60% agree

40% disagree

The Phantom wins

The Phantom insists... Fancy 'five blade' men's razors are a complete waste of money. The cheapo bic razors do just as good a job and work out to be significantly cheaper. It's just a big marketing ploy.

Posted by The Phantom in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 7 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 26th Sep 08 at 08:30

Voting ended: 24th Oct 08 at 08:30

100% agree

0% disagree

dewolfe wins

dewolfe insists... That too many companies in the UK have a bad client and business ethic.

I've spent the last 6 weeks fighting with three different companies who have taken my money but failed to deliver the goods. Either the goods are delivered late, or faulty, or simply been forgotten about! One company took 11 months and 6 engineers to try and fix a cooker hood! It still wasn't done and I had to get legal to get my money back. What is it with British companies!!

Posted by dewolfe in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 9 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

dewolfe says... I'm not sure a recession will do it. A lot of my problems are with the big companies who won't be affected by a recession enough to change their ways. It's an attitude change by the MD's that's need. but I don't know how you do that.
Posted 12th Sep 08 at 07:50
Cindarella says... Perhaps we need a recession to get rid of the chaff.
Posted 11th Sep 08 at 20:26
Cindarella says... Companies here just don't care about customer service. Our cooker repair company gave us a "slot" when the engineer would come - between 8am and 6pm! So I have to stay in all day waiting. And guess what, it should all have been done over the phone anyway.
Posted 11th Sep 08 at 20:25
Matola says... ...another B. Gas engineer told me I had problems with the radiators and had I considered having a powerflush done!! They had charged me £600 and not done the job properly. Outrageous.
Posted 11th Sep 08 at 13:33
Matola says... Don't get me started. British Gas is just appalling when it comes to keeping appointments, not phoning you if they are late etc. I once wrote a 7 page TYPED letter of complaint to them - I had so much to complain about. They once charged me £600 for a power flush in the radiators. 3 weeks later ...
Posted 11th Sep 08 at 13:33
dewolfe says... My current battle is with Foxtons who I paid to do an inventory before my tenants moved in and to also check them in. they never turned up to check the tenants in AND the inventory was done AFTER they moved in - of course it's now incorrect as they've marked the walls while moving in.
Posted 11th Sep 08 at 07:32
Biff says... I should have gone to WHSmith on the High Street in the first place !
Posted 10th Sep 08 at 20:33
Biff says... My Amazon order has been lost in the post. I have chased several times, but they will only assume it is lost when it is hasn't arrived 16 days after dispatch. Today they agree it is lost, but guess what - I need it on Friday for a relative's birthday and now it might not be here.
Posted 10th Sep 08 at 20:33
The Phantom says... Completely agree! The average busienss in th UK has terrible customer service levels. I can only assume that it's better elsewhere in the world.
Posted 10th Sep 08 at 18:36

Posted 10th Sep 08 at 15:04

Voting ended: 17th Sep 08 at 15:04

40% agree

60% disagree

BusyBee loses

BusyBee is convinced... Those shopping trolleys on wheels that grannies pull behind them will soon become a fashion item.

Apparently, everyone in Paris uses them - young and old, men and women. And if the Parisians use them, then surely the rest of the world can feel comfortable using them too. They are so practical.

Posted by BusyBee in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 5 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 5th Sep 08 at 08:52

Voting ended: 3rd Oct 08 at 08:52

80% agree

20% disagree

steve wins

steve thinks... Peeking Duck flavour Pringles really do taste a bit like Peeking Duck!

Posted by steve in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 3 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 31st Aug 08 at 18:11

Voting ended: 7th Sep 08 at 18:11

100% agree

0% disagree

Colin wins

Colin reckons... anti-climb paint doesn't really exist

It's just a sign they put up to deter people from climbing on things. They recently put these signs up on the side of our block but I never saw anyone with a paint brush. Tonight I'm going to try climbing up to our flat via the outside of the refuse chute and see if I'm right.

Colin has posted a supporting video for this opinion. Click here to view it.

Posted by Colin in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 6 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 31st Aug 08 at 12:19

Voting ended: 28th Sep 08 at 12:19

53.34% agree

46.66% disagree

Colin wins

Colin believes... men should not buy, carry or wear "man bags"

because it makes them look like right mincers. Fair play if you are a mincer go for it sister, but if you are a straight man you should stop, because no matter what name you give them, they are just ladies handbags. You should carry your lipstick and knitting patterns in a manly Lonsdale sports bag instead.

Posted by Colin in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 16 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 15th Aug 08 at 10:03

Voting ended: 22nd Aug 08 at 10:03

77.78% agree

22.22% disagree

Brizzle wins

Brizzle is sure... that online supermarket shopping always seems like a good idea but never quite works out that way

it takes ages to find the items you need and then when it arrives items are unavailable or just missing or you remember what you have forgotten

Posted by Brizzle in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 6 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 13th Aug 08 at 15:12

Voting ended: 20th Aug 08 at 15:12

76.2% agree

23.8% disagree

Matola wins

Matola reckons... supermarkets should start charging for carrier bags

M&S have already started to charge 5p per bag. Other shops should do the same. It is the best incentive for people to re-use them and will stop people taking bags unnecesarily.

Posted by Matola in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 16 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

David says... ...bags are bad news BUT I tihnk the media attention they get is disproportionate.
Posted 10th Aug 08 at 17:30
David says... Have a friend who worked at a supermarket for summer. He described the food that was thrown out as staggering. I remember going to a supermarket where EVERY baking potato has a metallic label on it, biscuits come in trays, wrapped in plastic, in a box with a plastic covering. I agree plastic...
Posted 10th Aug 08 at 17:30
steve says... No! Supermarkets should make thier packaging / shops / food more green. Plastic bags are way, way down on the list of the real issues. It's their problem not ours!
Posted 10th Aug 08 at 16:24
Cat of Schrodinger says... Yes, like this idea Cinders. David, I'm sure purpose made bin bags are significantly thicker than carrier bags. So it would be better to use these for your rubbish. We should do more to discourage suparmarket bag usage.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 21:24
Matola says... Interesting Cinders, or take a material bag out with you instead!
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 21:19
Cindarella says... Furoshiki is the way forward - all you need is a square of silk. No good for that massive Sainsburys shop but great for in town. Check it out here [link]
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 19:58
Cindarella says... Already do this here but I don't think it will change peoples behaviour. The ones who would do it anyway get small rewarded. Having to pay for something is more likely to change behaviour. "Punishment" can be more effective than rewards.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 15:39
mack mama says... instead of charging for the bags, they should reward the people 5p a bag who bring their own bags. In US WholeFoods gives you a discount of UDS .10 for each bag you use that you bring yourself.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 14:32
Millie says... In a lot of French supermarkets there are no plastic bags. We had to put all our shopping loose in the trolley! Maybe we should have no plastic bags at all.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 12:49
Biff says... I had a student job in Sainsbury's in the olden days when people had to pay 2p for a thin plastic bag and 5p for a thick one. If you spent more than £20 you got as many thin ones as you needed for free. It made people think twice before getting carrier bags. I think we should charge for them.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 06:45

View the other 6 comments here

Posted 3rd Aug 08 at 17:20

Voting ended: 17th Aug 08 at 17:20

73.34% agree

26.66% disagree

mack mama wins

mack mama reckons... Legos(R) are the best toys for children to play with

it fosters imagination, creativity, coordination and there are limitless objects to build to keep childrens' interest.

Posted by mack mama in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 12 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Cindarella says... True mack mama, but do they. My two year old plays proper little games with the Playmobil because the pieces are actual things, eg. people, sheep, beds, fence etc. He wouldn't be able to build this in Lego yet.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 15:49
mack mama says... I agree that Playmobil is a great toy, but it has set citeria (pirates, farmers, etc) children (young and older) can create whatever they imagine. They can build the farm and the boats and the animals etc. more hands on creativity and imagination
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 14:06
Millie says... It's not just the children that play with it either. My hubby is always telling our son to go and get his lego. Guess who ends up playing the longest? Great toy.
Posted 4th Aug 08 at 13:17
Cindarella says... Lego is really great, but Playmobil is utterly brilliant. It keeps my kids entertained for hours and they keep coming back for more. All the same benefits as Lego but greater depth, and lots of imaginative interaction between characters.
Posted 29th Jul 08 at 14:01
mack mama says... The great thing about Legos is that they come in different sizes for different stages of development; as not to pose a choking hazard for the youngest who are prone to sticking things in their mouths there is a size that could not possibly fit in a mouth.
Posted 29th Jul 08 at 01:24
mack mama says... Cat, isn't that a great choking hazard?
Posted 29th Jul 08 at 01:20
Cat of Schrodinger says... I liked hide the sausage
Posted 28th Jul 08 at 19:32
Matola says... I liked hide and seek myself...
Posted 28th Jul 08 at 19:20
Cat of Schrodinger says... And the bricks are a great choking hazard. Lego is great for sure, but I think there are more challenging games out there if you really want to expand the little minds.
Posted 28th Jul 08 at 19:15
Colin says... My dad couldn't afford lego, he'd bring house bricks home and make me build a kitchen extension. I wouldn't have minded but we lived in a tower block
Posted 28th Jul 08 at 18:41

View the other 2 comments here

Posted 28th Jul 08 at 15:51

Voting ended: 4th Aug 08 at 15:51

100% agree

0% disagree

King Henry wins

King Henry believes... Consumer products should be forced to have a 3 year guarantee. It would help to cut down on the throw away attitude as manufacturers are forced ot create goods of higher quality. This guarantee should also include reaonsable wear and tear.

Goods made with a predetermined life, as I believe is the case in a lot of products, are terribly damaging to the environment. THis might just help.

Posted by King Henry in Consumer Products > General | Comments: 3 | View full thread | Email to a friend Email a friend

Posted 16th Jul 08 at 12:02

Voting ended: 23rd Jul 08 at 12:02

User login

Main categories

About

The Latest Judgement in General:

Colin decrees... despite advertisers claims margarine never tastes even remotely like real butter.

Consumer Products > General

The Phantom insists... Fancy 'five blade' men's razors are a complete waste of money. The cheapo bic razors do just as good a job and work out to be significantly cheaper. It's just a big marketing ploy.

dewolfe insists... That too many companies in the UK have a bad client and business ethic.

BusyBee is convinced... Those shopping trolleys on wheels that grannies pull behind them will soon become a fashion item.

steve thinks... Peeking Duck flavour Pringles really do taste a bit like Peeking Duck!

Colin reckons... anti-climb paint doesn't really exist

Colin believes... men should not buy, carry or wear "man bags"

Brizzle is sure... that online supermarket shopping always seems like a good idea but never quite works out that way

Matola reckons... supermarkets should start charging for carrier bags

mack mama reckons... Legos(R) are the best toys for children to play with

King Henry believes... Consumer products should be forced to have a 3 year guarantee. It would help to cut down on the throw away attitude as manufacturers are forced ot create goods of higher quality. This guarantee should also include reaonsable wear and tear.

Username:
Password:
Remember: