Name: Barker and Stonehouse
Address: Haydock Park Road, Teesside Retail Park, Stockton on Tees, Stockton-on-Tees
Rating: 4.43

“Unfortunately I could not put less than one star. But they certainly do not deserve even one star. We ordered a range of bedroom furniture at the end of September, online, after first visiting The Nottingham store to view, as following a phone call to the company we were told it was on display there. Actually there was only one item to view, a chest of drawers. We were told by the assistant we could order the full range online, and it would be delivered in 8 weeks We ordered 6 items, 4 of which said delivery in 4,5 and 6 weeks, the other two items stated 8 weeks. We paid in full. 10 weeks passed and no word from the store. We gave them the benefit of the doubt and waited a further 2 weeks, after which we phoned to check where our order was. We were told it had arrived in the warehouse, and was waiting for a delivery date to be set. They told us they would ring the following week to arrange delivery. No call came, so we phoned them. Only to be told that our furniture was not available, as it was still in transit and would be another 2 months. We had already waited 3 months for delivery. We questioned why we had been told the furniture was ready for delivery a week earlier, to which they said one item had arrived. But the rest would be March , (5 months after our order went in) we asked for a promise or we would have to cancel the whole order. We were then told that a supervisor would see what she could do in order to speed up the process, Only to get a phone call 2 days later stating that the furniture in the shipment had been sold to another supplier. So 5 months after ordering our new bedroom furniture, paying in full we were told it was no longer available and we would be receiving nothing. This company didn't even apologise, just said there was nothing they could do. They then informed us that our refund could take up to 14 days for us to receive. This was our first experience of dealing with Barker & Stonehouse, it will be our last.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Ordered a rug and a vase in November, vase was in stock, rug was a 6 weeks lead in which was fair enough. I thought they would of sent the vase out and the rug when in stock. 6 weeks later, they added another 6 weeks onto the rug lead time. 12 weeks from placing the order, delivery day arrived to be called and told it was now discontinued. 2 weeks after that, still no refund. 1 week later, refund received. 1 week later, still no vase. Absolute shambolic attempt at running a company, I honestly don't know how they are still trading.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Cancelled wardrobe delivered as well as the replacement order. Took about 3 months to arrive. Now throwing one of them away after 18 months as quality so poor the shelves are bowed, back popping out and doors falling off runners. Sold to us as 'German quality'. Bed we ordered was so damaged on delivery we asked for a replacement which was also broken so i had to rummage through the two packages in the back of the delivery lorry to find enough good parts to get a complete bed. Bed frame now cracking under the fabric because of cheap construction. Also bought a chair set 18 months ago and the legs on one now has a big crack across it and you can feel the springs going in the seat. Absolute junk quality, premium prices. Their marketing tries to leverage a nostalgic British family business history but it's just a bulk furniture importer that prioritises funky looks over any sort of quality standards”

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Posted 4 years ago

“We purchased a wardrobe in store for £1100 in July, and were told it would take 8-10 weeks for delivery (as the they do not keep stock in the UK, it's made to order in Germany). 8 Weeks came and passed and no word from B&S. After repeated calls, we were then told it would be another 4 weeks as the factory was backlogged. 4 weeks later the wardrobe parts arrived but essential hardware was missing AND the wrong parts and assembly instructions were sent as well. There was no way to construct the wardrobe (even in an incorrect configuration). After more calls to the B&S customer helpline, we were told they would have to order new parts from the factory -- another 6-8 weeks' wait. It's been 8 weeks now and we are still chasing B&S for the parts (that's 20 weeks!). Whenever we call, we get a different story from whomever is taking the call: 'the parts have arrived but it will take 7 days to transfer to your local warehouse", or the "systems are down and we cannot confirm that, but we'll call you back as soon as" (they never do!), or "sorry, the parts actually haven't arrived yet" then "once they arrive you can come collect them from our local warehouse to save time". We've had to fight for everything, and yes they have reluctantly agreed to pay for professional fitters to assemble the wardrobe when the parts finally arrive. But we have no faith that is going to happen before Christmas -- a full 5.5 months since they took our money. Every morning, we have to navigate the various stacks of wardrobe parts (doors, wall panels, fittings, railings, bags of hardware, drawers and shelves) -- plus our yet to be unpacked moving boxes and piles of clothes -- taking up every inch of floor space in the halls, bedroom and spare room. A first-world problem, I know. But we expected a far better service from B&S for what we paid them. Our warning to you -- DO NOT ORDER WARDROBES FROM BARKER AND STONEHOUSE.”

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Posted 4 years ago

“Just a quick warning to others... If buying outdoor furniture and you have problems you will probably not have any come back.. We purchased ours and after having it in our garden for around 6 weeks it started going very rusty , we contacted b&S and was told its environmental issue... In short don't use your outdoor furniture outside.... We don't live near the coast for this to poss get salt damage etc.. We paid our money expecting a fair product and got rubbish. DO NOT TRUST B&S They LIE. THEY TELL YOU TO CONTACT STORE... STORE TELL YOU TO CONTACT CUSTOMER SERVICE.. IT JUST GOES ON AND ON...”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Customer Service and Delivery: Here is my horrible experience in brief: 1. I purchased most of my basic “critical” furniture (beds and full living room) items from B&S towards the end of July 2020, they have informed me the items would be delivered first week of September 2020. 2. Come first week of Sep nobody even contacted me. 3. I called 3 times over the period of 2 days until someone actually answered the phone. I conveyed my utter frustration at the service and lack of customer centricity and service. 3. After a couple of discussions with different departments, they managed to offer to deliver only the beds In 17 Sep 2020. 4. Beds were delivered, but unfortunately one of the packaging boxes was open, and it turned out there were missing items which made it impossible to put one of the beds together. 5. I contacted them again, and the responses have been unprofessional and vague to say the least. 6. So now I have the beds only, but one of them is in pieces on the floor, my family are sleeping on one of the beds, and I still sleep on a mattress on the floor! We have just moved to a new house, have been sleeping on mattresses on the floor for 20 days, and I have no living room to sit in, thanks to Barker and Stonehouse! I regret the day I decided to purchase anything from B&S. Last time for sure!”

Barker and Stonehouse 1 star review on 21st September 2020

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Bought a large wardrobe for delivery in October, then subsequently learnt that due to local lockdown restrictions they would not deliver to room of choice but would leave it on my driveway. I contacted them 4 weeks prior to despatch to cancel the order for a refund, which they have refused to do saying they are not obliged to do so. I pointed out to them that under my statutory consumer rights they are obliged to do so, also the information published on their website also says they will do so without any problem. As previous reviewers have said they now no longer respond to emails or phonecalls, and I've since referred the matter to the relevant ombudsman to chase the refund on my behalf. I can only ech what has previously been said, do not buy from this company as their customer services are not fit for purpose.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“We are very disappointed with Barker and Stonehouse customer service. After making two large orders and paying large amount of money, in store manager of Battersea branch declined a return request for a sofa (when we offered to purchase goods for the same amount). Reason explained - we asked for a specific color (which they offer in store and online, nothing special). If offered the same sofa (same color) online we could have returned it without problems (as per shop policy), however the staff of the shop assured us that ordering with them is always better... (as we make them commission, I guess) To be completely clear the contract we signed says cancellation request will be at the discretion of the shop, so they could accept our proposal. We really liked the shop and we were ready to exchange goods rather than asking for a refund. Another order we made is delayed by two weeks and we had to call every time to ask for an update... barker and m, especially Battersea, you really don’t value your customers! We would have come back to you and bought a lot of stuff, but like this you just ruined your reputation to us... this is a very poor way of managing loyal customers and loosing them”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Shocking customer service, basically just ignore you if you have an issue. Even if the product is faulty. 4 emails - 4 phone calls - ignored. I will quite happily take my business to housing units. I will never deal with barker and stonehouse again”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Shocking service - avoid avoid avoid. After receiving a faulty table I was sent another faulty table as a replacement. I am now being ignored on all email or telephone correspondence. £438 they have stolen!! Avoid avoid avoid”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Very disappointed with this companies customer service and products. They delivered a couple of kitchen bar stools, one of which was broken. I have spoken with them twice and sent two emails and I am still waiting for a response and a replacement kitchen bar stool...... My order was originally placed 9 weeks ago.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“I would have put no stars if I could. This is a terrible company to deal with- their communication is terrible and not a trustworthy company. ordered my item 17th of February and since then it has been in and out of stock and lost emails (apparently) that have meant not only do I not have my item I have had to raise a complaint with PayPal to get any response from them. They say I will get my refund but I expect PayPal will have to nudge them to get that! This is not the sort of service I expect from a company linked with PayPal. Avoid! Avoid!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Terrible customer service from this company, went into store over 8 weeks ago and paid for a number of different items. We were told at the time of purchase that we would be able to collect items from store the following week and a member of the team would call to say items were ready for collection, we never received call. Had to chase and were told there was a slight delay. I'm unable to get any clarity from customer service about when i will receive items. Lie after lie after lie, no-one returns your call after promising to do so. Such a shame as products are nice. ZERO stars”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Be very wary. They do not refund If you are dissatisfied with your purchase. Especially very expensive mattresses.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Ordered bedroom furniture waited weeks for delivery then got delivery date and they changed it one day before delivery for another 6 weeks, leaving us without any bedroom furniture as we had got rid of all existing expecting delivery of new. Later we purchased three hanging lights to finish off our new Kitchen but all three were different. We thought we would give them one last chance a bout a wardrobe for our other bedroom and after 12 weeks they delivered and fitted the totally wrong wardrobe. Unfortunately our son who let them In didn’t know what we had ordered. We called to complain and were promised it would be sorted asap but after days we heard nothing, so went to the shop in Hove and requested a full refund. A very rude abrupt man barked we won’t refund you until we get our wardrobe back. Apparently it’s their policy, which obviously is in place because it happens a lot. We eventually came to a compromise and agreed to wait a further 14 weeks as we wanted to match our existing very expensive furniture. We were made to feel grateful to them that the said we could use the hideous wardrobe as a temporary measure till new one arrives. Barker and Stonehouse are the worst company we’ve ever dealt with and even the staff were moaning about the attitude of the company. Apparently they contact customers for them to give a review but for some reason they never sent us the opportunity to review their service. Well our review is that they sell expensive goods- they ask for most of the money up front then hound you three weeks before delivery for the balance even ringing whilst on our holiday then when they mess up they ignore you. All in all the worst service and it makes you wonder how many people will lose their deposits when they end up going bust which by their customer care means it won’t be as long as this complaint.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Purchased a leather sofa, based on the advertising that items are British made, and branded as high quality. We chose a leather that was not available immediately, so waited for item to be made. The sofa was shipped from China, so was clearly not British made. Quality of leather was lower than expected for the price, and the overall build quality of the sofa is low. After just 3 months the sofa shows signs of wear not acceptable for the price and promised quality. I contacted customer service, who were initially very responsive and helpful but have since gone silent, and I am unhappy with the lack of resolution and disappointed in the service provided.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Best not to buy from this company if you have any commitments outside the home because, their delivery arrangements are frustratingly inflexible. When they say 'we will contact you to arrange a convenient delivery' this is not what they mean. In my case, with less than a week's notice, I was offered a choice of two weekdays as the only delivery options for an entire month. While I am lucky enough to work in a relatively flexible job, it is not always possible for me to cancel all plans at short notice and so I will apparently need to wait at least three months for a couch that claimed to be available 'within four weeks' at the time of ordering.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“If you want to be lied to, mislead and deceived then Barker and Stonehouse is the place to go!! 15 months and three sets of sofas later and we have had to compromise to conclude our interaction with the store. Customer service is appalling, don’t return calls, lie and just basically pass the buck. Strauss Leather Sofas 1. Scraped on delivery so they sent out their own “Leather Expert” who stated it was a “Natural Scar” which we knew it wasn’t, so after much persistence they finally admitted it was damaged on delivery and offered a price reduction which we rejected, and opted for a replacement, so a replacement was ordered. Strauss Leather Sofas 2. Arrived but unable to get arm off to bring it in house, so back it went, then a delay over delivery protocols with their own delivery process which resulted in another company delivering it which added 6 weeks to the time. Then when it arrived it had pressure marks from the way it had been wrapped which again the “Leather Expert” was called out to try and rectify, and it was the same “Expert” [who we have since found out is actually a French polisher] but now employed by Home serve, so confidence wasn’t high. He stated they were pressure marks and managed to remove one [which returned a week later] but the ones he couldn’t remove suddenly reverted to “Natural Creases” After persisting for a second opinion on the faults, the assistant manager from the Newcastle store made a home visit and fully agreed the sofa was faulted and would arrange a full refund, but he then later contacted us and informed us his Head office did not agree with his assessment based on the pictures they had received from him and it was yet again a “Natural Leather imperfection” So after many more phone calls and store visits we were basically told go to the Ombudsman or choose yet another sofa. We chose the latter as we were basically fed up with the whole situation and went this time for material sofa. Throughout this whole process everyone within the Newcastle store was very apologetic and is in full agreement that we had been treat appallingly and our treatment had fell well short of what it should have, many promises were made throughout including compensation for our treatment, but I am not holding my breath for that. I had gone to Barker and Stonehouse because of their reputation but maybe I live in the wrong postcode or don’t drive a Range Rover based on an off the cuff comment that was made during one of our store visits. And just a footnote to this, while we looked around the Newcastle store for our replacement sofa, we came across our first damaged sofa for sale described as “Ex Display” You couldn’t make it up!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Wow! DO NOT BUY FROM THIS RETAILER. Not only was the sofa we received from them faulty, but they failed to keep to their promises of compensation and refund. We purchased from Barker and Stonehouse (trekking all the way from Reading to Guildford) and, what seemed like an amazing company to buy from at the time of sale, we soon realised that when a fault occurred, they just didn't want to know. It took months and multiples emails and phone calls and even after speaking to senior staff, we were left with a very bad experience. My daughter was injured from the faulty sofa, and missed out on her Birthday celebrations, and both my wife and I had to endure emotional frustration. Seriously, if you want to buy furniture where you know you will have satisfactory customer service, go elsewhere, just do not buy from Barker and Stonehouse!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“I have been ignored for a month after endless emails and phone calls. I have now been told my £250 per chairs which have faded from a rich tan brown to white are sun damage and there is nothing they can do, bearing in mind I am very upset about this, they then go on to say if your not happy with the chairs then buy some new ones. Customer service is shocking! My whole house is furnished from this store. Please avoid - furniture is expensive, not great quality and the customer service is non existent!!!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Own Driver, Courier
Average Delivery Time	Over A Month
On-time Delivery	Greater than 64%
Accurate And Undamaged Orders	Greater than 72%
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Email, Live Chat
Queries Resolved In	Under An Hour
Customer Service	3.8 out of 5
Returns & Refunds
Refunds Process	Difficult
Returns Process	Could Be Better

Barker and Stonehouse Reviews