Led down blind alley (From Penarth Times)

Led down blind alley

A PENARTH woman has slammed a company in the town over a customer service nightmare.

Andrea Bartley, 40, of Plymouth Road, placed an order for a Roman blind from Design Matters in May this year.

Andrea said: "We placed an order in May for a Roman blind for our bathroom and paid a £120 deposit. We were told it would take four to six weeks to come.

"By the end of July we had still not received the goods. In the meantime the business had moved from the Washington Building on Stanwell Road and is now being run from an address in Clive Place.

"I left messages on an answerphone for the business number and eventually the owner got back to me to assure me that everything was okay and that the delivery would be made.

"There was still no sign of the blind so I left more messages on the answerphone all of which have been ignored. It's now October, they haven't got back to me and I still don't have my blind. Now they don't return any of my calls.

"It is as though by ignoring me they hope I will go away. In my opinion it's been a customer-service nightmare. I am in business myself but would never treat a customer like that. If they can't deliver the goods then I would like a refund of my deposit.

"It's got to the stage now where I've had to consult a solicitor to pursue this through the small claims court."

Andrea added: "It's not the money, it's the principle. I feel as though I have been treated appallingly.

"We recently moved into the Penarth area and thought we would support local business by buying locally. That has certainly backfired on us."

Design Matters declined the opportunity to comment.