbage quality - no comparison to the Lowepro. For a start, you open it and the lenses fall out as there is no support at the sides. So many zips and the side straps block access - awful.

Opening it fully to change a lens involves two side zips, two buckles that have to be unclipped and then the contents spill out - so it can only be opened if laid flat on a soft surface to prevent the lenses spilling out to the side as here are no side supports.

Contact them to cancel my subscription and return backpack. Am told to keep the backpack, but I'm committed to the subscription to December 2025 because I paid for a year up front...

Then the March issue failed to arrive - had to make two requests for this - and I ended up reading it on my Readly account - you see the pattern here?!

Today, I boxed up and paid to return the backpack directly to the magazine editor in chief.

The March issue, actually turned up as the box was about to be sealed - perfect timing - so I added it to the return journey, which is costing me £9.

The matter of the subscription is now subject to a bank chargeback as the customer 'service' has been non existent.

Honestly - do yourself a favour and do not get a subscription from Magazines Direct. It just is not worth the grief, time and hassle.

I paid for a 6 month subscription to 442 magazine last November however I have only received one magazine at the beginning of January. I sent an email to them on 19 February to find out what the issue was and still haven't had any reply. I am unsure if this is a scam website ??

Ordered a single copy of a magazin.
Never received it.
Started asking when it will come: They clamied it was already sent.
From what i read here now, i doubt they every send it.
Then the odysee began of getting a refund.
By this point in time half a year later (Ordered it by 24.8.24) i wrote several mails back in forth with the cusotmer service.
I needed to explain the situation 4 times.
I needed to hand them my order number or subscription number 9 times.
I needed to confirm the shiiping adress 3 times.

Today i gave it as a task to one of my trainees to write a small AI model just answering their mails with the recurring questions - Will be cheaper than wasting my own time on that.

I understand now, i will never receive my copy and i will never receive a refund.

Worst company i ever dealt with.
Never will deal with them again - the AI will take care of that form now on.

Simply the worst company I have ever dealt with. Over many years my orders with them have never been correct. Even today, the wrong binder was sent - wrong colour, wrong magazine. Why are they still trading? Every time you have to chase them up and all you receive is a stock answer/phrase that their staff are told to use. Judging by the names of the employees, English is not their first language, and as such they are unable to fully comprehend any issues raised. As this has gone on for many years, it seems unlikely that it will ever improve. Shame it’s not possible to leave a no star review. Avoid if you wish to maintain your sanity

Signed up for £6 for 6 months subscription to woman and home. Tried to cancel through email as issues with magazines arriving.
Numerous Emails ignored. They make it as difficult as possible to cancel.
Luckily cancelled direct debit on the day they tried to take it.

Terrible customer service, they never respond and never have answers. I ordered a Digital Camera World subscription with a free gift but the wrong gift was sent, I have spent 2 months trying to resolve the issue but getting no resolution. Threatened to cancel if they don’t sort it out.

For some reason 2 extra subscriptions were set up. It took me 30 mins to persuade them it was an error on there side and then when I was put through to get a refund on 2 of the subscriptions I was cut off.

Paid for a 6 magazine subscription for TV and Satellite Week starting with the Christmas issue

So far have only received 2 issues, was told that i would receive another last week as there was a "system error" which prevented the other 4 being sent out

Surprise surprise no magazine was sent

Am done with the constant emailing and excuses and if Magazines Direct want to actually respond to my email rather than putting a reply under this review it will save someone time from copying and pasting the same reply they give everyone else

Ordered a 1 year subscription for GuitarWorld magazine. It's mostly ads so wanted to cancel after my 1 year was up. Except you can't do that, there's nowhere on the website that will let you. They make you set up an account to manage your subscription but you can't actually manage anything with it.

Their website asks you email about cancelling but, despite replying promptly when you have issues with ordering from them, when you email about cancelling they completely ignore you. You will be charged again but it won't be a year after you subscribed, it'll be a month or so after that so you'll think your cancellation request has worked.

Total scam, do not waste your money and time.

I was supposed to get 6 issues of a tv magazine for £1.
They took 31.25 out of my account instead.
Not the first time they have done this.
Luckily bank refunded me.

Magazine Direct are an absolute disgrace. There so called special offers are nothing short of a con. You have to make sure to cancel direct debit with your bank as soon as you start getting your so called special offers on subscription otherwise you will be paying full price as soon as the special price has come to an end. They never answer emails or if they do you are given a case number and you are never contacted again. I find it quite unbelievable that a magazine like Country Life should have anything to do with them. Avoid at all costs you may think you are getting a good deal but if like my experience copies of the magazine never arrive or if the do they are six days late it is just not worth the trouble of dealing with this company at any cost.you have now asked me for more information, I should like magazine direct to let me know what else they need to know in order to publish my review.

Was given a six issue gift subscription to Country Life magazine, special offer price of £6, not a lot of money I know. The first two issues arrived, 6 days late. After that, nothing. Contacted Magazines Direct, and they said they’d sort it out. A few days later, they send me another two issues of the same ones I already had. Nothing at all since. Contacted both MD and County Life, who basically couldn’t be bothered. I think the six issues for £6 was a scam. They never intended to give you that deal, unless you carried on with a full 52 issues. Avoid this company, they don’t answer emails, and it’s almost impossible to get through on the phone. Avoid, avoid, avoid

Really really poor - purchased a magazine subscription as a Christmas gift and still no issues delivered . Customer care is very strange and has given different explanations in different emails …from the issue being sold out to postman couldn’t find address and returned the magazines I would never use ever again so embarrassed that my gift has not yet arrived .