"Lights don't last

Lights don't last. Year after year I was getting so frustrated with my Christmas tree lights going out. I decided to pay extra to get a good quality tree that the lights would stay lit if one burned out After doing hours of research, I settled on Balsam Hill. I purchased a 9' tree for $749.00. (Way beyond what I have ever purchased an artificial tree for.) They have a 3 year light warranty. Well, the lights lasted 2 years. A whole section went out and I spent hours trying to get them to work. (So much for staying lit.) I called and they sent me a string of lights. For as much as I paid for this tree, they should have replaced it! Restringing lights was not what I had in mind for such an expensive tree. It was so frustrating and NOT an easy task. The next year (3rd year) another section went out. And the following year another section.

So, if you want a tree that the lights DON'T stay lit, shop Balsam Hill. Otherwise, you will be restringing lights year after year. And again, for the price, that should not happen!!!!

I also purchased a tree after Christmas the year I bought the tree for my daughter. Her tree also did not last "light-wise."

1/15/2018: Received a message from Balsam Hill to contact them. Tried sending an email to the contact information posted and it came back as not a valid email address. So much for their attempt to reach out.

12/07/2018: More than half the tree is dark...I HATE this tree!!!!!"

"So far this has been a disappointing experience for us. We bought our tree early and it arrived much quicker than anticipated. This was great...we were ready to put it up before the first day of Advent, Dec.1. Upon assembly we had several branches that did not light. We called technical assistance and was told we would be sent a new tree. So far so good, they imply the tree will be here before the next weekend. The replacement tree is being sent in two different shipments...the top has arrived, the second will not arrive until next week, December 10th. We have a party tonight and a family birthday on Sunday. No tree up for these important events in our lives. We had asked if we could pay to expedite, not allowed on a replacement tree. All of this is cumbersome and not user friendly when there is a problem. We ordered early, a premium tree and not exactly premium service in my mind. The supervisor we spoke with was courteous, but seemed unable to make anything better."

"Bought a pre-lit scotch pine tree from Balsam Hill. While it was beautiful, half of the lights stopped working in 2 years. We took great care of the tree and there was no reason for them to stop working. Since it was under warranty, we called Balsam Hill. They stated that the tree is currently sold out and we would have to wait 11 months for a replacement part. Instead they would send us some lights to string up in the meantime. What they sent us was non matching (in shape and color) lights. Completely unacceptable. You are better off buying a cheap tree from the hardware store. Save your money."

"I received a wreath as a gift from my kids. Upon opening, it was beautiful. It looks real, as well as the pine cones and apples that decorate it. What is truly the best part though is the timer on the lights! When I saw it was a lit wreath I have to admit, I thought "oh, now I have to remember to turn it on and off at night", but NO! It has a timer on it! I have it set to come on a 5pm and run for 6 hours every day! How convenient and cool is that?? I highly recommend Balsam Hill and these wreaths. Next year, I'm going to get a tree!"

"I bought a tree and stand.. cost me over $1,000... I need it for my Party on Sunday! Guests are coming from out of the country. When it arrived last evening it looked like it fell off a Home Depot Truck. I called and asked for a replacement. The nice young lady put me on hold to ask her supervisor. He came on the phone and explained that they could not send a replacement that fast.. (really? Wednesday to Saturday?) 2 day shipping would have been acceptable.. since I paid for just that ($150) for the damaged tree that arrived, which I ordered Sunday evening and arrived Wednesday evening.. so it is possible!! This man treated me like i was bothering him.. "No, I cannot guarantee delivery until Monday or Tuesday" I was livid.... I have never ever spoken to a customer like that... when it was Balsam Hill who sent me this awful tree.. it's not like I made a mistake.. I asked to speak to someone above him and he refused.. he told me "I am as high as you get no one above me" ... Long story short.. I canceled my tree all together and now I am going to find another before Sunday..... Bad Bad Customer Service!!!!!! "

"Ordered Tree and Garland. Tree arrived in a week and we were very pleased. The garland however didn't arrive. We e-mailed them three times to find out where the garland was and kept getting replies that they would let us know as soon as they knew something. After a month we called to find out what was going on. After pressing very hard I learned that they were out of stock. They are out of control and don't even know what's in their warehouse. We had planed to have a tree and matching garland and should have been told when we ordered that the item was out of stock. Very disappointing!"

"WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SHOPPING EXPERIENCE EVER!! I purchased a tree on November 14th. As of November 16th, I received only one of two boxes. The other box was shipped to a different location. I have called every day and spoke with a different customer representative to tell the same story OVER and OVER and to be told the same thing OVER and OVER!! They have turned something that is their fault into now my problem! All I want is the other half of MY tree that I PURCHASED!! Their website says that if you have not received your shipment within 3 days of delivery date to please contact them....REALLY, FOR WHAT?!?! They will no longer answer my calls or return them. Since I am obviously not getting anywhere, as of yesterday I have filed a claim with my bank and I am hoping to get this issue resolved very soon! Please save yourself the trouble and DO NOT purchase from this company!"

"I ordered 2 Christmas trees, 3 garlands and 2 swags from BH last year. They arrived on time ( I ordered in Sept ) When I pulled it all out in late November, everything was beautiful. The products look realistic, they were easy to assemble and fluff. my indoor trees are still great. The outside battery-run garland and swag however had issues. I live in the midwest. I was excited for the easy battery items with a timer. After 2 weeks, you could barely see the light at night. I put my items out after Thanksgiving and between then and NYE I changed the batteries 3 times. When I called BH, the customer service said that performance varies due to the cold. This was stated nowhere on the site. Because I bought the products in Sept, the 36day warranty period was over. I just sucked it up and stocked up on AA batteries. I store the products in the bags provide, in a cool place. Nothing was stored on top of them. Yet this year, I add batteries to my swags and only one works. I checked it for loose bulbs and can find nothing wrong other than it doesn't work. Once again, BH told me my warranty was up. I was transferred to Tech support, who also said there wasn't much to do, although they did promise to send a replacements... next fall when the item is back in stock. I WANT to love BH. Everything is gorgeous, but I am very frustrated with these battery run products."

"Ordered a 7.5' BH Fraser Fir a week ago. Received a phone call from an 888 number stating my order was cancelled. Had to call the company and speak to 3 different people before they could tell me the tree is no longer available...…. for this season...… I think. Still couldn't tell me if it was discontinued. They did cancel the charge on my CC, but it was extremely frustrating trying to get an answer from the company about why the product, which is STILL listed as available on their site, is not available. After reading reviews on this site and others, I'm going to consider my experience a blessing. "

"I spent over $800 on a tree that we thought would last. Alas, after 5 years, of only using the tree 10-15 days a year, half the tree ceases to light up. We have no children and spending this kind of money take great care in storing it. Balsalm Hill basically said “too bad...go buy more lights and restring it....says Cassandra (supposed supervisor). I wasn’t even allowed to speak to anyone else....in fact I was told she was the end of the line. So tell me again why I should spend this kind of money on a tree instead of buying a tree at Walmart...end of the season....and throw away after a couple of years. Obviously lots of unhappy people with over 80% giving you a 1! Poor customer service. Don’t waste your money!!"

"I purchased two outdoor 5' LED Pinecone Trees on 11-27-17 and used them for one Christmas season - about 5-6 weeks. This year, one of the trees will not light. However, one removable male plugin will light either tree while the other plugin will light neither tree. Obviously, one male plugin is faulty. So you would think Balsam Hill would offer a replacement plugin for sale, right? So that the $109 tree is not worthless, right? WRONG! The Balsam Hill products are overpriced to start with and now I have learned their words of high quality and excellent customer service are disingenuous at best. I do not recommend anyone purchase products from Balsam Hill. If you do, in the end, you will be completely disappointed."

"Ordered a tree on Nov 24th. Received the wrong product on the Dec 1st after some delivery delays. I didn't even get a tree, I got garland. I spoke to someone via chat that told me I first had to return the wrong product to them BEFORE they would ship the actual tree I purchased. They want me to print a return label (I have no printer), schedule a pick up from fedex some day this week or bring the box to fedex and then once they get the garland, only THEN will they ship me my tree. I called into their customer support line in hopes I could at least get the tree shipped without them first needing to get the wrong product. It's unreasonable to delay my purchase from getting shipped because they mailed me the wrong item. They told me they would ship the item and I would get a tracking code soon. Never got a code. Called them back two days later and find out they doubled back and said they won't ship the tree and they wouldn't cancel my order.

So I've paid $430 for a tree I never got and they won't cancel the order. Terrible experience. I do not recommend.
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"For years I have viewed the trees online at Balsam Hill hoping that one would go on sale at a price I would afford. Finally found one someone was selling in my neighborhood at a price I could afford! Lucky me! Well not so lucky actually.... Tree looks plastic to me and boy am I ever happy I didn't spend the $950 it would have cost me new!!! Then had to call customer service and Matt a supervisor was so condescending and rude I wanted to jump through the phone and strangle him!! Moral of the story - sometimes things you think are going to be great turn out not to be so. Balsam Hill your product is not great and WAY overpriced, your customer service is terrible and I'm sorry I wasted so much time on your website.
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"After succumbing to the advertising hype, I ordered a Balsam Hill tree thinking I'd be getting a realistic, high-quality tree that would be visibly superior to all those chain-store trees. It's been a little over a week since my original order, and although the overall look of my tree is very nice, the quality is not worth the $570 I spent. I got a 7.5' unlit Vermont White Spruce, which is supposed to be the 'Grand Daddy of Artificial Trees', according to one customer service rep. While I do like the mostly realistic look of the fluffy branches, and the numerous branch tips, there are still noticeable gaps after hours of fluffing. I could get the same look, gaps and all, for much less, at any local store. My biggest complaint, quality-wise, is that the tree sections do not fit securely, and the middle piece is especially wobbly. I am reluctant to hang lights and ornaments on this tree because that middle piece wiggles & rotates quite a bit. When I called Balsam Hill customer service (sales), no one seemed to know much about the products, and it seems that the flimsy section fit is a design flaw. Several CSRs wanted to send me a new middle section, but couldn't explain how it would be different, or fit more securely than the one I had. When I said I didn't want to take the tree apart & go through the nightmare return process (been there, done that already) unless I had a guarantee that the new section would be somehow different/better, I was told to just exchange the entire tree. I asked if BH had a troubleshooting guide that mentioned ways to make the sections more secure, since that seemed to be a recurring problem, and a supervisor helpfully informed me that if I 'attempted to secure the tree myself in any way, it would void all warranties.' I guess that was a hard no to my troubleshooting question. I then asked if a partial refund was possible, since I would have to find a way to secure the sections if I kept the tree, and at this point, the tree did not seem to be worth its expensive price tag. I think they must have been listening to Meghan Trainor because all I kept hearing is 'NO'. Don't even get me started on all the other customer service calls about the first order exchange, the 2-day shipping that arrived a week later, the exchange 'refund' emails that made no sense, and the many representatives that apparently were really new, really stupid, or really stoned. I do want to give a shout-out to the 3 reps that felt like the proper response to a customer concern was to hang up in the middle of a call. Balsam Hill customer support training 101 at its finest. At least I have the satisfaction of knowing that once this tree gets sent back, Balsam Hill will have spent more on the 2 returns & shipping refunds & I will have spent nothing. Except for that nice Costco tree that's $400 less than the Balsam Hill one I ordered. Does this company even care that they're losing money & customers due to amazingly poor customer service? Or do the over-inflated tree prices compensate for the losses? Oh well. My entire family & several friends were waiting to see my Balsam Hill tree before deciding if they wanted one. Guess what their decisions are now? "

"We have a 7' Calistoga Fir #5023854. We heard about them in the fall of '15 and purchased it for that Christmas - friends were bragging on their beauty big time. It's true, a beautiful tree indeed - loved it. YEAR #1

The next time we were able to use it was two years later (Christmas '17). After repeated troubleshooting attempts, we couldn't get the upper section lights to work (after replaced fuse lamps and inline fuses). Balsam honored their warranty and sent us a replacement section. Tree decorating... delayed. YEAR #2

This season (Christmas '18) is now our third season to use it. Immediately the bottom section of lights only half worked. After (3) hours of troubleshooting and chatting online (replacing the fuse lamp, plug fuses, and three branches of lights - it still didn't work). Again, Balsam honored their warranty and another section is being sent. Tree decorating... delayed. YEAR #3

1) It's true - they've got a beautiful tree. 2) Our experience was only a wonderful customer service. 3) They have a super warranty - so far. 4) But they also have an overpriced poor quality made tree. I would seriously research carefully if there are other routes to go by way of an artificial tree. BEWARE buyers, "Beauty is only skin deep," but their quality is unfortunately very lacking, sorry to say."