James S.

Halfords know I am autistic and have mental health struggles on top due to trauma, hence the reason a bicycle was so critical to my well being. However for more than one year they have left my complaints unresolved and it is still dragging on to this day. I first complained officially on 21 June 2022, it is now 25 September 2023 and still not resolved.

I purchased a bicycle from them and the moment I got it there was a weird clicking noise. I then kept having problems but their mechanical staff further messed it up with botched repairs 3 more times.

The manager of my now closed local store Dagenham Merrilands was terrible and declined to put it right, in which I asked for a refund. I was then fobbed off repeatedly by their complaints team that a regional manager would be in touch.

This went on all last year into this year. I had to scrap that bike in the end as it was unusable, I had to plod along for months upon months with that faulty bike. I have been robbed of money and use of bike and have no bike now.

To do this to a healthy customer is bad enough but to do it to an autistic person with health problems who cannot drive and relied on a bike for mental relief is truly cruel. What the hell is wrong with this company? I offered proof of everything including my disability, health problems and trauma events.

I have called customer services, tried online chat, sent numerous emails but still nothing. The customer services team pass internally to complaints but even they apparently cannot contact them direct other than internal message. The complaints team then fob off that regional manager will contact me, heard it more than a dozen times.

Disgusting company, you know who I am so do not bother with standard response to this that you are disappointed with my experience and to contact customer services as I have done this repeatedly. It is an unaccountable loop that openly robs and discriminates against disabled and vulnerable people. Maybe they think we cannot fight back that is why they try their luck? I gave them a chance for a long time to put this right before this review, should have done it last year. Crooks.

Case reference *******
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UPDATE 1: Ffion on Halfords Head Office review I left on Google claims I had contact 'last few days'. I did my upteenth call a week ago, was told I would get a call back 'within 24 hours'. Never happened. After few days I tried online chat, apparently they could do nothing. So I called customer services yet again, heard same crap I have for well over a year. Then get email, I respond, nothing since. Then we get Ffion wheeled out on reviews page to save face and appear concerned and that things are in motion. Ffion as a face of this robbing, disability discriminating company, why are you not in direct contact with the most senior people?

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UPDATE 2: I have been offered a £30 voucher for a loss of hundreds of pounds, complaining since June 2022 and for contempt and dismissal of me as a disabled person! What planet are this company on? Utter disgrace. This needs to be put right or next stage will be 24 hour a day protest outside their UK head office and broadcast across all social media platforms. This is not just about me now but how they are clearly robbing and treating disabled people. I will have to become a voice for their disabled victims. Hopefully they will not under estimate me as I defeated a major public authority for the same. Up to you Halfords…..