When Ursula bought herself a new laptop last September she hoped it might help her learn but the main thing it taught her was how woefully inadequate the Currys customer service was – at least in her case.
She made her purchase online and within a few months had issues with the laptop, the main one being the screen “started to flash and flicker” when it was in use, a pretty serious issue you’d be right in thinking.
She brought the flashing laptop into a Currys store in the middle of February and it was sent off for repair.
Almost three weeks later she got a text from Currys to say her laptop was ready for collection from the same shop where she had dropped it off.
Happy days.
No.
She brought the laptop home and turned it on and was less than delighted to see that the “flashing and flickering” screen was still there.
“I contacted Currys again and spoke directly to the repair centre engineers by video call through the ‘repair live’ function on their website,” she says.
“The repair centre engineer saw the fault. He thought it was the connection between the screen and the keyboard when the screen opens was the problem. He told me to book the laptop in again for repair and Currys would collect it from my house.”
A few days later a courier from the retailer did indeed collect the laptop from Ursula’s home – at least saving her the need to return to the store from whence she had come.
Another 10 days passed and the laptop was returned to her – again by courier.
But you will never guess what happened next. Okay, you might be able to guess what happened next.
Ursula turned on the laptop and the infuriatingly persistent “flashing and flickering” was still an unwelcome feature of her device.
So she did another video call with the Currys repair live team and another engineer said he could see the problem with the screen and told her to book the laptop in for repair. On this occasion it was not, she was told, possible for him to look after the booking and she was given another Currys number to ring.
She did as she was told and again a courier came and took away her computer.
We’re in early May now, in case you have lost track of time.
Almost a week passed and she got a call from the repair centre. They asked her a few questions about her laptop which she answered and she – reasonably, we think – told them that she would not be happy with a repair and she wanted the laptop replaced.
“They told me the engineer would ring me the next day and I could mention this to them. They told me that there was a three-strike policy [and] if something was sent for repair three times and wasn’t repaired that Currys would replace it.”
When she sent a complaint to the Currys customer services department she got a reply that can most kindly be described as useless
She wasn’t exactly over the moon to hear this but at least it was something so she waited for the promised call from the Currys engineer.
“No one contacted me the next day from the repair centre.”
Instead what happened was the laptop that had caused her such heartache was returned to her home a couple of days later and – you will no doubt he shocked and amazed to learn – the “flashing and flickering” was still there.
On this occasion she recorded a video of the fault and emailed it to the repair centre to highlight that the fault was still on the laptop.
She also sent Pricewatch the video.
“The repair centre replied telling me I could do a video call with the engineers in the repair centre or ring to book it in for repair.”
This would be the fourth time her poor computer was sent back.
“I replied to the repair centre with a summary of the laptop’s previous visits to the repair centre and I asked for the laptop to be replaced [as] it is not fit for purpose and they advised by email to ring the customer service line.”
So Ursula did as she was told. And it did not go swimmingly.
“I rang this customer service number and after spending nearly two hours on the phone explaining and talking through the problem with the laptop [and being] passed around to at least five different members of staff during this call having to explain each time my story all Currys offered was to repair the laptop.”
Pricewatch doesn’t know about you but if we found ourselves in this position we fear our heads would explode.
When she asked for a replacement she was told that it wasn’t possible. “So I had to book the laptop in for repair again. Whilst Currys are offering to repair the laptop, they’re not fixing the fault and they [will not replace it] until the repair centre write the laptop off as unrepairable. When I ask why this hasn’t happened yet all they offer is the repair. Surely I have some consumer rights?”
She points out that the manufacturer’s warranty was still in place and her laptop had already been sent for repair three times, with a fourth collection/repair booked.
When she sent a complaint to the Currys customer services department she got a reply that can most kindly be described as useless.
It is worth publishing it in full just to highlight how useless.
“Thank you for your email dated the 21st May 2025. My name is **** and I am from Currys Republic of Ireland Customer Services.
“I understand from your email that you have had ongoing issues with your laptop. I am really sorry for all the inconvenience this has caused.
“I would recommend giving our tech team a call on 0818810575. They are fully trained in handling technical queries and will be able to assist you further.
“Thank you for contacting Currys Republic of Ireland Customer Services. Please contact us if you need any further assistance.”
It was at this point that Ursula contacted Pricewatch. “I have lost money and time whilst the laptop is away for repair and I just don’t know what to do next, can you please help me or advise me?”
Now, this is not the worst customer care story we have ever heard but it is certainly up there with the worst of them and might well be the worst we have heard so far this year.
We contacted the company and this is what it had to say in response.
“We fully acknowledge the unacceptable experience this customer has had. Despite our repair procedures being in place to resolve faults quickly and efficiently, in this case the process fell short, and we sincerely apologise. We recognise the frustration caused by repeated failed repair attempts and the lack of clear communication. We are currently in direct contact with the customer and are arranging a full replacement of the laptop to resolve the matter without any further inconvenience.”
A spokeswoman added that Ursula has been given a voucher as a gesture of goodwill.
