Dabs Customer Service - Is there anybody there?

This post is for the attention of D Atherton, S Brayshaw, D Dillon, J
Wall and in particular, Steve Minshull, the first four being directors
and the last being the Customer Services Manager of Dabs.com PLC.

The reason for this post is due to that fact that Dabs appear to be
ignoring my requests for assistance in tracing an order they dispatched
that did not arrive complete.

First, the positive. I have made orders with Dabs in the past and had
no trouble at all - they have always dispatched my orders quickly and
completely and up to now I have always been happy with the service I
received. I have even recommended them to friends, family and
colleagues as a good hardware vendor.

My order, made on 27-May-2005 was for a 19" TFT Monitor and couple of
RAM upgrades. I made this order in the morning and in the afternoon,
received two dispatch emails with separate tracking numbers - I
guessed (correctly) that the RAM would be in a separate package from
the monitor. The order was down as a 3-day delivery - fine, I
thought, and I even was prepared to accept the fact that, what with the
Bank Holiday weekend, I may even have to wait until 3 days after Monday
before receiving anything.

Imagine my surprise and delight that on checking the ParcelForce
tracking website before going to work on 31-May-2005 to find that one
package had already been delivered at 9am that day. Unfortunately,
when I got there, there were no deliveries waiting for me - it was to
my business address and we operate a stringent incoming mail process,
meaning nothing comes in without being logged. I have checked, checked
twice then checked again and nothing was signed for here that day. The
following day, I did actually receive one of the two packages - this
one contained the RAM. The state in which this package was in when
delivered can be best described as having been "stomped on". The
box was ripped open, looking very much like someone had indeed stood
on, or at the very least had a heavy object placed on it. Ultimately,
the contents were fine and I let it go.

My efforts to contact ParceForce as to the whereabouts of the second
package were and still are fruitless at best. They operate a web-based
Contact section on their website, which I have yet to receive a
response from. Coupled with their laughable voice-recognition phone
line, I yet to have contact with a helpful human being. True, I have
spoken to one ParcelForce employee who gave his name and as it turns
out a fake phone number and promised to send a message to the depot for
me, but am still waiting.

You may ask what does this have to do with Dabs? They did dispatch the
order in a timely fashion after all. The reason is this: Dabs also
operate a web-based Contact section on their website - I have
repeatedly tried using this asking for their assistance in sorting out
this problem with no responses forthcoming. I have also, via Groups,
located the email address and voice-mail number of Steve Minshull, the
Dabs Customer Services Manager and sent him an email and left a
message. Again no response.

I have yet to receive any human contact with Dabs. They don't seem
to give a stuff once they've got your money. Using Google to look
for similar cases yielded a surprising number of consumer complaints
against a company I used to hold in high regard.

I'd much rather have the missing package delivered or at the very
least Dabs dispatch a replacement than have to go through a refund
claim, seeking damages or legal action.

Dabs - your response?

Simon Masterton

wrote in message
oups.com...
This post is for the attention of D Atherton, S Brayshaw, D Dillon, J
Wall and in particular, Steve Minshull, the first four being directors
and the last being the Customer Services Manager of Dabs.com PLC.

The reason for this post is due to that fact that Dabs appear to be
ignoring my requests for assistance in tracing an order they dispatched
that did not arrive complete.

First, the positive. I have made orders with Dabs in the past and had
no trouble at all - they have always dispatched my orders quickly and
completely and up to now I have always been happy with the service I
received. I have even recommended them to friends, family and
colleagues as a good hardware vendor.

My order, made on 27-May-2005 was for a 19" TFT Monitor and couple of
RAM upgrades. I made this order in the morning and in the afternoon,
received two dispatch emails with separate tracking numbers - I
guessed (correctly) that the RAM would be in a separate package from
the monitor. The order was down as a 3-day delivery - fine, I
thought, and I even was prepared to accept the fact that, what with the
Bank Holiday weekend, I may even have to wait until 3 days after Monday
before receiving anything.

Imagine my surprise and delight that on checking the ParcelForce
tracking website before going to work on 31-May-2005 to find that one
package had already been delivered at 9am that day. Unfortunately,
when I got there, there were no deliveries waiting for me - it was to
my business address and we operate a stringent incoming mail process,
meaning nothing comes in without being logged. I have checked, checked
twice then checked again and nothing was signed for here that day. The
following day, I did actually receive one of the two packages - this
one contained the RAM. The state in which this package was in when
delivered can be best described as having been "stomped on". The
box was ripped open, looking very much like someone had indeed stood
on, or at the very least had a heavy object placed on it. Ultimately,
the contents were fine and I let it go.

My efforts to contact ParceForce as to the whereabouts of the second
package were and still are fruitless at best. They operate a web-based
Contact section on their website, which I have yet to receive a
response from. Coupled with their laughable voice-recognition phone
line, I yet to have contact with a helpful human being. True, I have
spoken to one ParcelForce employee who gave his name and as it turns
out a fake phone number and promised to send a message to the depot for
me, but am still waiting.

You may ask what does this have to do with Dabs? They did dispatch the
order in a timely fashion after all. The reason is this: Dabs also
operate a web-based Contact section on their website - I have
repeatedly tried using this asking for their assistance in sorting out
this problem with no responses forthcoming. I have also, via Groups,
located the email address and voice-mail number of Steve Minshull, the
Dabs Customer Services Manager and sent him an email and left a
message. Again no response.

I have yet to receive any human contact with Dabs. They don't seem
to give a stuff once they've got your money. Using Google to look
for similar cases yielded a surprising number of consumer complaints
against a company I used to hold in high regard.

I'd much rather have the missing package delivered or at the very
least Dabs dispatch a replacement than have to go through a refund
claim, seeking damages or legal action.

Dabs - your response?

Always use a credit card, make sure you spend over £100, and simply take
such issues directly with the credit card issuer who are equally liable, and
DO HAVE a phone number to ring.

That's what I do.

I guess that's one recourse I can take. It does seem that Dabs don't
give a damn once they have your money. They obviously don't care what
people think about them either. Let's see what Trading Standards have
to say...

wrote in message
oups.com...
I guess that's one recourse I can take. It does seem that Dabs don't
give a damn once they have your money. They obviously don't care what
people think about them either. Let's see what Trading Standards have
to say...



I wouldn't get so involved.
Similiar thing happend to me. I ordered the parts i needed from another
vendor the next day and wrote the vendor with the missing package asking
them to refund explaining id ordered elsewhere.

They didn't respond so i passed it to Egg to sort out. The money appeared
back in my account a few weeks later.

All the shouting and complaining gets you nowhere in my experience. My
first response is always a polite recorder letter giving 7 days for a
response (if they reply i'm more than happy to wait/help them) if they dont
i simply give to my credit card company or fill in a small claims form, i
just can't be arsed chasing vendors anymore, I am the customer afterall.
My new attitude has so far been time&hassle free .

I've received a reply from Dabs today, which apologises for the
situation and offers a replacement or refund. This is most welcome and
I've responded in kind. I'll wait and see what their response is. I'm
certainly a lot calmer about the matter now, I just wish that I didn't
have to wait so long to get it. Let's see what happens.

So far it looks like ParcelFarce are the root cause of the problem -
I'll probably be ranting about their stunning incompetence and
generally apathetic customer service elsewhere in Groups....

wrote in message
oups.com...
This post is for the attention of D Atherton, S Brayshaw, D Dillon, J
Wall and in particular, Steve Minshull, the first four being directors
and the last being the Customer Services Manager of Dabs.com PLC.

The reason for this post is due to that fact that Dabs appear to be
ignoring my requests for assistance in tracing an order they dispatched
that did not arrive complete.

First, the positive. I have made orders with Dabs in the past and had
no trouble at all - they have always dispatched my orders quickly and
completely and up to now I have always been happy with the service I
received. I have even recommended them to friends, family and
colleagues as a good hardware vendor.

My order, made on 27-May-2005 was for a 19" TFT Monitor and couple of
RAM upgrades. I made this order in the morning and in the afternoon,
received two dispatch emails with separate tracking numbers - I
guessed (correctly) that the RAM would be in a separate package from
the monitor. The order was down as a 3-day delivery - fine, I
thought, and I even was prepared to accept the fact that, what with the
Bank Holiday weekend, I may even have to wait until 3 days after Monday
before receiving anything.

Imagine my surprise and delight that on checking the ParcelForce
tracking website before going to work on 31-May-2005 to find that one
package had already been delivered at 9am that day. Unfortunately,
when I got there, there were no deliveries waiting for me - it was to
my business address and we operate a stringent incoming mail process,
meaning nothing comes in without being logged. I have checked, checked
twice then checked again and nothing was signed for here that day. The
following day, I did actually receive one of the two packages - this
one contained the RAM. The state in which this package was in when
delivered can be best described as having been "stomped on". The
box was ripped open, looking very much like someone had indeed stood
on, or at the very least had a heavy object placed on it. Ultimately,
the contents were fine and I let it go.

My efforts to contact ParceForce as to the whereabouts of the second
package were and still are fruitless at best. They operate a web-based
Contact section on their website, which I have yet to receive a
response from. Coupled with their laughable voice-recognition phone
line, I yet to have contact with a helpful human being. True, I have
spoken to one ParcelForce employee who gave his name and as it turns
out a fake phone number and promised to send a message to the depot for
me, but am still waiting.

You may ask what does this have to do with Dabs? They did dispatch the
order in a timely fashion after all. The reason is this: Dabs also
operate a web-based Contact section on their website - I have
repeatedly tried using this asking for their assistance in sorting out
this problem with no responses forthcoming. I have also, via Groups,
located the email address and voice-mail number of Steve Minshull, the
Dabs Customer Services Manager and sent him an email and left a
message. Again no response.

I have yet to receive any human contact with Dabs. They don't seem
to give a stuff once they've got your money. Using Google to look
for similar cases yielded a surprising number of consumer complaints
against a company I used to hold in high regard.

I'd much rather have the missing package delivered or at the very
least Dabs dispatch a replacement than have to go through a refund
claim, seeking damages or legal action.

Dabs - your response?

Simon Masterton


Reading all this makes one think your monitor has been nicked en route. I
have received from mail order a Cannon Scanner in its box with just an
address label on it. Plain for all to see what was inside. I was surprised
it got the whole way.

On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 18:54:32 -0000, "John Hardaker" . wrote:

Reading all this makes one think your monitor has been nicked en route. I
have received from mail order a Cannon Scanner in its box with just an
address label on it. Plain for all to see what was inside. I was surprised
it got the whole way.

I ordered a Canon Scanner from Dabs.

I tracked it on the Parcelfarce site only to find that it had been
incorrectly sorted and sped off to the south coast. I live in the
north west, about 30 miles from Dabs.

Two days late it arrived. I was amazed. It was complete with nothing
missing. Why is this strange? Well, the box was exactly as I would buy
it from a shop. No extra packing. Just the Canon retail box with the
delivery note stuck under (and protruding from) the top lip of the
box. Plastered all over the box, was what the product was. No seal, no
parcel tape, no nothing.

I haven't ordered from Dabs in a year or so and it will be more than
that before I repeat the process.

How it got here intact amazes me and my wife.

In message l.de,
WigWag writes
On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 18:54:32 -0000, "John Hardaker" . wrote:

Reading all this makes one think your monitor has been nicked en route. I
have received from mail order a Cannon Scanner in its box with just an
address label on it. Plain for all to see what was inside. I was surprised
it got the whole way.

I ordered a Canon Scanner from Dabs.

I tracked it on the Parcelfarce site only to find that it had been
incorrectly sorted and sped off to the south coast. I live in the
north west, about 30 miles from Dabs.

Two days late it arrived. I was amazed. It was complete with nothing
missing. Why is this strange? Well, the box was exactly as I would buy
it from a shop. No extra packing. Just the Canon retail box with the
delivery note stuck under (and protruding from) the top lip of the
box. Plastered all over the box, was what the product was. No seal, no
parcel tape, no nothing.

How it got here intact amazes me and my wife.


What has caused you to have such a low opinion of humankind?

--
dave @ stejonda

Beyond the farmyard the wind in the trees.

On Sun, 27 Nov 2005 22:12:42 +0000, "dave @ stejonda"
wrote:

-What has caused you to have such a low opinion of humankind?

Other humans?

-Rob
robatwork at mail dot com

On Sun, 27 Nov 2005 22:12:42 +0000, "dave @ stejonda"
wrote:

What has caused you to have such a low opinion of humankind?

I guess things are OK on your planet then?


Wiggy.