Howdens - Battersea Avis 

Howdens Battersea location London. Extremely disappointing experience – I would not recommend Howdens

I am extremely disappointed with my experience with Howdens and would strongly recommend that anyone considering using them thinks carefully and does their research first.

Having worked on commercial refits, renovations and personal property developments over the years, I have dealt with numerous suppliers, contractors and tradespeople. By far, this has been one of the most disappointing customer service experiences I have encountered. The level of service, communication and after-sales support from Howdens has been particularly frustrating.

What should have been a straightforward kitchen installation has turned into a prolonged and stressful situation involving repeated delivery problems, damaged items, poor workmanship and a lack of communication.

We experienced three delayed deliveries, with parts missing from the deliveries. The kitchen island that was supplied was also used/damaged, despite being supplied as part of a new kitchen.

The installation itself has also been extremely disappointing. One of the three cupboards has more than 28 drill holes, varying considerably in size, with some approximately twice the size of a 50p coin. This is simply not the standard I expected from a new kitchen.

The worktop/surface was also damaged and incorrectly measured, creating further problems and delays.

The contractor arrangements have caused additional disruption. On two consecutive days, the contractor contacted my wife to say they could not attend because they were unwell, while I was subsequently given a different explanation that they had overbooked themselves. As a result, I have had to spend seven days working from home and repeatedly change my working arrangements to accommodate deliveries and installation.

There have also been significant problems with deliveries arriving late. On occasions when I was not at home, my pregnant wife was left dealing with deliveries and having to carry items because otherwise the delivery would potentially be taken back.

Throughout this process, we have tried to be patient and reasonable, but the cumulative disruption has been unacceptable.

What has been particularly frustrating is the lack of communication once Howdens had received payment. I have repeatedly had to chase for updates rather than receiving proactive communication. Despite the issues being raised, I am still waiting for replacement parts and confirmation of the refund for damaged products.

At this stage, it feels as though the urgency and communication that existed before the sale has disappeared now that Howdens has received the money. There has been no adequate communication or meaningful update, no replacement of the damaged parts and no confirmation of the refund.

This is especially disappointing given my previous experience of working on commercial refits, renovations and property developments. I understand that projects can encounter problems and that delays can sometimes happen. What distinguishes good service, however, is how those problems are handled. In this case, the communication, ownership and after-sales support have been extremely poor.

I am still trying to get this matter resolved and have asked Howdens to provide confirmation of the refund, arrange replacement parts for the damaged products and bring the complaint to a conclusion.

Based on my experience, I would not recommend Howdens. The combination of delayed deliveries, missing parts, damaged/used items, poor workmanship, contractor issues and, most importantly, the lack of communication and after-sales support has made what should have been an exciting home improvement project unnecessarily stressful and time-consuming.

I hope Howdens takes this feedback seriously, takes ownership of the outstanding issues and resolves them promptly.

If anyone is interested in work happy to share.

Howden’s customer service has been excellent. The designer came out several times sometimes at short notice and nothing was too much trouble. The kitchen was delivered promptly and is awaiting installation

Howdens have long been my ‘go to’ supplier for kitchens. Order process in store easy and efficient. This delivery was a replacement fridge freeze. Perfect delivery as arranged and very helpful driver who helped bring it inside my building. Thank you. Purchase is perfect for my tenant’s needs.

Howdens was reccomended by a friend. The staff was very helpful from start to finish. Solved my problem quickly and efficient. A great team!!!
Many thanks

The Battersea team we had were great - pre visit service was efficient - team turned up on time - were very polite and problem solved when we came up against a few issues! Very happy customer.

The Battersea branch are always willing to deliver at short notice, and the service in store is great.
I have used this branch for years and it never fails to impress.

Regards,
Steve Morgan.

The depot staff is very friendly and accommodating when looking for specific products, also quite personable

Howdens do great kit at a great price, really good value and we are delighted with the outcome. However there are a number of things to watch out for.

Our salesman was Julian Good, who was very affable and responsive during the whole sale process. That said, his design solutions were not as imaginative as the other company we asked to quote, and on several occasions we prompted Julian to use these alternative solutions. It turned out that had left out one feature in the design and one part of his design would not physically fit.

Howdens only supply the kit and suggest an independent fitter. Julian recommended Thomas Dove, reviewed elsewhere, who turned out to be a prince among builders. This was just as well, because once the sale had been made, Julian become a lot less responsive and it was left to Thomas to sort out the design issues above.

One other, minor, glitch was that a couple of items were included which were not needed and it took weeks to get these swapped for some extra shelving. Shout out to Ryan in the warehouse for managing to attach a much larger box than I had expected to my bike.

Every member of staff that i have spoken to have been so charming and helpful, made returns so easy. I cannot praise them enough and the quality is superb. Highly recommend.

Julian from Howdens joinery is a real superstar. Nothing was too much trouble for Julian. He went over and above on both customer service and his attitude he was always smiling, friendly, warm, approachable, professional, and diligent.

The Howden kitchen we bought was due to Julian his soft manner, made him approachableand trustworthy and we have not been let down from start to finish. Julian has gone out of his way. Every time we’ve asked anything of him he is a true professional.

How can you design a kitchen and not include the oven?? Despite replying to their email with several questions, no reply. It took our builder to chase the Battersea branch up fir someone to eventually reply to us.

There reply was an estimate, why do we need two microwaves, we were never asked or asked for them! None of our questions answered.

We have cancelled our appointment and will find another company.

Freindly and helpful staff! They got the item I needed sorted even after I ordered the wrong thing.

very prompt service and an excellent turn around on delivery never had a bad experience

Always excellent service qick and easy

The free kitchen design

Staff are always helpful, deliveries are complete and at short notice. Well done Battersea Howdens!

I left a previous review and was kindly asked by Howdens to send an email to reviews at howdens.com.
I tried and that is not a valid email address. That just shows how dedicated they are to customer service. When I called Howdens to tell them they just said that is the address . NO HELP WHAT SO EVER! why when they received a bad review didn't the immediately call me ? Much quicker and a personal touch to show they really do care .

Good service and quality product Thank :)