Ordered Mrs Pondo a hybrid Ribble e-bike in June last year, predicted despatch was originally November but keeps being pushed back - had email comms last week (that I had to initiate - they've only proactively contacted me once) where they expressed confidence in the most recent 6th May despatch date, checked yesterday and still showed 6th of May, checked just now and it's changed to the 27th, no comms (again) to let us know.
Has everyone just left the company? Can we cancel and get a refund, does anywhere have stepthrough framed e-bikes in stock? I don't mind a delay, but piss is now being taken.
Check road.cc, big article about it with updates etc. from company.
The generous interpretation is that they have been more brutally exposed to supply chain issues than other companies, is telling that Rose Bikes (who also offered a customisation option) dropped it a year or two ago...
Has everyone just left the company? Can we cancel and get a refund, does anywhere have stepthrough framed e-bikes in stock? I don’t mind a delay, but piss is now being taken.
Just get a refund - they have broken any kind of contract you had.
I went into Rutland cycles and saw a really lovely step through specialized ebike hybrid. This was last week
I've waited for a Ribble bike this last year and had the same expanding and contracting timelines. Initially I was scunnered as it fell away then bounced back and even looked like I was getting the bike earlier than expected, needless to say this wasn't the case in the end up. So as I say initially somewhat disgruntled, but looking around nowhere else was getting bikes in, local shop seemed to get random dumps of various bikes, I really couldn't see it being any better if I went elsewhere. I tried to put some perspective on it, was Ribble shilly shallying or were they as much as he victims of COVID or boats stuck in canals as everyone else, I also had to remind myself that they are in the business of selling bikes and not keeping you from yours. In the end the expected date of delivery detail seemed to be a millstone around their neck, nowhere else was really promising and Ribble were I assumed trying to at least give some indication as far as they knew as to when your bike would be available. Whilst they could have contacted me more frequently to say that my bike wasn't coming, whenever I did contact them I was dealt with promptly, either via the live chat, WhatsApp or email. And for one reason or another I ended up getting my Di2 groupset upgraded to the latest version at no extra charge and must have been one of the first to get it in the country. That was my take on it and apart from my chagrin at the delay I can only blame Ribble for trying to inform me when my bike would arrive and me taking it as gospel.
Edit for timescales, ordered in April, ETA was September, October, August, back to September and then eventually I got it I think in February ( I wasn't going to use it until the better weather anyway)
Can we cancel and get a refund
Yes.
From last June? I'd have cancelled at long time ago.
Edit for timescales, ordered in April, ETA was September, October, August, back to September and then eventually I got it I think in February ( I wasn’t going to use it until the better weather anyway)
That's kind of the thing - push back from November through to, say, March was not a big deal. But the weather's nice now - we want to get out and about!
Stay calm. Anyone trying to deal with supply chains to build bikes over the last few years is now either in need of therapy, or has developed a zen like calm about everything. One or the other. Ask for a refund and move on if the wait is too long. Just don’t get shouty with the people in the middle trying to build you a bike, please.
does anywhere have stepthrough framed e-bikes in stock
I dropped off a wheel at Cycle Space in Disley yesterday and they had a few in stock
does anywhere have stepthrough framed e-bikes in stock
a gorgeous specialized one in blazing saddles hebden bridge.
Try Cube - they’re assembled in Germany so not quite as exposed to the supply problems. Googling reveals a few shops having stock.
Just have to read the news to see what is going on. Production and ports had issues until very recently. You can likely predict the delay by tracking the china production / shipping headlines better than Ribble can.
Only take the refund if you can find something similar in stock or you may have another year to wait.
Rare occasion, but I agree with Kelvin.Stay calm, it will eventually arrive.
Bike companies need our business and its not really their fault supply lines are experiencing big issues. Too many cancellations could mean the difference between the company staying in business or going into liquidation..
It's odd how one company can take so long. I ordered a Free Ranger from Planet X & they gave me a build date 5 weeks hence, then I got a mail saying it had been brought forward a week. So It came 4 weeks after I'd ordered it. Supply chain's obviously different but I'd have asked for a refund yonks ago.
I'm not showing this to my work colleague. He's committed to a Bike to work scoot from Ribble, and it's already been delayed once. He won't be able to get a refund because once you accept a voucher it has to be paid for.
@dovebiker Cube are assembled in Germany from frames built by vendors in the Far East and with parts from all over the globe. Their size/buying power may bump them up the queues a bit, but they’re subject to the same supply chain issues.
I wouldn't cancel until you've found another... or you might just end up in another indefinite queue.
He won’t be able to get a refund because once you accept a voucher it has to be paid for.
You can still cancel, the voucher isn't used until the bike is delivered. I did ask Ribble at the time. I didn't go through with cancellation as I couldn't find anything else in stock and certainly not for the same value.
Ours was on a cycle to work scheme, last payment is end of this month. What stuns me is the unpredictability - as of Wednesday it was still showing as being sent out today, it was only yesterday that it's been pushed back to the 27th. Were they really sure on Wednesday that they'd be sending it out in a couple of days, only to find out yesterday they were missing bits?
And still no comms - inevitably, when they DO come, it will contain assurances that they're confident the next date will be met. I'm not without sympathy, but don't keep telling me that you're confident about the next date then let me down again.
You can still cancel, the voucher isn’t used until the bike is delivered.
That in itself could be a problem if the delay is extended as our scheme provider, (Evans) require it to be used within 6 months.
Ours was on a cycle to work scheme, last payment is end of this month.
Oof, paid off the voucher without having the bike. That sucks. ☹️
Have you seen how locked down China is now and the whole if the far East has been for the last 2 years? Add in ship canal blockages and Brexit it's hardly surprising Ribble is having issues. They are not a big player compared to the likes of trek & spesh etc and you can't get some of their bikes for love nor money either.
It's a first world problem really but Ribble should be explaining this too you not me.
I’m not showing this to my work colleague. He’s committed to a Bike to work scoot from Ribble, and it’s already been delayed once. He won’t be able to get a refund because once you accept a voucher it has to be paid for.
Hope he hasn't actually got to cycle to work then.
Are Ribble's eebs particularly good value?
Their normal bikes seem much more "aspirational" in pricing than they used to, and their MTBs seem ambitiously priced.
I ordered a Ribble last year and had the same auto-extending delivery date. I ended up asking for a refund and now ride a Cannondale.
The people I spoke to at Ribble were all very nice and helpful, just unable to produce bikes.
Its the same with supply chains everywhere - its killing us at work at the moment.
Trying to Buy PLC components is unbelievable - Allen Bradley stuff which used to be next-day delivery is now any where from November this year to Feb 2023.
There was a good explanation on R4 yesterday regarding the current situation - Shanghai is the worlds busiest container port.
Shanghai is essentially locked down, and has been to varying degrees on and off for a while.
They are struggling to get empty containers out of Shanghai due to travel restrictions - as in Lorry drivers being unable to travel from one province to another.
Many factories is China have been closed due to lockdowns.
Parts for your Ribble bike are probably stacked up in a Shimano factory with no way of shipping them out at the moment (if they actually exist at all)
As others have said, Giant/Spesh/Trek/etc are all going to wield more influence than Ribble when it comes to peoples orders being satisfied.
Talking to the guy who runs our LBS - he reckons 2023 allocations are now getting filled up so it could be 2024 before any sort of normality returns.
In other news - have you tried ordering a new car lately?
Isla bikes?
https://www.islabikes.co.uk/products/adult-electric-bike-ejanis
S & XS seem to be in stock but probably worth a call first.
I would guess its the Mahle motor. I'm aware of Mahle as a car component supplier, but not until now in the bike industry. (not that I look at ebikes at all)
I would bet that Mahle can't get chips, because they're not Shimano or Bosch. and what chips they do get are a) late because of shipping issues and b) need to get sold to the big clients who have the big contracts and the big penalty clauses for late delivery...
There's a scrolling bar of bike co's they supply across the bottom, and I can't help but feel Ribble are always going to lose out in precedence to the likes of Cannondale, Scott or Merida.
There were LOTS of Ribble gravel bikes at Dirty Reiver the other week, so the company is very much still going and punting bikes out the door to customers
I would just hunker down and wait it out if i were you.
The industry i work in has similar supply chain issues. We basically tore up orders from over 12months ago (Our contracts were water tight). Raised the price by 12% and offered them to resign new orders or we would refund them their deposit.
Oh and new orders were given a letter basically stating the rpice on the order they just signed isnt worth the paper its written on. The supply will be at the correct price from manufacturer at the time the product becomes available. If you pay us a deposit and let it roll for more than 14 days then the deposit then becomes non refundable.
We had to do this as manufacturers prices are rising monthly. We are getting no news on solid delivery dates (Although things are improving atm) and we had to protect ourselves from customers ordering with us and a few other competitors to hedge their bets on supply. We are selling a place in the queue basically and if the customer doesnt like it then there are plenty who will take their place.
We are doing this because its the only way we can be completely honest with customers. Its bad news but more honest than keeping them hanging every month.
We expect another 18mths + of this
I bought a ribble bike last year and the service was exceptional. I had an issue and they sent a mobile mechanic to my house who fixed it in a big van. I'd definitely buy from them again. The bike is superb.
I suspect as above, its supply issues that's effecting everyone.
oh and if it's any consolation, I went down the custom route and eventually eschewed the nice custom ti gravel frame that I could have bought from a local company as I realised they were still manufactured in China and I didn't want to risk Covid delays/Brexit delays.
So I went for a reputable British frame builder which I think means I am now committed to receiving a frame/updates/communications on an 'as-and-when it suits' basis, in fact as feared, it's taken so long I'm now having second thoughts and have gone through about five iterations of what geometry and features I might actually have preferred. D'oh!
Hope he hasn’t actually got to cycle to work then.
What? Who ever has a bike to work bike, then actually commutes on it?!*
* Me actually, but it's my 4th, and the first 3 weren't commuter bikes. Though I did actually ride a different bike to work through those hire periods.
We are doing this because its the only way we can be completely honest with customers. Its bad news but more honest than keeping them hanging every month.
That's one of the things that rankles, TBH - there've been a number of date changes, sometimes forwards, but we've only been contacted once, generally I've had to log on and check, then chase Ribble to find out what's happened, and all we get back is "sorry, supply chain issues, but this date should be good". Like I said, I chased last week and got confirmation that they "have confidence" in the May 6th date, I checked on the 4th and it showed as due for despatch on the 6th, checked on the 5th and the date had changed to the 27th. No comms - if it was a day or two late, I could look past it, but we're now six months late on what was originally a five month wait. If I'd ordered a week before lockdown, and suddenly everything changes, again I could understand, but you'd think things would be a bit clearer 15 months into the pandemic.
Ignore me, I'm just moaning.
Phone them
