Rutland Cycling

[Paul A]

Has anyone else had any problems with Rutland Cycling?

Two months ago I 'bought' a pair of Shimano cycling shoes from their website. A couple of days later they told me they weren't in stock but were due in soon. After 4 weeks and 2 date changes I gave up and cancelled the order.

So, I re-checked their site and decided on a different pair. Guess what? it turns out they "weren't in stock but would be received in time for Christmas" After 3 weeks and 2 date changes it seems they won't be here before Christmas after all.

I rang Rutland to question their policy of advertising and taking payment for goods that they didn't have in stock.
Frankly, they didn't give a toss and pointed out that the website makes no promises that they actually possess anything that they sell.

I went to Wiggle and bought the same shoes from them. They have a 'live' stock system and posted the stuff to me yesterday within hours of ordering.

So, Rutland. Huge range and keen prices in theory. The reality is no stock and no customer 'care'.

Paul A
www.francecoast2coast.co.uk

[Tandem Man]

Back in August they were advertising a case for the Satmap GPS which I knew full well wasn't launched at the time ( It had been cancelled a couple of times ).

Out of curiosity I rang them to ask to buy one and they said they didn't have them in stock nor did they know when they were going to get them in.

I must admit I agree with the "couldn't give a toss" attitude.

It still remained on their website though.

I don't think I would place them at the top of my list if I wanted anything.

Ian

[noel.shearer@uuplc.co.uk]

I had trouble with them a couple of years ago - ordered some stuff via EBay and they missed out part of the delivery (not of very high value). I e-mailed them a few times and got no response so wrote it off and left negative feedback on EBay. THEN got tons of abuse in response for not ringing them and giving them the chance to correct the order. Useless place.

[snibgo]

In June, I ordered a pair of panniers. They sent an email saying they were out of stock but should arrive in a week. They did. Job done.

[DavidT]

Although not strictly my LBS, they are pretty local to me, and I sometimes use them as a shop. They are a pretty big organisation - as far as cycle shops go (providing all the cycle hire around Rutland Water gives them a very lucrative and large business). About three shops overall, and a good number of staff.

If you want to put a formal complaint in about customer care, ask to speak to relevant management personnel and I imagine they might try and deal with it a bit better. The shop at Whitwell is their main base - which is a very large bike shop. They are certainly not just a "faceless" web retailer.

As a shop I have always found them more than reasonable in service (if not necessarily in price ) - and an excellent Thule dealer.

[AndyK]

I tried to buy a Polaris Neutron jacket from their eBay shop recently, as they were offering a very good price. When it hadn't turned up a few days after the promised delivery date, I chased them up and they (immediately) replied to say it had gone missing in the post, they couldn't get hold of any more Neutrons, and would I like to buy an Endura jacket (at a much less advantageous price) instead? I pointed out that the the Neutron was still being advertised as in stock on their main website, though at a higher price. They told me their eBay division was run as a separate operation and they couldn't transfer stock. When I commented that this all seemed a bit odd, they clammed up. The next day I got a request via eBay to cancel the transaction. So I got my money back, but it me feeling very suspicious. I won't be buying from them again.

[jealousboy]

I know that this kind of thing can be frustrating bu tin my opinion CRC, Wiggle and Rutland all have their issues. The reason I persoanlly purchase from Rutland is price, and 7.5 times out of ten they can deliver without issue. If you are looking for the best deal I reckon that you have to put up with a longer delivery time or pay a premium its simple. I have ordered from Evans this month and have the same issue, it is what it is. Additionally I have ordered from Rutland cycling and found their customer services really helpful?? Maybe just down to the individual but thats the individual and not the company as a whole surely!

[Tandem Man]

I know that this kind of thing can be frustrating bu tin my opinion CRC, Wiggle and Rutland all have their issues. The reason I persoanlly purchase from Rutland is price, and 7.5 times out of ten they can deliver without issue. If you are looking for the best deal I reckon that you have to put up with a longer delivery time or pay a premium its simple. I have ordered from Evans this month and have the same issue, it is what it is. Additionally I have ordered from Rutland cycling and found their customer services really helpful?? Maybe just down to the individual but thats the individual and not the company as a whole surely!

Fair comment but with reference to my earlier post regarding the Satmap case,why advertise something that you plainly haven't got in stock as it isn't on the market.

When this fact is pointed out continue to keep it on your site.

That seems to me to be an example of sharp practice.

Ian

[Paul A]

[/quote]
why advertise something that you plainly haven't got in stock as it isn't on the market.

When this fact is pointed out continue to keep it on your site.

That seems to me to be an example of sharp practice.

Ian[/quote]

I asked to speak to a supervisor and asked him how they can justify advertising and taking payment for things they simply don't have.
He insisted that this wasn't an issue that Rutland are concerned about. "The website clearly states that items

advertised may not be in stock".

As I was buying something as a Christmas present it was clearly an issue of importance to me!

The reality is that Rutland will 'sell' you anything with absolutely no moral. If you're prepared to wait on the off chance that they may actually get a delivery and fulfill your order fair enough. You may get fed up waiting and cancel. Either way Rutland have lost nothing -It's not as if they care about your custom in the first place.

Paul A

http://www.francecoast2coast.co.uk

[Jonty]

What a great pity. This business started as a small operation about 20 years ago. Perhaps it has grown to fast, to big and too impersonal.
jonty

[hondated]

Just in the sense of fairness I ordered two tyres late on monday night and they arrived today. Well done RC and hopefully if I place further orders with them I will receive the same prompt service. Whatever happens you will certainly read about it.

[Wildduck]

Had same issues with stock. Will not be using them again.

[johnmac]

I may be wrong but I get the impression that they are a very seasonal business. I suspect they sell stuff off cheap on ebay to give the business some winter cash flow. I know the shops are not cheap, yet what they sell on ebay is very keenly priced. I've not had any trouble with any of my ebay purchases from them.

[Nimbinking]

I bought a bike that came with a £50 voucher that came with "no strings" to "spend on what you like", well not so. Bike came no voucher rang the store and my voucher came in email straight away, now to get the spd pedals I wanted in the beginning so to get out on my new bike. Tried ordering the pedals they were less than the total voucher, thought i'd use the rest at a later date but my order wouldn't go through, rang the store to be told I would have to spend total voucher or greater value than voucher, ( No where on the email, the voucher or advert is this stated so annoyed) so spent to a greater value than the voucher £51.98, Guess what, they took the £51.98 out of my account not the £1.98, spoke to the store again to be told that because I had put the code in for the 1st order that didn't get processed the code did not now work. Very poor, i emailed them a couple of times before my bike arrived because there was a delay but had heard nothing from them only to be sent more vouchers "because it seems I was having trouble navigating there website" a £10 voucher off a £175 spend with them and only 72 hrs to spend it, I'd just blew a wedge on a bike that I hadn't got yet and they thought I had another 165 spare to spend. poor experience, unless buying parts or accessories buy in store any store, I have found buying over the net to be a pain, saves money but not worth the hassle and I wont use RUTLAND again and could not recommend them either only wish I had read the reviews of this "trusted shop" sooner, wouldn't have bothered just hope my refund comes back quicker than they took the money.

[pedalpower2]

I have bought several items from Rutland Cycles and they have been fine and so have the shop staff. Although a pair of oovershoes did take a long time to arrive, which may have been them or the suppliers.
I bought some bearings for Hope hubs, I wasn't too impressed with the mechanic who checked the dimensions. Also the cost was very high, I found afterwards that I could have bought them for less than half the cost from Axminster Tools. Ah well, that's life.
pedalpower2