Scams mar green shoots of recovery
LEGIONS of gardeners, wondering what has happened to the goods they have bought from online retailer Primrose, are set to receive refunds “within days”, the company has confirmed.
But they must beware of being duped by scammers posting fake reviews and exploiting the troubled situation.
Primrose made its pledge and warned customers of the new risks when Crusader spoke to it a couple of days ago about chronic delivery problems caused by the knock-on effects of Covid-19.
This means many current orders can’t be fulfilled. But the retailer says it has brought on board new nurseries – whose products might otherwise have been dumped due to the lockdown – and stocks of bedding plants and veg are being shipped on time and directly.While rights laws ultimately protect consumers’ payments and any decision to cancel, those coming to us also stressed how they feared missing out on the growing season, not knowing where they stood in the face of Primrose’s earlier silence.
One urban gardener told how she had paid £130 for six items, including a tray to encourage worms and seed packs, at the end of March, but had heard little since, “only generic emails and vague promises of delivery,” she explained.
She has now been refunded. Admitting it had had to grapple with huge logistical problems, Primrose apologised about its service and the lack of information customers had received at such a key time in the gardening year.
The bogus postings it had detected cropped up on reviews websites, it says, directing customers to a WhatsApp number and a “Mr Jack”, recommended as allegedly good at sorting out Primrose refunds.
Priority
“We have since found out that customers are being asked to pay for their orders again via a separate PayPal account too. We are taking action to get them removed,” says a Primrose spokeswoman.
“We are providing refunds to all our customers who have cancelled orders or who do not wish to wait and this is our top priority.
“We are ensuring no one is out of pocket while we manage this difficult situation.” Factory closures in
China holding up supplies, the massive spike in demand after UK garden centres were forced to shut and the new social distancing rules safeguarding staff in Primrose’s UK warehouse have all combined to create the backlog.
Some 80 per cent of its product categories have been withdrawn for now. Many orders such as those for awnings, have now arrived, but cannot be unloaded safely according to the new rules.
“Gardening is proven to improve physical and mental wellbeing and we’re desperate to keep the plants flowing,” said Primrose chief executive Mark Pearson.
“Tough decisions have been taken to protect staff, ensure customers are looked after and secure Primrose’s future,” chairman and investor David Brock added.