IKEA

Dear IKEA Customer Service Team,

I hope this message finds you well. My name is Limor Hefetz, and I am writing to file a complaint regarding the unacceptable and unprofessional service I experienced at the Buyback service desk at your Paramus, New Jersey, location on March 22nd. On March 8, 2025, we received a buyback estimation for our IKEA shelving unit in 'as new' condition (Estimation Number: 137****). On March 22nd, 2025, in order to facilitate the return, we proactively purchased appropriate wrapping materials and rented a U-Haul vehicle. Upon arrival at 1:05 PM, my husband was assisted by a representative named Cristina. Her initial attitude was aggressive, indifferent, and hostile. Despite acknowledging the excellent condition of our unit, she insisted that the bottom panels, which we had brought separately, be attached. My husband understood this requirement and was prepared to comply.

However, when my husband requested six screws to complete the assembly a service IKEA typically provides, Cristina responded rudely, refusing assistance: She confronted him and told him that he didn't really mean that she would bring him screws (exactly 6!!!) for the product he wanted to sell them. She directed him to wait aside with the items (4 carts), preventing my husband from obtaining the necessary screws from IKEA itself (!!!) or elsewhere.

In a preliminary chat I conducted to find out the value of the item, which also included luxury glass doors, I was explained that the representative would be able to assist me on the spot and re-evaluate the value of the item. Christina refused to check the addition as it did not appear in the initial estimate, and she told my husband to look it up for himself. It was one too many for my husband, who had to throw the item's luxury doors in the bin at IKEA without realizing whether it was resellable or not.

This refusal to provide a simple solution forced me to drive an hour to the store with screws. In an attempt to resolve the situation, I contacted customer service twice during my hour-long drive back to IKEA with the screws. Representatives Chino and Merlin both struggled to reach in-store personnel, and despite assurances, no manager approached my husband to assist. There are recordings of my conversation with both of them that show that you too are unable to get an internal response from your team.

When I arrived at the store, I asked manager Antonio to contact his manager for escalation because it was an unbearable and beyond comprehension situation. Antonio insisted on helping and indeed expedited the process. We were assigned to another representative and began the sales process. Then Cristina, the first representative, called the representative who was handling us on an internal extension line and told him something that caused him to lower the original estimate from 494.99 (before tax) to 422.24, which did not happen in her initial estimate, where it remained at the estimated price we received in the original email.

This incident raises a number of questions regarding the way in which you deal with customers and provides an opportunity for you to discover how things work within your team:

1. Although it was a Saturday and there were customers, there was no special difficulty or load that could reflect such short, hostile, and impolite customer service. Christina's non-transparent and opposing behavior was almost personal. She literally did everything to sabotage the sale.

2. If IKEA offers a service to the public, it must know how to manage it and provide the necessary professional support. The staff's unfamiliarity with the product, its name, and components—details we had previously provided—led to a sense of uncertainty and improvisation during our interaction.

3. An attempt to ask Christina's name from another team member took a long time, and he deliberately delayed. Maybe I will regret it, and he also went to inform her of my request.

We were received by Cristina at around 1:05 and left IKEA at 3:35. Having an open mind, goodwill, attentive service, and a basic to creative response would not have left us 2.5 hours managing the simplest return.

Time, fines for returning the rental car late, and a completely unnecessary hour-long drive for me to get screws to the IKEA store are side effects of poor service.

We would have saved time, money and certainly not the feeling that sales representatives were talking about us in front of us and coordinating positions. We sold a product in excellent and exceptional condition with a clear financial loss already at the evaluation stage, not to mention the discount in the place that Cristina arbitrarily decided on. IKEA promotes the values of Lead by Example and Give and Take Responsibility - this is your opportunity to practice what you preach.

We respectfully request:

Compensation for the discrepancy between the original and final buyback valuations.

Reimbursement for additional expenses incurred, including extended vehicle rental and travel costs. A Senior Manager will discuss with Christina the importance of exemplary customer service, emphasizing the detrimental impact that negative interactions can have on both the customer experience and the company's reputation.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,

Limor Hefetz

Our experience with Ikea has been so awful. First, they told us they had a rug in stock at their College Park store.

By the time we got there, less than an hour later, they didn't have it. Then we ordered the rug and a rug pad online, and they arrived 3 days late. The rug pad was so thin and useless that we've been trying to return it. I paid for return shipping, and they told me to expect a delivery person between 9 am and 9 pm on July 11th.

Since then, I've been on hold 4 times for more than 30 minutes trying to get someone to email me a shipping label -- to no avail. They keep telling me that the shipping label will be emailed within 24-48 hours. It's been 4 days, and we're expecting the FedEx pick-up today, but they still have not sent the shipping label. They also said they'd contact us today to shorten the pick-up window, so we don't have to wait for FedEx for 12 hours.

No phone call. No text. No email. No shipping label.

No communication whatsoever. We will never purchase anything from Ikea again!

My small-town post office doesn't deliver to homes; there are only PO Boxes, and if a package comes, they hold it for us. So I put in my PO Box number on my order, and unlike other websites that won't ship to PO Boxes and give you an error message SAYING SO, the Ikea website just lets it go through.

Then, when it comes time to ship your items, they look and say OMG, it's a PO Box, we don't ship to them! So they look up the last address they have for you, and FedEx it to that. In my case, my PO Box is in southern California, and the last address they have for me is in Oregon. So they sent it a thousand miles away.

They should instead have contacted me via the email address they have for me, or by phone. OR, get their darn website updated!

And there's no way to "contact webmaster" or anything like that. Very frustrating and time consuming.

This entire situation has gone beyond ridiculous. I trusted IKEA to accommodate the order and complete the transaction of my new kitchen. I met three times with store personnel, and confirmed with an online planner that my order could be delivered, would be delivered, and that if I used the delivery service, ALL items on my list would be available. I then paid the amount on the invoice with that trust in place. I have made about 7 phone calls to IKEA, and have spoken with multiple people who are unable to assist in any way. This is so absurd that it deserves a full-scale evaluation and case study by anyone at IKEA who may be remotely interested in figuring out how to really mess up a customer order.

I still do not have but two small boxes delivered by FedEx a day late. What is going on? And why can IKEA not assist? No one can. Every single phone call is met with the same set of confusion.

BACKGROUND

The order has been delayed for over 3 weeks. I have made multiple calls. I have paid $10,000+ for a complete kitchen that was supposed to have been delivered on December 30, 2024. Each call to a customer service representative results in two different stories. 1. The items are not all available. 2. The delivery company is delayed. The delivery company has attempted to deliver one time on a date that was not scheduled. I was not home. This has ceased to be appropriate, or truthful, or even sane. What is going on? Why can't IKEA be honest? Manage this order? Report the situation accurately? Locate my order? Get the $10,000 in materials to my location? Redirect the order? Allow me to pick it up? Solve this situation? I have a completely gutted kitchen ready for the cabinetry and all associated parts. IKEA has no idea what's going on.

Can anyone assist? Or am I intentionally being delayed, dealt untruths, or simply caught up in an organization that has no real people in it?

I kept and built a defective cabinet which I could have exchanged because I was told I would receive a $50 digital IKEA gift card as compensation. Required a ton of extra effort on my part and turned out OK but not nearly as nice as it was supposed to be.

And then, no gift card in spite of 3 follow-up calls from me. (Emails are totally ignored.) More promises made but none of those happened either. AND, to make it all a lot worse, the only reviews you can give are about the agent, not about receiving any actual help. The whole situation TOTALLY sucks.

And I am left wanting revenge. And those emoticons are not the ones I chose but it won't let me delete them.

My wife and I recently ordered a couch and throw pillows from Ikea, and unfortunately, our experience was far from satisfactory. Let me break down the issues we encountered:

Delayed Delivery and Extra Charges: We paid an additional $150 for scheduled delivery, with the promise of receiving our items within three days.

However, the reality was quite different. After we paid, it took us well over a week to get a scheduled delivery.

Inefficient Logistics: Our couch was sourced from a warehouse just an hour away from us. But instead of delivering it directly, Ikea sent it to a store three hours away. They had to drive past our house to get there.

Why? We have no idea.

Week-Long Couch Detour: The couch sat at the distant Ikea store for over a week. Meanwhile, we were left waiting, wondering when it would finally arrive.

Fabric Shipped Separately: To add insult to injury, the fabric part of the couch was shipped separately via UPS. Why not deliver it all together?

Your guess is as good as ours.

Rescheduled Delivery Without Notice: When the couch finally made its way to us, Ikea rescheduled the delivery without any prior notification. We had no opportunity to plan or adjust our schedules.

Pillow Predicament: The throw pillows, also sourced from the same warehouse, arrived with the couch. At least they got that part right, but it hardly compensates for the overall frustration.

Assembly Hassle: To top it off, the couch required assembly.

Considering the price we paid, we expected better quality and a fully assembled product.

In summary, our Ikea experience was a rollercoaster of disappointment. We won't be ordering from Ikea again anytime soon.

First off, they reply in Estonian, even when requesting someone that speaks English. Id love to speak the language, but I just dont.

When the delivery person did not respond when I called at a missed delivery (because he did not park at the correct apartment building..and then walked over to mine, quickly taking a photopart of the scam), I looked at my ikea.ee message and it said to contact them. I contacted them and they said you can only get help via email. Well, thats weird, but okay. So I do.

And all the replies are in Estonian. Great. They speak perfect English on the phone, but no English in email. Why?

Its just a delivery. This is so bizarre. Somehow bolt and wolt can make deliveries super easy, but ikea.ee in Estonia cannot. The options are to pay for a redelivery, or go out in the middle of no where and get your own stuff.

Do not use IKEA in Estonia. Terrible customer service. I asked my husband to translate what they said just now, and he doesnt even want me to know what it says. Crazy!

My recommendation for ikea.ee delivery in future.

Park in the correct apartment building, and try knocking on the door.

You can also leave them a note on the door, giving instructions on how to proceed thereafter. With that note on the correct door, you know they actually touched the door, vs drive by photos for extra cash redeliveries.

Also, would appreciate replies in English, or an auto response saying they, or I can contact them, to get a representative that can communicate in English.