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I must say, that CRC service has met a low point for me... Ordered some boxes of protein bars. Got em 2,5 weeks before exp date!!!! Paid full price... Wrote CRC, they offered money back og new box. Fair enough! Got another box (not the preferred taste, the others were out of stock). The replacement box was just 6 weeks from exp date! (Ordered around 10th of Dec 2011 exp. date Jan 2012).
I still have a few bars left from US bought in Aug 2011, they have exp date in July 2012, which means the bars CRC are shifting were in stock for almost a year!
CRC doesn´t accept me writing this in the review.They filter it, that is why you only see 4-5star reviews!
Fair enough lot sell products close to exp date, but less then 12 weeks should come with a 50-70% discount, not full price!
They offered you a refund or another box, so that's basically a 50% discount, and they'll be fine for a long time after the expiry date. A bit rubbish, but not the end of the world really is it?
They have offered to make good on an issue you have. I'd say that was a perfect example of why you should use them in future.
Be careful in supermarkets too, some of the stuff they sell has less than a week before it goes past it's sell by date! And they have the cheek to charge full price!
nope u are right, not the end. Dont know about protein bars.... Normal energy I would mind, but ithink proteinbars can get harsh. Would be better if they just shipped out fresh goods.
Tom: Yup, but there u can use your eyes and check it out. Not an option online. Cool eBayers always put exp date in description, CRC should make a system that would do it.
CRC doesn´t accept me writing this in the review.They filter it, that is why you only see 4-5star reviews!
I hate when they do this. I only feel the need to write bad reviews about things, but they always dissapear on CRC's page.
FFS this place sometimes it is just about having ago at a poster
Is it the end of the world? No
Does the OP claim it is ? No
Would anyone want lots of stuff that close to best before date? NO - unless you plant to use it before this date
If he was in the shop would he have bought them? NO
Did CRC offer to sort it? Yes
Did they do this? Not very well at all and only marginally better and not what the OP wanted
Have the OP got a point to be peeved?Yes
Is STw becoming a sad sad place where no matter what someone types the hive mind attacks the OP? Yes
Would not be impressed myself frst time and second time they really should have realised personally i would send them back
Junkyard, do you think the op's thread title is a fair statement to make? If it was your business, would you feel that he comment was justified?
Would not be impressed myself frst time and second time they really should have realised personally i would send them back
Which they've offered him.
It's a defamatory post, unnecessarily IMO. The crap part is the inability to leave negative reviews.
They are a huge operation. The particular item isn't popular, so stock hangs around, they don't check best before dates, they offer a perfectly reasonable alternative. Warehouse monkey still doesn't check, or because it's an unpopular item doesn't have much choice.
nope u are right, not the end. Dont know about protein bars.... Normal energy I would mind, but ithink proteinbars can get harsh. Would be better if they just shipped out fresh goods.
They have a Best Before date of a year away, what do you think will happen after an additional couple of months? The stock is fresh. If you want brand new then they'd have to order more in, I imagine you used them because they were cheap and in stock? Why not just order from your LBS?
I was about to post something similar tbh.
I ordered various bits from them (brakes, tyres, bar and stem)last friday. A week later I'd heard nothing and received nothing so I dropped them a quick email to ask them to give me a rough idea of how long it would be....wasnt a complaintm just a question.
I heard nothing so gave them a wee call.
On hold for years, then got cut off.....finallyspoke to someone who was very nice and helpful and advised that the tyres were holidng up the order and they were waiting for them to come in stock. He couldnt give m a timescale.
I called the next day and was told the same thing so decided to cancel as I was losing faith that I'd ever get the bits I wanted. I asked them to email me to confirm I had cancelled......checked my email at home and found an email saying the order had now been dispatched!
So I now have no idea if they've actually sent it, cancelled it or if the parts are gonna turn up just as the money goes back into my account!
Good prices alone dont make a successful business - they badly need to look at how they communicate (or dont) with their customers.
It is OTT and not what I would have said just like this is in the opposite direction 😉
They have offered to make good on an issue you have. I'd say that was a perfect example of why you should use them in future.
If someoen complained about Best before dates and staff said they would sort it and then did this, Personally I would be worried about my staff in the business more than a little piece of hyperbole on here.
I dont think CRC will go bankrupt because of this but there increasingly poor customer service might affect the bottom line.
Which they've offered him
you mean they have to under the distance selling regs ...they have done what they have to and have offered nothing.
Junkyard - there are other forums...
I'd be a bit peeved the first time, but to send out replacement stock so close to its sell by date would feel like a real slap in the chops.
Perhaps an ill thought through thread title, but the OP is entirely right to feel miffed IMO.
Junkyard - there are other forums.
thanks there are other shops
What is your point caller?
njee20: [b] Why not just order from your LBS?[/b]
U can´t get the brand where I live.. Mule bars are £3,5 a piece.... XTR 970 Cassette is £200-250, XTR970 chain is £50, Race King SuperSonic £80..... Need moore reasons for me not using LBS?! 😯
Agree that title is a bit OTT but I'd be miffed about their solution to 1st complaint.
If you worked at CRC and someone complained about short shelf life why on earth would you send a replacement offering not much more - are they thick or what!
BTW: To the 2nd topic CRC erasing reviews: My friend bought a pair of Titanium Rotors for his XC bike. They are not Ti, but normal steel, even though CRC claimed they were Ti. They erased his review, offered him nothing in compensation. Now they have changed description: Now its only w Ti bolts!
I used to get a lot from CRC, but prices are going up, they have a poor or false description, on frames they dont even have geometry table!
I am happy with Merlin Cycles...... but mostly I get my stuff from Germany
I don't think the heading is OTT at all, this thread is a warning to those thinking about using crc, a company that has become too big to give a shit!
Out of 10x orders I've placed with them over the past 2 years 6 have been wrong, they know about a lot of these issues and yet do nothing to sort them.
Those of you taking CRC's side in this, going on about them being a company and not deserving to be bad mouthed, how has the truth and individual riders sharing their experiences with a company become an excuse to defend a company?
Companies should be judges on the service they provide, if they're causing riders hassle and stress then those riders have the right to warns other riders and too raise awareness of what's going on.
If I speak about CRC I also warn about the amount of mistakes they make, do they offer to fix the problems that they cause, of course they do they have to by law, however that doesn't reduce the hassle or stress it causes, it also doesn't mean that riders don't have the right to vent their frustrations or raise awareness of companies that are out of order.
The OP has every right to have a go at CRC, it's not his shit, it's not even his fan, but he's the one cleaing up the mess!
I think the vast majority of us have good experience of CRC, but that doesn't get reported to anything like the same extent.
CRC doesn´t accept me writing this in the review.They filter it, that is why you only see 4-5star reviews!
thing is as far as i can see the review is of the product and your reviewing the CRC service so to be fair to the product your review should not be included in the product review.
To bring a bit of balance here., I've placed lots of orders to CRC over the last few years. I've never had an issues with stock, pending orders, or having to return bits and pieces. I find their pricing very competitive, and their despatch and delivery very quick.
All in all a very efficient and trustworthy outfit based on my experience.
And before anyone says it. I have no affiliation with CRC as a business, I just like the way it just works, everytime.
to bring another bit of balance I stopped using them after the credit card fraud because of the lack of "giving a frak" about their customers
my business has gone to Germany
Merlin FTW, CRC are crap.
Just checked my CRC order history, 61 orders over last 8 years - all on time, all correctly filled, no problems with pricing or delivery 🙂
+1 kaesae and the op 🙁
Bit of hassle OP, & hope its off your chest now. Titles a bit daft though.
Never had an issue with CRC. Will use them as the default online source before checking Wiggle, Merlin etc.
Best online service I've ever had was mtbdirect. Superstar are the only ones I'd think twice about, but thats more down to the bloke on the phone - really unhelpful; the actual service was fine.
Support your local shop. Simples. 🙄
I use the .com site, will I be ok?
I have always enjoyed fantastic service from CRC.
Luckily for me, CRC is my LBS, so I can go in any time and try on or check out any of the thousands of bits of kit on their site before deciding to buy. When you visit the place, you quickly realise that it's a real big operation though. Apparently they have over 300 staff and more than 10,000 bikes in stock. For me, as long as I bear in mind that it's a big company with huge stock and huge resources then I accept that there are some trade-offs unfortunately. I accept that there are pluses - generally top notch prices, huge variety. But when you call up, it quickly becomes obvious its not a 10 person operation where everyone is on first name terms.
Having said all of that, when I shop there in person, the guys on the counter are the most down to earth, helpful, knowledgable types you could ever wish for in an LBS.
If I were the OP I'd be a bit bummed. However, complaining about CRC in your product review is not the right place to do so, and has no place on the site as a product review. The replacement was probably dispatched by someone who never saw the item. I'd be really surprised if another call wouldn't have sorted it out. Again, unfortunately, I think this is part of the downside of dealing with such a large company, and I'm afraid I'm in agreement with those guys who feel this isn't the end of the world.
Apart from the large boxes they send 2 screws in (which means postie can't get it through the letterbox so can't get my stuff till the following weekend on my day off) I've got no issues with crc. Think the deleting of negative reviews is shocking though and that alone has made me think I should shop elsewhere
I hate false advertising - which means all advertising
+1 for deleting reviews that review crc rather than the actual product. It isn't the fault of the products that crc haven't met your expectation, though crc have always been ace for me. Also, do people actually read reviews on shop sites? Don't you do your research on sites independant from the place that is trying to sell it to you? And being shocked by them deleting bad reviews, your lbs wouldn't tell you the product you wanted to buy was toss, save to sell you a more expensive one, why would an online shop?
I've used CRC a lot and never (yet) had an issue. Recently they handled the warranty return of my Reverb quickly and painlessly (over the phone).
RE: No negative reviews> Tricky one this. The simple fact of the matter is that generally, in the vast majority of cases, people only leave a "review" if it is negative. if you buy say some wheels, which just work and you ride around on them, very very few people will spend their time putting this in writing. But if you get said wheels, and you snap the hubs out the first time they turn, then you can bet you're gonna get onto the site and leave a review! What's the answer? Well i don't know. Maybe give "credits" for leaving proper reviews of the stuff you have brought. i.e. everytime you leave a review you get £1 credit or something. That way the reviews will actually reflect the bias towards "good" or "bad" that they currently don't if you open up the system completely.
Personally, considering how quick it is to google something, anyone who buys anything online without refference to any other 3rd party info is frankly a bit naive imo !
It's easy to poo poo the "big company = poor customer service" ethos, but no one on here likes to pay over the odds for something. Effectively the choice you make when you opt to buy the cheapest possible is that other intangable benefits might get degraded.
Maxtorque
Nail. Head.
i tried to leave a less then glowing review for poc gloves,it wouldn't let me,and there was no mention of crc.
I think CRC are great, ordered a reverb post it came quickly, it was the wrong size in the correct packaging not their fault, phoned them they checked stocked as soon as I'd e-mail them a pdf of postage receipt they dispatched replacement and refunded me all my postage.
Personal call to check everything was ok. have been using them for many many years, always faultless
I have some of the biggest, well stocked LBS in the country on my door step, but if they don't have it I normally have to wait a week to get things in, CRC will always get things to my door quicker than that even with issues.
They may not be perfect but their not that bad, just relax a little.
Never had a problem personally.
their doing nothing wrong when i buy stock for my business at the cash and carry i have to check the dates all the time as they will sell boxes of crisps with only three-four weeks left in among boxs with three months left at least CRC are offering you a refund we just get nae luck ya daftie should have checked the codes
[b]....Wrote CRC, they offered money back...[/b]
Happy days.
So why are we still discussing this non problem ?
.
i tried to leave a less then glowing review for poc gloves,it wouldn't let me,and there was no mention of crc.
Also experienced this, have had no real issues with service though.
[nealglover - Member
....Wrote CRC, they offered money back...
Happy days.
So why are we still discussing this non problem ?
.
]
Because I want the stuff that I was shopping for, not my money back
expiry date wouldn't bother me tbh
deleting bad reviews is pants though
Because I want the stuff that I was shopping for, not my money back
Thems the breaks bud.
Sometimes you get what you want, sometimes you don't.
[b]But they offered you a refund. So they have set the situation right and sorted out the problem. [/b]
As far as I can see, this is a reason why I [b]would[/b] choose to shop at CRC, rather than a reason to avoid them.
Thanks for the review.
On a side note, the bars don't really go off, eaten ones 3 years out of date (same with Gels)and didn't notice they tasted any worse than new (not that they were great to start with)
double post
After reading all the bad stuff about them, I didn't take the warning and ordered something from them for the frist time yesterday.
3 pairs of Hope pads
2 tyres
All Showing as in stock.
I then paid extra for the parcelforce before 12 express delivery.
I noticed my order was still processing this morning so gave them a call, apparently my order does not exist... BUT the money has been taken and I got an confirmation email 😉
No Explanation, they will investigate and call me before the end of the day. I find taking your money, including extra for specific delivery service, then claiming the order doesn't exist very poor service personnaly.
I probably should have listened to the warnings.
i ordered some stuff on tuesday morning, on wednesday morning I got a dispatched email at 11am, the stuff arrived on my desk at midday..
yawn.
use your lbs if you are that precious about delivery times.
or.. if you are trying to save a few quid by ordering from an online company in ireland, using an internet ordering service, accept that once in a while there might be a few issues.
tracknicko - Memberyawn.
use your lbs if you are that precious about delivery times.
or.. if you are trying to save a few quid by ordering from an online company in ireland, using an internet ordering service, accept that once in a while there might be a few issues.
Alternatively, a business could just provide the service that they advertise, and that the consumer is paying for. 🙄
If you can't achieve it, don't offer it.
Anyone else notice they set your order to "processing" as soon as you order?
Means you can't cancel/change the order online.....sneaky.
I think the OP's rasied a couple of valid points, though the level of outrage seems disproportionate. No harm in adding a Best Before date to the listings and deleting bad reviews makes the reviews utterly pointless.
The thing is, most people understand that people will only leave negative reviews, its what we expect in the days of Web 2.0. Being reasonably intelligent i'm sure most people can filter through the ones left by idiots and focus on the detail of the content to work out if they are liegitmate complaints (just like everyones doing with this very thread).
CRC are just very hit and miss at the moment. Some orders go through fine and it's next day delivery. Others get stuck in the "order processing" blackhole. When this happens there seems to be no mechanism at their end for picking this up or keeping customers up to date.
CRC doesn´t accept me writing this in the review.They filter it, that is why you only see 4-5star reviews!
Providing the review is not a rant/defamatory and constructively criticises the product, generally CRC will post it. I know I've written a fair few of them!
"CRC in "editing comments on their own website to favour them" shocker"
So yeah... turns out 4 of the 5 items I ordered are NOT in stock, despite them all still sayin in stock.
Offered a refund... took it, although I've heard that can be fun and they tend to sit on it and just send you the items anyway without refunding.
3 weeks later and i got my refund today after quite a bit of chasing, and many 'we're sorry we forgot to process it' statements.
I did manage to get the MDs email so I copied him in my email saying the credit card company were going to cloaw the money back themselves.
He apologised and admitted there was problems with they way they process things and it's being looked into.
Sent me a £20 voucher... ordered a set of hope pads, and two drinks bottles. Turned up the next day 😉
I've always had good service from CR. When they've made mistakes they've always sorted them, pronto.
Is STw becoming a sad sad place where no matter what someone types the hive mind attacks the OP?
The answer to this however, has to be "yes".
= :87(
I don't think it's about collaboration, or a "hive mind", though; just the result of some obviously quite bored people looking for an outlet.
I ordered from CRC in the early hours of this morning (04:34 on Mon 30 Apr 12). The order is currently (15:59 on Mon 30 Apr 12) showing as processing, I just hope my order doesn't fall into the black hole that some others seem to have.
I toyed with the idea of buying from Wiggle, as they're normally very quick to deliver (I find it very frustrating though that, even though Wiggle are less than 5 miles from my house, there is no option to collect in person) but was swayed by CRC's 10% off offer - I hope that's a decision I don't come to regret.
I need the item in question (a Hope headset) for a stag-weekend trip to Coed y Brenin at the end of this month, but it obviously needs to arrive in time for me to get the bike into the LBS and have it fitted. The reason I didn't order from the LBS (Cycle Surgery, Portsmouth) in the first place is that neither they or Solent Cycles had a gold Hope headset in stock and neither could even give a vague forcast of when they'd be able to get one in.
I presume you mean the end of may for needing your headset, otherwise you've no chance!
Yes, 25 May. Sorry, blonde moment!
Note to self: Do not order perishable/urgent/complex goods from CRC.
Thanks.
There is a reason why CRC have most of their goods cheaper than anywhere else. It's because of who else they own and who else they control or have exclusive deals with. There are also lot's of other places where CRC are selling but you wouldn't know it was them.
If you look hard enough you'll see that they are the only stockist of lots of items and for those items you can't find at CRC there are auction sites where you'll come across a seller who has every derivative of it with a selling record of 22900 items ! Look at Sram X0 crank sets as an example !
They are controlling the whole bike industry and making it uncompetitive for LBS's.
I'm surprised that nobody's pointed out* that CRC don't have to do anything at all for Huddini, the original poster.
They've sent him his order and it's all within Best Before - that's all they need to do. They don't need to make sure that it's a certain date [i]before[/i] the Best Before just so he can eat them all within that time.
*I've skimmed through some of the longer posts.
I spent many hours on the internet researching and choosing two pairs of sports training shoes which Chain Reaction Cycles advertised on their site as being in-stock. They were ordered so as to be delivered in time to be given as Christmas presents.
I had read mixed reviews about the company and oh how I wish I had listened to the negative ones! Upon completing my order I added on numerous pairs of sports socks to be worn with the shoes. A few days later I received an email to say that my order had been part-dispatched! I emailed the company to question why only part-dispatched? as they were advertised as being in-stock and would surely arrive as one complete package? A couple of days later they replied to say that an item (but did not state which) could not be included due to "fulfilment" reasons? and had therefore been cancelled! and that a single delivery package may not occur as items are gathered from many distribution centres and warehouses from around the world. I requested to know which item had been cancelled and was informed of it being one of the two pairs of training shoes! A further couple of days later I checked the progress on my "part-order" to see that the second pair of trainers had been cancelled by the company without any notification! a couple of days later they get back to me to apologise and blame "fulfilment" reasons? and that they were including a complimentary 5 British Pound e-voucher (which can only be spent at Chain Reaction Cycles!). I have had no true explanation of this goods dispatch failure and act of false advertisement. I would say that this company orders it's "copy/fake/replica" products from illegal Chinese manufacturers! BEWARE OF THIS COMPANY!!!*******
How the hell did this thread get resurrected 8 months after it was started.?
Some disgruntled spammer.
Some disgruntled spammer.
Garys73.
Who sounds like he probably works for the competition 🙂
sc-xc, you can say that again.
Oh you did. 😀
and that a single delivery package may not occur
Single delivery packages not occuring gets on my pips too.
I feel your pain, brother.
Glitchy disgruntled punterbump
Why the name calling - seems like a reasonable complaint about CRC
Only problem I had was I ordered a grease gun and it was out of stock and about 5 months later one arrived - no e-mail or anything and they charged me- by now I already owned one
The cost of returning said item was about the same as the price of it - at least now you can post back for free
For urgent items either order very early [ so not urgent] or physically go somewhere and pay a higher price
As for calling the poster mental - rather harsh as it is a perfectly lucid post - and he probably found the post via google so added his comments to warn us /others etc
Some stuff was delayed/cancelled and suddenly CRC are buying up all the sweat-shop goods? That's a bit of a leap of logic.
As above - this is a peculiar thing to say...
I would say that this company orders it's "copy/fake/replica" products from illegal Chinese manufacturers!
Only problem I had was I ordered a grease gun and it was out of stock and about 5 months later one arrived - no e-mail or anything and they charged me- by now I already owned one
But did you Join bike forums specifically to make complaints about it ?
Why would it make me mentally unstable if i did ?#
Wow he joined a forum to comment on a thread where they had some personal experience - your right release the hounds
Thankfully we are the stable ones who talk crap on here on a daily basis interspersing it only with personal digs 😕
Hang on - I said he sounded like he worked for the competition 😐
Meaning that joining a forum specifically to resurrect an 8 month old thread to complain about a specific company sounds like the sort of thing a rival might do.
I am not letting the facts get in the way of ......
Sorry 😳
If he is a rival and it took 8 mths that would explain why CRC are the best and they are crap then 😉
If he is a rival and it took 8 mths that would explain why CRC are the best and they are crap then
A good point well made 😉