Why do so many people knock Halfords?

[Loz]

Thought I'd add to this as I worked part time (one day and one evening a week) at halfords while at college.

I think what's been said here is a bit harsh. At the end of the day, it's a high street shop, not a garage. They offer simple fittings for people who cba to do it themselves/too stupid to work it out. You don't go to them expecting them to have the solution to your broken car problems.

When I was there the guys on cycles were lads who were into bikes, they were very good. Those who fitted parts - same boat. There was, however, NO TRAINING. they are shop assistants. I can fit head units etc now, but only because I used to watch the lads do it, not because the company ever trained me. The only thing we ever got trained on was fitting child seats.

The pay is shocking - they are paid to be shop assistants ffs!

As for finding stock, yes the procedure on the computer is/was that slow. As for looking for the stock in the back.... You have clearly never been in the back of halfords!!!!

It is mostly young people who have a part time job, same as other shops. You don't go in currys and expect anyone to be able to give you sound advice. Hell, I could probably bamboozle most jessops staff!! But it's what you expect! If you want advice you go to the suitable source, not a high street shop.

[mdon]

Thought I'd add to this as I worked part time (one day and one evening a week) at halfords while at college.

I think what's been said here is a bit harsh. At the end of the day, it's a high street shop, not a garage. They offer simple fittings for people who cba to do it themselves/too stupid to work it out. You don't go to them expecting them to have the solution to your broken car problems.

When I was there the guys on cycles were lads who were into bikes, they were very good. Those who fitted parts - same boat. There was, however, NO TRAINING. they are shop assistants. I can fit head units etc now, but only because I used to watch the lads do it, not because the company ever trained me. The only thing we ever got trained on was fitting child seats.

The pay is shocking - they are paid to be shop assistants ffs!

As for finding stock, yes the procedure on the computer is/was that slow. As for looking for the stock in the back.... You have clearly never been in the back of halfords!!!!

It is mostly young people who have a part time job, same as other shops. You don't go in currys and expect anyone to be able to give you sound advice. Hell, I could probably bamboozle most jessops staff!! But it's what you expect! If you want advice you go to the suitable source, not a high street shop.

This post goes to show what's wrong with halfords, if they are only fitting parts because/their opinion is that customers can't be arsed then they shouldn't be offering the service, you seem to have brilliant customer care skills there!

The staff are untrained and some are down right stupid and can't be arsed them selves. I also disagree about not wanting currys giving advice, I would expect advice on electronics and have always received sound advice. Halfords can't given give advice on simple things like a lightbulb!

[fordfan]

Thought that I would pop in there for 5 litres of anti freeze at lunchtime. I was somewhat disappointed to find that they only had 2 X 1 litre bottles on the shelf, so I couldn't get any. Went back to work, phoned a local factor and had 5 litres delivered within 20 minutes.

I'm still reeling from the fact I've had my first 'pinned' thread

Sorry Mr Brimma, it must have been pinned accidentally, I'll unpin it.

[Loz]

This post goes to show what's wrong with halfords, if they are only fitting parts because/their opinion is that customers can't be arsed then they shouldn't be offering the service, you seem to have brilliant customer care skills there!

The staff are untrained and some are down right stupid and can't be arsed them selves. I also disagree about not wanting currys giving advice, I would expect advice on electronics and have always received sound advice. Halfords can't given give advice on simple things like a lightbulb!

Firstly, don't you DARE comment on or criticise my customer service skills as someone who doesn't know and has never known me! Nor would I ever want you to judging by your narrow minded, sniping, pathetic attitude.

I have always served customers as professionally and helpfully as I can, I do so in my current job with nothing but praise FYI. halfords was a two shifts per week job for a couple of years whilst at college. I helped people to the best of my ability, but I was employed as a shop assistant, as such there was no training on individual parts etc.

And yes, of course it's for people who cba to do it themselves, who else would pay for a bulb to be fitted? Ffs.

As for advice on a lightbulb, short of 'this ones made by Bosch and it will fit in your skoda' what the hell else can be said? Ridiculous comment.

It is a shop. It sells things. And currys staff have no clue, unless they have done their own (correct) research. They are also there to sell things and say 'this is a laptop. It's made by Sony. It has 4gb ram. It's overpriced.' etc

Same for any high street shop. You sometimes get the odd person who really knows their stuff, but that isn't down to the shops own training. There are too many products to have people who are specialised to give further advce than what is actually listed in the manual/manufacturer descriptions.

Edited 19 February, 2012 by Loz

[Zlin]

I'll admit I'm among the first to call them 'Halfrauds'. However, they are open when motor factors and dealership spares counters are closed. They do carry an extensive range of oils, greases, cleaners, brake parts, wipers, bulbs, paints etc. A lot of the tools I own and use are Halfords Professional brand and are great quality. They have a decent range of impact sockets and some more specialised 'Laser' brand tools as well. There's also a good range of bodywork repair products too, body fillers, fibreglass kits, underseals etc.

Often enough I've been in a tricky situation where I need to get my car on the road for Monday morning and have been able to get something, be it a part or tool or improvise something from the store to get me going. I have that to be thankful for. Not all people are perhaps in a position to be able to fit a lightbulb, a lot of modern cars don't have particularly good access to the bulb-holders. For an elderly driver who perhaps isn't so able or inclined to remove a battery to get at a headlamp bulb, the fitting service must be very useful.

The staff at the stores local to me, Perth, Dundee and Arbroath have always been very helpful. New staff with less experience have always seeked out a colleague who is more knowledgeable, that's fine by me.

Why do I call them 'Halfrauds' then? My own ignorance I suppose. Yes, prices are perhaps higher for some of their items, however, they are open when others are shut and they have a good range as mentioned already. If you're stuck, I'm sure you'd fine something to help get you going again.

[mdon]

And yes, of course it's for people who cba to do it themselves, who else would pay for a bulb to be fitted? Ffs.

As for advice on a lightbulb, short of 'this ones made by Bosch and it will fit in your skoda' what the hell else can be said? Ridiculous comment.

Well this just proves your poor customer care skills as you've now posted it twice, sometimes it's not because people can't be arsed to fit a bulb, maybe it's because they don't know how to or because they are physically unable to due to disability etc, but obviously this doesn't register in your mind thus proving yours and halfords customer care if that's what you say and think behind people's backs. Maybe you and the rest havnt been trained however that's your and your employers problem, don't take your shortfalls out on the customers!

With regard to light bulbs of course there is advice to be given, ie what's the brightest road legal bulb I can use or what bulb does my fiat grande punto take for the rear taillight, both of which halfords have got wrong in the past even though they have a parts manual listing cars make models and bulb specs.

[Brimma]

Well this just proves your poor customer care skills as you've now posted it twice, sometimes it's not because people can't be arsed to fit a bulb, maybe it's because they don't know how to or because they are physically unable to due to disability etc, but obviously this doesn't register in your mind thus proving yours and halfords customer care if that's what you say and think behind people's backs. Maybe you and the rest havnt been trained however that's your and your employers problem, don't take your shortfalls out on the customers! With regard to light bulbs of course there is advice to be given, ie what's the brightest road legal bulb I can use or what bulb does my fiat grande punto take for the rear taillight, both of which halfords have got wrong in the past even though they have a parts manual listing cars make models and bulb specs.

It might be a good time to leave your personal sniping there, I think

You can't tar every Halfords employee with the same brush

Yes, there will be some who couldn't give two sh*ts, as it's just a job to tide them over until something better comes along

There will equally be some who, no matter what, will put their heart and soul into the job, be well-mannered and as helpful as they possibly can be in the circumstances

You may not have been fortunate enough to have encountered any of the latter in your local store, but it doesn't mean they don't exist

All of the Halfords branches I have been in have product guides for things like bulbs, wipers, filters etc etc, with a view to allowing the customer to self-help, without having to pester an assistant

It's not rocket science to know what type of car you are driving, and what year it is, and utilise that information in the guide to find which item you need for your vehicle, then look at the shelf and select the product

I too get p*ssed off at people who post on forums and climb on the 'Halfrauds' and 'stealers' bandwagons for no apparent reason, other than the fact they think it's the cool thing to do. To be fair to Zlin above, he openly admits that he doesn't know why he refers to them as 'Halfrauds', so I'm assuming it's the latter

Rant over

[mdon]

It might be a good time to leave your personal sniping there, I think

You can't tar every Halfords employee with the same brush

Yes, there will be some who couldn't give two sh*ts, as it's just a job to tide them over until something better comes along

There will equally be some who, no matter what, will put their heart and soul into the job, be well-mannered and as helpful as they possibly can be in the circumstances

You may not have been fortunate enough to have encountered any of the latter in your local store, but it doesn't mean they don't exist

All of the Halfords branches I have been in have product guides for things like bulbs, wipers, filters etc etc, with a view to allowing the customer to self-help, without having to pester an assistant

It's not rocket science to know what type of car you are driving, and what year it is, and utilise that information in the guide to find which item you need for your vehicle, then look at the shelf and select the product

I too get p*ssed off at people who post on forums and climb on the 'Halfrauds' and 'stealers' bandwagons for no apparent reason, other than the fact they think it's the cool thing to do. To be fair to Zlin above, he openly admits that he doesn't know why he refers to them as 'Halfrauds', so I'm assuming it's the latter

Rant over

Point taken, apologies to Loz.

[VladSoilerOfCarpets]

Recently I had trouble with an amp I'd bought there. At first, the guy who served me was a bit of a ****. However, over the next few days he became extremely useful and fairly friendly as he tried to solve the problems. Got it working after a couple of brain farts, thanked him, went on my way.

[yesiamtom]

I used to work in halfords (albiet on the bike section) and, as with a lot of major stores i can name, it comes down to the business is managed. We used to sell some **** bikes and some great bikes, however the mechanisms and training weren't in place to sell the expensive bikes properly. For example, clamping carbon on a bike cant exceed 5nM. Our smallest torque wrench went down to 25nM. If you exceed that spec by just a little you have basically damaged a safety critical part of the bike.

Remember lads - your dealing with people on minimum wage, with a dickhead manager most likely and if you do find a good one they've probably dealt with 5 dickhead customers that day already and may just be winding you up because you didnt say hello politely.

[Loz]

Not too inclined to accept apologies from people who start insulting people they have never met just because they can't accept someone elses opinions.

The fitting service is there for anyone who wants to use it, what I was saying is that its not something that needs extensive training. Most people can work out how to do it, it's not a 'skill'!

I'm only trying to stick up for the poor lads and lasses who have a part time job in a shop, and have people slating them left right and centre because they don't have extensive mechanic training. That only happens in a garage!

And yes, the above point is very valid, people can go to the shelves an use the extremely easy to use guides to find which wiper blade they need, but often they come to the counter instead. I can't say that ever bothered me.

Also, it tells you on the box which bulbs are the brightest. Thats is all the staff would be able to tell you.

Equally, no matter what you think of a customer, because if everyone who has ever served customers says they genuinely liked and empathised with every customer is clearly lying, that isn't a valid reason to judge someone elses performance in their job. It depends on what they DO not what they might sometimes THINK.

You are clearly a narrow minded, nasty, spiteful piece of junk. I have a good idea of the type of person you are, just proves the Internet is full of undesirables who like to try to insult people personally for no reason.

Yes I must be terrible. That's why I was the only part time halfords employee the manager gave a supervisor card to, had all of no warnings (in any job) and never been advised I need to change anything about the way I deal with customers. Often told I go further than necessary. Not that I had any intention of discussing my personal business, not should I have had to. Get back under your rock.

[mdon]

Not too inclined to accept apologies from people who start insulting people they have never met just because they can't accept someone elses opinions.

The fitting service is there for anyone who wants to use it, what I was saying is that its not something that needs extensive training. Most people can work out how to do it, it's not a 'skill'!

I'm only trying to stick up for the poor lads and lasses who have a part time job in a shop, and have people slating them left right and centre because they don't have extensive mechanic training. That only happens in a garage!

And yes, the above point is very valid, people can go to the shelves an use the extremely easy to use guides to find which wiper blade they need, but often they come to the counter instead. I can't say that ever bothered me.

Also, it tells you on the box which bulbs are the brightest. Thats is all the staff would be able to tell you.

Equally, no matter what you think of a customer, because if everyone who has ever served customers says they genuinely liked and empathised with every customer is clearly lying, that isn't a valid reason to judge someone elses performance in their job. It depends on what they DO not what they might sometimes THINK.

You are clearly a narrow minded, nasty, spiteful piece of junk. I have a good idea of the type of person you are, just proves the Internet is full of undesirables who like to try to insult people personally for no reason.

Yes I must be terrible. That's why I was the only part time halfords employee the manager gave a supervisor card to, had all of no warnings (in any job) and never been advised I need to change anything about the way I deal with customers. Often told I go further than necessary. Not that I had any intention of discussing my personal business, not should I have had to. Get back under your rock.

Well I'm sure I'll live with you not accepting my apology, you sound like you have a right chip in your shoulder. Let's hope that halfords start getting their act together and start providing real training to its staff instead of having unqualified people which in today's world is rather surprising, it will benefit both staff and organisation.

[JLneonhug]

The fitting service is there for anyone who wants to use it, what I was saying is that its not something that needs extensive training. Most people can work out how to do it, it's not a 'skill'!

I'm only trying to stick up for the poor lads and lasses who have a part time job in a shop, and have people slating them left right and centre because they don't have extensive mechanic training. That only happens in a garage!

And yes, the above point is very valid, people can go to the shelves an use the extremely easy to use guides to find which wiper blade they need, but often they come to the counter instead. I can't say that ever bothered me.

Also, it tells you on the box which bulbs are the brightest. Thats is all the staff would be able to tell you.

I haven't read the previous posts so apologies if im barking up the wrong tree.

If we look at Argos, One would NEVER ask anything technical about a product they buy in Argos because its perceived as a warehouse full of goods that you buy items on online or catalogue, and the kiddies serve you, many are part time, stack shelves and do a bit of customer service (returns and tills), end of. Halfords advertise themselves as a company which have professional fitters and they charge for fitting so there should be a certain degree of knowledge. All their adverts are about customer satisfaction and "come to us, we are the professionals, we take care of you". They sell car parts and bike parts primarily so one would assume the staff should have more experience than reading on the label. Maybe thats why people are little annoyed about the staff, even more so when they make schoolboy errors. (unfortunately some are actually still school boys/girls)

To top it off they charge a mark up price on mannnyyy things imo because of the 'customer service' you get from the above. Spray paints are a good price though Their custom mixing however costs same or possibly more than OEM...

On a complete sidenote - Amazing pics on flickr!

[Loz]

I know what you are saying, all I'm saying is don't get personal at the poor staff, it's really not their fault. It's up to the company to ensure their staff are capable, and they don't pay enough to get ready qualified people. At the end of the day I doubt I will happen, they'd have to invest money in proper training and then more money in wages to actually keep the staff, so the prices would keep shooting up. But I still stand by the point that the actual fitting they offer is only the very simple stuff which they shouldn't really require great skill to do.

And thanks.... Lol. Not updated flickr in ages, I tend to forget about it.

Mdon - just shut up. You are clearly an idiot and I don't have any chip, I just refuse to be insulted personally by some oddball who decides to get personal over a thread about a non human entity.

[fluffmeister]

Can we start on Little Thief now .... erm, I mean Little Chef :-)

[mdon]

Can we start on Little Thief now .... erm, I mean Little Chef :-)

Ha ha, yeah that's what my mates call it, last time I stopped there for a drink the toilet had sounds of sheep bleating, strange!

Mdon - just shut up. You are clearly an idiot and I don't have any chip, I just refuse to be insulted personally by some oddball who decides to get personal over a thread about a non human entity.

Loz, when you have someone who posts on a public forum that is a supervisor at a professional outfit that offered professional fitting of parts stating that they only fit them because the customers can't be arsed to fit them themselves and then going on about how it's not hard and that anyone should be able to do it should expect a hard time, you obviously didnt consider vounerable people like OAPs etc etc. I admit perhaps I was a little harsh from the start but your comments aren't exactly suitable now are they? Now let's put this to bed.

Edited 20 February, 2012 by mdon

[VWD]

Don't know about other places, but our local one used to have a workshop . It's now shut and I see on the Net that the new name for Halfrauds Autocentre is Nationwide Auto centre . Now I've used our local Nationwide Autocentre when it was called that , but now ??.

I doubt it . And as for parts, our local spares place is roughly the same price ( times cheaper) .Boss of that will match any Halfords price ,with god quality stuff .And it's always a one stop -no return for extras .

Near Halfords is a little panel/paint etc shop ,who always beat Halfords for price ,AND service . Both places take pride in knowing their parts ,and are not afraid to shout help ,not just shrug shoulders and say "dunno".

Then "Can we start on Little Thief now .... erm, I mean (Halfords?)

[Neo_VR]

I love halfords... their professional tools are good quality and carry a lifetime warranty..

Plus if you have access to a trade card, its pretty cheap too.

[cheezemonkhai]

I love halfords... their professional tools are good quality and carry a lifetime warranty..

Plus if you have access to a trade card, its pretty cheap too.

Indeed it is, but after watching (and eventually interveening) as one of their 'fit it boys' pulled the whole front of an Octy II to try and change the light bulb, I can't say I'd ever let them fit even something simple.

[Loz]

Mdon, how many times? Drop it. Everyone else, including myself, have added to this thread without stooping to pointless, personal insults (excluding defence). I'm ALLOWED an opinion. I wasn't a supervisor, you clearly can't read/comprehend English. For the FINAL time, please ask someone to translate into moron speak for you - I am defending the poor people who work there who get a bad name through no fault of their own. I accept people want lightbulbs or wipers fitting, be they old and incapable, or perfectly capable and simply unwilling, you know, the same as someone who hires a cleaner for example (before you start, I mean everyday people not the odd exception like being disabled, I seem to need to cover this to stop your stupid and pedantic points). It doesn't make them a bad person, but 99% of people are capable of these simple tasks whether you like it or not. If they want to pay for it instead that's up to them. What I said is it doesn't require THE STAFF to be highly trained, comprende?? Simples!!

[Brimma]

I only started this thread to bring it to people's attention that Halfords were selling big tins of Hammerite £5 cheaper than Do It All :(

[Black-Cat]

Let's hope that halfords start getting their act together and start providing real training to its staff instead of having unqualified people which in today's world is rather surprising, it will benefit both staff and organisation.

Ain't going to happen I'm afraid!

[swordstoke]

I only started this thread to bring it to people's attention that Halfords were selling big tins of Hammerite £5 cheaper than Do It All :(

I comprehend that fully!

Thanks for the tip!

[JLneonhug]

I only started this thread to bring it to people's attention that Halfords were selling big tins of Hammerite £5 cheaper than Do It All :(

Its all your fault!

Ebay also pretty competitive on hammerite paint Its where I found my skoda green (smooth green) for little over £6 for 500ml

[vRS19TD]

I only started this thread to bring it to people's attention that Halfords were selling big tins of Hammerite £5 cheaper than Do It All :(

Well done.

Halfords is pretty much my 1st port of call when i need a new bulb, etc and only ever used the fitting service for my new stereo. Can't fault them and always found them helpful.