Essential reading for retailers and suppliers in the home improvement market

Home improvement sites bottom of online shops survey

Published: 28 October 2011
B&Q has been named the worst online shop by the latest Which? customer survey, closely followed by Homebase.
Home improvement sites bottom of online shops survey
More than 11,000 Which? members rated 78 sites, looking at price, product range and delivery performance.

B&Q's transactional site diy.com was given the lowest customer score of 50, while Homebase.co.uk received a score of 52, based on Which? members' overall satisfaction with the site and the likelihood of them recommending it to a friend.

In the home and garden category, John Lewis came out on top, followed by Lakeland and then Amazon. Screwfix, Sainsbury's and Ikea also managed to place above Homebase and B&Q.

11% of Which? members said they had problems with their last online home and garden purchase. Customers also said that delivery issues such as delays and over-packaging were the biggest bugbears when shopping online.

Skin and beauty label Liz Earle topped the overall list with a customer score of 94, followed by cycle shop ChainReactionCycles.com with a score of 93. The only non-specialist site in the top five overall was JohnLewis.com, which came third with a score of 88.

Argos was found further up the chart than stablemate Homebase, in 57th place, while Wickes came in at joint 63rd place. Screwfix fared better than B&Q, at 13th place with a customer score of 83.

Comments

Published prior to March 2014
By Dave Smith
I agree with the unnamed employee above. B&Q and others can be a nightmare when searching for a particular item. Many sites do not let you search on things such as the EAN or model numbers. Sites like http://www.diy-supplies.co.uk CAN help but in the end the purchase has to be made at the merchants site. Hope they can sort it out soon.
Published prior to March 2014
By Anon B&Q employee
I am not suprised that B&Q has been the lowest ranking. When more and more people are using the web to research atleast before commiting to buying. Its frustrating to find even basic search functions fr products come up blank !!
And it appears even with insider knowledge of what products we stock and which department they would normally be found in, it still takes me longer than getting in my car and driving to the store to find information online !!!
We have in the past won awards for how easy our online shopping site is to use, but it appears we are lagging behind. I do hope a revamp of atleast the search feature is planned !!???

(Your email address will not be published)
4 + 5 =  
Already Registered?
Sign In
Not Yet Registered?
Register
Printable View E-mail Bookmark
*

Latest reader comments

re: Latest update on Green Homes Grant and implications for homeowners and landlords

John Hart
After applying for a green homes how long will it take for a decision? thanks...

re: SX Rainproof Exterior Caulk

Wally
I need the exterior sx rain resistant caulk! Can't get it anywhere so please help! How can I order it? Need it yesterday...

re: BCT can replicate any material in a ceramic tile

Christina Tiritanou
Not sure if you can help as I require a tile which has the measurements of 6”x 6”? Thank you....

re: Latest update on Green Homes Grant and implications for homeowners and landlords

colin thompson
SarahVery clear and helpful information.Thanks...

Most read stories