“We booked a boat and we could not see out of the perspex as was scratched you had to stand to see clearly which was not adequate. When we got back we complained to the manager and the manager was very rude and sarcastic and said well you've been out half the day and it's like if you ordered a meal and something was wrong with the food you're asking once you've ate it for a refund. I said this is different we booked in faith and if we had returned back we would of cut into our time and they probably still wouldn't of given us a refund. As soon as we got back and I expect to the manager he was like well I can see out of it I can see perfectly and I'm shorter than you he wouldn't have it it was rude and stated I'm not giving you a refund wouldn't give me a word in each way was very cocky and arrogant he said you can speak to my brother if you like but you'll get the same I'm not giving you a refund all I was asking for was a partial refund because of the perspex was scratched and smeary you couldn't see out of it you had to sit on the raised seat uncomfortable on the bar to see properly I would suggest anybody that wants to hire a boat with barns brink craft to request to see the boat before they hand it over to you make sure that you can see out of the perspects or glass before you take the boat out so you can have a good day out and see where you're going. Don't let them bully you make sure the boat is right for you and that you can see out via the glass or perspex if you can't see out ask to see another boat and if you're happy with that boat and you can see out then all well and good don't let them bully you in having a boat that is inadequate. Better still stay clear from barns brink crafts boats as there is other boats in the area that our better than this business and much more politer staff and not just to take your money.”
Dear Anonymous
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback regarding your recent boat hire with Barns Brink Craft.
We are sorry to hear that your experience did not meet your expectations. However, having reviewed the circumstances of your visit, we are unable to offer a refund on this occasion.
When you collected the vessel, you had the opportunity to inspect it before setting out. As the boat was accepted and used for the duration of your hire, we consider the service to have been delivered. Had there been a concern with the condition of the boat at the outset, we would have welcomed the opportunity to address it at that time — including offering an alternative vessel, as others were available on the day.
Our team takes pride in the condition and maintenance of our fleet, and the boat in question meets our standards for hire. We understand you may disagree with this assessment, and we are sorry that the conversation with our manager felt unsatisfactory. We always aim to handle feedback respectfully, and we will take your comments on board regarding how complaints are handled.
We genuinely hope you enjoyed your time out on the water, and we wish you all the best.
Kind regards,
Sara
Barnes Brinkcraft
“Had a lovely couple of hours on the broads. Would highly recommend these. Easy to operate after short briefing. Very helpful in guiding back in after. Very reasonable pricing. Great time had by all.”
“It was very easy to book the boat. The holiday its self was amazing. The only negative I would say was the coldness on the boat as it doesnt seal up tight so constant draft and the toilet smell when we picked the boat up was horrible until we pumped out.”
“Reception was pleasant and good information, hand over good, pity the bit a out pushing key in to start was over looked haha 😄 had to call later in day to check. That worked superb !
Found all staff very helpful 👍.”
“We have raised concerns with the main office the day after hire regarding your electra 1 vessel breaking down and heard nothing back
We had two young kids on board who got a bit hysterical when boat broke down and we started to drift crashing into river bank until a kind couple towed us back
On top of your vessel breaking down the ropes on your boat were not long enough to moor at our how hill destination, very disappointing”
“Always had great experiences, and excellent service, in the many, many years that we have holidayed on Barnes Brinkcraft boats. Only marred this year due to our error and getting the dates wrong by a week and we fully accept that this is our mistake. In fairness BB did manage to alter our booking to the following week on the same boat for which we are truly thankfull. However due to this now being classed as a new booking we lost our early booking discount and our online booking discount, which cost us around £80 in total. It would have been nice to have just paid the difference between the weeks (around £40)and keep our early booking discounts but sadly wasn't to be. Lesson learned for us, double check the dates!!!. Still looking forward to our hoildiay and will still book with BB as they are a great team and have excellent boats.”
“The booking process was very easy, had to phone during process as website would not allow me to enter names of other members of my party, as requested by website. Phone calk resulted in me being told " no need to do that now, it was during covid". All sorted”
“We had an amazing time on the Broads. The team at Barnes Brinkcraft were all friendly and helpful, from the Reception staff, through to the very helpful young man who tutored us in boat handling. The boat itself was comfortable and well equippped (we were on Mercury 2) and the goody bag provided was an additional bonus, as was the bottle of Prosecco, (my husband was celebrating a significant birthday while we were away), both of which were very gratefully received. Thank you so much”
“The booking process is really easy. I always make the booking by phone as I like the human touch. The staff are really nice and helpful. I have no experience of online bookings. Thankyou.”
“We chose Barnes as they were the only company that allowed us to keep the day boat to 6pm, most others wanted them back by 4 or 5pm. Staff were pleasant and the booking process was easy. Boat was average for quality and comfort but it was the cheapest model so overall it was good value for money.”
“Riverview is a lovely upside down boathouse. Had everything we needed for our weeks stay. The inclusion of the day boat was an added bonus! Plenty to do locally without having to drive any distance and only 15 minutes on the train to the lovely city of Norwich! Our dog loved the trip too!”
“Stayed in Stay Sail with family for a week and it was lovely. All staff were friendly and helpful and the accommodation was excellent. Views were fantastic from all the rooms and the kitchen was very well equipped. Will definitely stay again.”
“All services as expected and boat good quality as advertised. It seemed to me that they and Wroxham were the best place to start the hire from. Only reason for 4 stars as there was a bit of a delay in their administration on the first day and we weren’t away until 5p. With a return at 9am effectively a day of hire is lost. Other than that, all very good.”
