Darlings of Chelsea - www.darlingsofchelsea.co.uk

We decided to buy an expensive sofa from Darlings of Chelsea based on the perceived quality and reputation of the brand. However, less than 2 years after taking delivery of our £5668 sofa on the 5th of November 2021 the foam seat pads have significantly lost their firmness and it now feels like you are sitting on the floor! We have always taken care to rotate the seat cushions to ensure equal use, so when I contacted D of C on 20th September 2023 I thought it would be simply the case that they would send a technician around to look at the sofa, identify whether it was the foam / springs or a combination of the two and arrange for it to be rectified.

However, this was not to be so! I was first asked to send images and whilst I advised it would be impossible to understand the issue from an image they persisted, so I sent them.

I received an email back saying that they have looked over the images and they advised (in their words) “this is believed to be wear and tear over the period of usage. Our interiors are only covered for 1 year after purchase, so we would be unable to further look into this for you. If you were interested in purchasing new foam inner cushions we can quote a cost for this”.

To say I was shocked is an understatement, based on the fact that it would have been impossible to understand the issue (as I advised them) from the images and the fact that a seemingly core function of a premium product has failed after less than 2 years. I could only assume that they had no intention of wanting to take responsibility to get this resolved and were happy for me to spend even more money on a sub-standard item.

I pushed back and was again met with the 1-year warranty, however, they advised that they would send a technician BUT I would have to pay the £60 (£50 + VAT), if they deemed it to be an issue, they would reimburse the cost and make rectification. Firstly, for a premium retailer to ask a customer to effectively pay for this seems scandalous and based on the apparent disregard they have displayed to date I felt they would have had zero intention in resolving this. #

As I do not have the time for companies like this, I now have to live with it, although I was so shocked it has led me to write my first ever negative review and I hope it will be the last.

To sum up, in my experience if you buy an expensive premium sofa from D of C and have an issue then that is your problem not theirs, as they clearly only expect them to last for one year.

To sign off on this I thought I would attach images of the internal finishing of the sofa and let reviewers judge if they think it was wear and tear or incredibly poor workmanship and lack of attention to detail at their end? Although as this platform does not have an image function please refer to the images I left on reviews.io just search Darlings of Chelsea. NB: All 5 seat cushions are the same and I shared these images with D of C in my first email, they did not acknowledge the poor finishing so assume it is the norm?

Terrible Products staff unhelpful

Staff not that helpful, I asked for a foam filled sofa that didn't need plumping, assured by the advisor at Guildford showroom it wouldn't need plumping and it's awful. Foam/ fibre is lumpy, the fillings don't fill the covers, the fabric of the sofa has gone bobbly after 8 months of use. The sofa legs were different colours on arrival. Customer service tell

me to take my frustrations out on the sofa and plump it. Customer services won't help anymore and doesn't want to understand my point of view so has referred me to a sofa ombudsman, I'm shocked!! Terrible products and shocking customer service. I'm stuck with 3 very expensive sofa's that look absolutely awful after 8 months use!

Date of experience: 13 August 2022

We waited 5 months for the sofa. When it arrived, the delivery van damaged our gates. Darling's attitude was it wasn't us but we will be kind enough to check with our delivery company. They then send video images minus the actual footage of the van bending the gate hinge. The CEO washed his hands of the entire matter. And probably worse than all this was I didn't get a single apology! Way overpriced for the service and product. Steer clear and spend your money with people who actually care about your business.

Just be aware the exchange policy is not as per their website.

"As such we are committed to finding an alternative solution including re-selection to another furniture choice, a change of payment method or a change of a combination of both, and will help to find the appropriate solution where possible."

They just charge 30% without letting you change to another item.

Dreadful customer service. Purchased a three piece suite and had quality problems with all three pieces but, after a number of repairs, Darlings suddenly refused to carry out any more. 18 months later and, although the Ombudsman agrees there are faults, the award was another suite from Darlings to the same value, which Darlings say I must choose within 12 wks. I searched for two years to find this one in the right colour and style. I have a replacement arm for one sofa which I have been storing since January 2015 waiting to be fitted by their appointed technician, although the arm in the attached photo is just as bad for different reasons. And they changed their website once they refused to carry out further repairs, as it boasted of the factory's 'excellent standards of craftsmanship' - I think not! Shame, because the style and colour are just right. I wouldn't recommend Darlings if you expect really good quality leather furniture.