Myriad Natural Toys - www.myriadonline.co.uk

I have used Myriad numerous times over the past few years since I discovered them. The toys are beautiful and when your order arrives it is so nicely packaged that it is like receiving a present. My children always love the toys and they are the playthings that are used daily instead of just when they get them then forget about them. The toys are also great for spanning different age groups so even though I have children ranging from age 6 to 12 years, the same toys are played with by all ages in different ways. I always treat my children (and myself!) to a parcel for their birthdays and I never regret it. I have also found customer service helpful. Although the toys are expensive sometimes, they are actually cheaper in the long run if you go by how well they last and how often they are played with. It's how it should be!

I was really pleased when i discovered this website because the toys are very creative,original and natural. I ordered a catalogue and saw the items fitted in well with my child's steiner group. Yes, they are a bit pricey but I was willing to pay because i assumed the quality/customer service would be good.

I ordered a toy tree house, some woodland figures and treehouse furniture for my child and put them away for Christmas. I spent a lot of money but The transaction was fine and they arrived promptly and well packaged.

The problems started when he began to play with them and i contacted customer service.

One of the figures was broken (foot came off) on Boxing Day. I paid £17.95 for a set of 6 and were marketed with the treehouse so one would assume they were up to being played with so I put this down to bad luck as my child was not particluarly rough with them. When a foot came off another figure on New Years Day I contacted customer services.

I contacted the company on 1st January. I appreciate this was New Years Day but I did not receive a reply back until the 8th. I requested compensation or an exchange. They told me to send photos. I did this same day. I heard nothing so I chased this up on the 13th. I then got an email saying i could have a 50% discount or a replacement of the faulty figures. I told them i wanted the 50% discount and chose some alternative figures. They then emailed me to say that they meant the original figures and not alternatives and i wouldnt be able to have a discount if i wanted different ones. Obviously I didn't want the same figures, 2 of which had already broken! I did not trust their quality.

None these emails contained the name of a member of staff who was dealing with me, and some did not even contain a greeting standard - Dear/Hello etc. The email suggested i sent back the figures even though the photos had already shown the issue. There was no suggestion the postage would be paid.

All in all I found the experience a very poor one. I emailed the company one last time to tell them how disappointed I was but to no avail. They could only offer me the same options.

I would not use this company again and was very unhappy with the quality of this product and the "aftercare" I received.