"Ikea online shopping is piece of crap. I made a purchase on Jan 17 and was waiting for a callback about the purchase (as it stated) but never received a call. When I called on Jan 24 they said they cannot find the order and after a few too many minutes on the call they said they had a "system glitch" and I was on the "call list" so they can redo the purchase. After waiting for a while they said they cannot redo my order becasue they cannot find some items and they can only refund me. I am still waiting for the refund! All I can say is that I wish I listened to all the bad expreiences of other Ikea online shoppers and avoided Ikea!"

"I ordered an Ikea gift card for my son as a Christmas present. I ordered it by the date specified on the Ikea web site for delivery by Christmas. The only way to order a gift card is by telephone. I was assured that the card would be delivered by Christmas and that I would receive an email confirmation. To summarize: I still haven't received any email confirmation; my son received the gift card on December 27; virtually nothing that I was told during many calls to Ikea about this situation was true. After being on hold for a very long time, and arguing with a customer service person, I finally got a supervisor to agree to refund the $2.50 I was charged for shipping and handling (for a gift card!). I was told that the credit would appear on my credit card in 3 to 5 days. It took a lot longer than that. Whoever makes policy at Ikea should find something else to do. This store is badly broken."

"Stay away from this store. When item is not in stock they keep pushing the estimated time of arrival every week. My room is half done waiting for just one missing shelf unit. Spoke with a manager online and they cannot do anything. The shipping cost online is $100 for a $85 shelf!!! I do not mind paying a shipping fee but this is a robbery. They also cannot ship it to the store. My advice is to not shop at IKEA at all. It will save you a lot a frustration. "

"My husband and I were looking for a round table to entertain guests. We had been all over looking for one and were so excited when we came across one here at the Bolingbrook, IL, store. It seemed odd, but there was no number to go pick it ourselves, it said write down the name and color and ask them for help. So we did, the only question the man had was how tall was the base, 29 or 48"? We told him 29", he printed out a "C&C Full Serve", we paid and then we waited. About 20 minutes later, a woman comes out and says it shows 6, (yes she said 6), bases in stock but there isn't a one there. I asked for the floor model base since it appeared they were discontinuing it, the sticker had said last chance. She said she'd check and walked away. 10 minutes later she came back and said there was no way they would give me the floor model; she swore it wasn't being discontinued and that they needed the floor model to continue selling it. She said it would take 2 weeks to get a new one in. I asked for her manager and she walked away and made a call. Another 10 minutes goes by and she finally came back with a cart. She said she called the warehouse manager down and he looked for the parts and found them. Hmm, weird, but okay, we're so happy to have the table that we were so desperately looking for! Our party was saved...or not. When we got home, the base wasn't the same as the model we looked at. It doesn't even fit our table top, it's too small. The base in the store was round, this one is crossed. I'm not sure who didn't know what they were doing, the first guy who didn't give a round option, the lady who claimed they were out of stock or the warehouse manager that found them- probably all three. I'm just sorry I let my excitement get in the way of getting these peoples names. We will never shop at this location again. I'm not even sure I'll go to the Schaumburg one after this."

"Cool stuff easy to assemble and shipped real easy! Very low prices!"

"I'm lucky to be close to one of these stores. I find myself venturing over there when I need a few extra things for my kitchen or another pc. of furniture (indoor or outdoor). They have EVERYTHING here and you can't beat the prices. They even have their own food court, trust me it helps when you have been here for hours.

The customer service is great and I've never had to track someone down as there is always someone in the dept. to assist you."

"When the IKEA website indicates that your items will be shipped within 2 weeks, they actually mean that someone will call you after 8 pm on the 13th date to schedule a shipment for the 14th day... I didn't appreciate that. 2 weeks is a long wait, let along the inappropriate call timing. "

"I am not sure why this store has such bad reviews.

Yea, it is a hassle sometimes and they do not have a lot of items in stock but overall ikea is ok.

For the price, if you can find what you want, it is not bad.

I purchased a few office desks, they were somewhat complicated to assemble but otherwise price and service was ok.

"

"Wow what a bunch of cry babies! I'm sitting here reading the reviews, and there is only two or three of you that have a legitimate complaint. If the closest IKEA was two hours away from me, I think I would be shopping at a different retailer. Stuff at IKEA isn't that great, sure its quality and priced well but the directions to put anything together sucks. I hate walking through the whole store just to get one item i need(even with the so called short cuts ). Other than that i think IKEA is pretty good."

"Ikea has the absolute worst costumer service imaginable!!! The nearest store is over 200 miles away from us; so to avoid hundreds of dollars in shipping costs on countertops for the home that we are building, we arranged to have a family member that is a mere 90 miles from Houston pick them up. If you call the number for Houston, there is an option to place a phone order; however, when you finally speak to an actual human being, albeit a rude and vapid one, he or she will inform you can't actually place a phone order. He or she will then tell you that they can send out a form for you to fill out, and they will get back to you in 7-10 business days!! What the hell? You mean to tell me that I am calling from over 200 miles away to do business with you, and you have the nerve to say "we will get back to you in 7-10 business days to determine if we can take the money that you want to pay us for our product"? This is the most ridiculous concept that I have ever heard of. To increase the disgust that I have with them, after repeated attempts to have them hold the product; they blatantly refuse. If I were to ever own a business, and someone called me from 200 miles away, and they arranged from someone to drive 90 miles (one way) to purchase a product; I would accomadate them!! Ikea has lost a customer, and I will tell others on a regular basis just how much they freaking suck!!"

"Hello,
I bought SOFA-CHAIR LYCKSELE for my kid as she move to the school. She slept one nigh at it and told that it uncomfortable: to small. I rush to IKEA again and bought bigger LYCKSELE bed instead of exchanging because assembling/disassembling/packaging takes time and I decided I can do it later: I have 90 days according return policy. Week later I packaged the small bed and visited IKEA for return. You cannot believe: they don't credit my card, because I used this junk bed. They ignored that no way to purchase this bed without assembling it and trying to lay on it, especially if no it sample in the store. They suggest exchange this bed if I does not work for me. Actually, I did this in advance by buying bigger one but after that I lost possibility to exchange.
To be short: they foolish me as they can and did not return money back for this bed.
How IKEA able keep trade license in USA, if it does not respect customer and existing law?
I'll report to BBB, Trade Board and my credit card to stop payment.
Supervisor's name is Jeremy J *1975 and he unable give me his business card.
I suggest boycott IKEA with it junk goods and service.
Second option is to buy thrash IKEA products and support destroying American service and quality.
Alexander"

"We just bought over a $1000 worth of goods to furnish select items in our apartment.

There was a shoe cabinet on in a lacquer high gloss finish on display. When trying to get it on the stock floor, the color was not there. We asked one of the staff and he looked it up to say it was there. To prove it, he even showed us the picture and where it was.

After receiving the shoe cabinet from our delivery, we found that they gave us a 'matte' finish. It was not what was requested.

Calling IKEA immediately, we were sent through a maze of customer service reps who said that we were at fault and had to return it ourselves or pay a $100 fee for a $70 product.

For those from NYC with no car, you can see the dilemma that we were in.

We escalated the call and reached the voice mail of Carolyn who was the Escalation Manager. She never returned our call after calling in 3 times.

Days later someone else calls and says that we need to first have a case number and someone will return the call within 48 hours.

3 days later a person by the name of 'John' (ID or EXT 1745 / he refused to give his employee number or last name) calls in from Fact Resolution Department. We explain that we chose our item based on what we saw on the floor and what the IKEA employee showed us on his computer and on the stock floor.

During the whole conversation he used words like 'assuming you were right', 'if it was actually on the floor' and continued to try and twist words throughout the whole conversation. He then said that he would send the complaint to the store where we were on the first call.

Obviously more than agry by his loaded question and insinuative fact finding, he then ended it with 'IKEA is right. We are not at fault'.

Is John's job not supposed to 'gather facts' instead of come to conclusions??

I told him that we have recorded (meaning there was a witness) everything he said. He then panicked, rambled about legalities and hung up on us.

We are now reporting them to the Better Business Bureau. Nothing has been resolved.

In order to get their attention, I ask each of you to please blog this.

We escalate and wait, only to get blamed and hung up on."

"On June 6, 2010, in the Charlotte, NC store I bought several pieces of furniture, including a corner sofa/bed. I went to the Furniture Pick Up check-in desk, where I showed the "Cash & Carry Order" to a woman named Randi. After the warehouse people brought the Sofa/Bed - 4 big boxes, on 2 carts - I asked Randi if someone can take the boxes to my minivan and load them, since I already had another cart full of furniture. Randi refused to help, and after I insisted she called a manager. The manager, Ingrid, showed after 25 minutes, and only after I talked again to Randi. Both these women, but especially Randi, were rude and insulting. The only IKEA employees who were helpful and courteous that day, were the two people who helped me load the furniture in the minivan.
Since the IKEA store opened in Charlotte, we have bought thousands of dollars worth of furniture and other items. I thought they appreciate return customers, but apparently I'm wrong. Fortunately, there are a lot of other furniture stores in Charlotte, where the employees are far more polite and helpful... I'm not going to visit another IKEA store. I don't have to go to a place where I'm insulted and ridiculed.

Updated on June 24, 2010
I contacted customer service on June 11 and the next day I got a standard reply letter, with no apologies of any kind, and the promise that the store in question will contact me in 72 hours. Needless to say, the store never contacted me.
No wonder IKEA has such a low ResellerRatings score. I don't understand how the IKEA Corporate management can tolerate this situation, where customer complaints are totally ignored. It's hard to believe that this is how they do business in Sweden..."

"If you order anything from IKEA, make sure that it is exactly the same item as the one you are basing your purchase on, otherwise, you will not like having customer service tell you that unless you want to return your entire order, they can¡¦t do anything about.

I had gone to the Brooklyn, New York IKEA to scout out chair samples. I chose the Gilbert chair and purchased one on the spot to make further evaluations back at the office. It was decided as the best choice for our needs. I proceeded to order the chair online since the Brooklyn store didn¡¦t have enough in stock to cover the order.

First off, the IKEA log-in panel is a joke. I set up the necessary information clicked finished and waited. When I tried to log in a few days later, it kept giving me the old ¡§user name and /or password is incorrect¡¨ notice.

I emailed for a new password, got it, used it and couldn¡¦t log-in. Having given up on that, I ordered the thirty Gilbert chairs online. The order, with all the taxes and shipping came to nearly $2000. I received a verification notice and that was it. No tracking number, no real receipt, nothing.

When I received the delivery, the driver was very courteous and helpful. He didn¡¦t work for IKEA. That should tell you something right there.

A few days later, I opened the boxes to begin assembly and noticed that what I had received was not the same as what I had purchased as a sample.
„X The leg construction and width were different.
„X The wood color was darker. The Birch veneer was not anywhere close to the sample¡¦s shade.
„X The finish was totally different ¡V satin as opposed to gloss.
„X The number of layers of plywood were fewer than the sample chairs meaning the chair was flimsier.

When I called customer service, after having gone through the telephone menu maze, I read the representative the ID numbers from the two different chairs. They were clearly different numbers. I mentioned my displeasure over this and did not want to return the chairs due to the timeline involved. I was not given any satisfaction what-so-ever in terms of a discount or remuneration for shipping to compensate for the very distinct discrepancies in products. This was a $2000 order! I have had better results with other companies, with smaller orders, in cases such as this. IKEA just hasn¡¦t got the good sense to realize how annoying they are.

IKEA sells low to reasonable grade products at cheap to moderates prices. That¡¦s it.
Their customer service is non-existent. Their quality control is non-existent. You purchase products at your own risk when shopping with them.

"

"I bought several "Billy" model bookshelves from the Schaumsberg IL, Ikea, and after driving 150 miles home and unpacking the bookshelf components, discovered that the front face of one of the shelves had a 4" long x 1/4" wide and deep gash in the wood veneer. Ikea shipping materials are a very thin cardboard, about as thin as it could be and still be corrugated, and a few patches of tape. There are no padding or packing materials (aside from a few scrap wood spacers) inside the box and it is altogether too weak of packing to contain anything over perhaps 20lbs let alone the parts to an 85lb bookcase. It has minimal effectiveness in preventing damage to the shelf components or even hold the parts in if the box is tipped down.

I called Ikea customer service hoping to reach a person who might help me obtain a new shelf to replace the damaged one. I eventually spoke to a customer service rep who told me that requesting a replacement shelf was not within the realms of "customer service" and transferred me to a claims resolution department. Except, I got shuffled in a continuous loop on hold between the Schaumberg store's automated phone system and the national office's automated phone system for at least half an hour before I got disconnected. I called again and again ended up on hold for half an hour without talking to anyone who actually could help me. Finallly a third time I finally got through to someone after maybe 15 minutes on hold and this person took all of my pertinent information and set up a claim. Although she initially tried to get me to take the entire shelf system back to the store, I explained that a) it was already fully assembled and secured to the wall of my rec room; and b) I live 150 miles away from the nearest Ikea and I wasn't going to burn $50 in gas and tolls to return one shelf. Finally, she reluctantly agreed to ship the shelf to me and asked for my receipt number. I read it to her and then she repeated that number back to me.

10 days later, I get a voice mail message from Ikea claims resolution saying that my claim is in their system but I failed to provide them with my receipt number for verification that I actually purchased one of these shelves?!?!? Unfortunately, I forgot to look for my receipt that night and when this person called the next day, I was able to speak with her but not provide her with the receipt number which I had forgotten at home. She expressed doubts at my statement that I had already provided my receipt number, saying "If you did, why isn't it in the computer system?" We agreed she would call me at 8:00 this morning. At 7:30 as I was getting out of the shower, my cell phone gives me "you have a message" beep and I find out that this Ikea customer "service" rep has decided that because I couldn't be bothered to answer the phone half an hour before we agreed to talk, she was closing my claim.

I called back early this afternoon but again got put on hold for over 20 minutes. Again, the CSR's with whom I spoke denied that their job duties included providing some actual service to a customer in my situation and eventually I was transferred to the operator, who then transferred me to the correct department. However, no one from that department apparently likes to pick up their phone, so I had to leave a message with my name, phone number and claim number. No one from Ikea has called me back after waiting at least four hours.

This is horrible service. I am very unhappy with how poorly the several customer service departments are run and wasted at least two hours on on the phone on hold. I think this was my last purchase from Ikea. The quality of their products, particularly their wood furniture, has declined in recent years, anyway."