BUMBLING BIDDULPHS

We’ve moved with Biddulphs a few times, more than 25 years ago. Good moves they were; a great company in those days. What a poor show now. My daughter moved from Pretoria to Cape Town a week ago. It was a bumbling Biddulphs. I was intimately involved in the packing, loading and off-loading – a first-hand witness. Here are the issues: A wooden crate ordered at R1000 for a large patio table glass top never arrived for the packing. It hadn’t even been made. After the packing the glass was taken to the depot where the crate was then made. A rough structure costing a few hundred rand in planks. No communication or coordination between sales and operations! Provision had been made by Biddulphs for someone’s part load on the truck, so furniture and other articles were stuffed into every space. The result was a lot of damage. The doors of a s/s fridge looked like moon craters–multiple dents. The support structure for the dressing table mirrors had broken loose. I saw the off-loader lifting the dresser by the mirrors! Now the mirrors could not be removed and had been secured by the packers in Pretoria. Surely there should be special instructions to coordinate special handling between packing/loading and off-loading. A professional company? A wooden support on the bed for the headboard had been broken off. There was a large chip out of the chest of drawers. The rim of a large garden pot was severely damaged. The handle of a plastic crate was broken off. Perhaps more, I can’t recall. Heavy boxes were stacked on light boxes, crushing them. Surely this is the most basic of packing rules! In summary a bad move, most disappointing and it should be a message to Biddulphs, if it’s listening. We plan to move soon, but Biddulphs won’t be on the list for quotes. Two people I know, recently moved with lesser known companies, with NO issues whatsoever. How? Real attention to detail, smart workers and customer care. Take a lesson Biddulphs!