Swedish furniture store Ikea has responded to complaints from UAE customers who have reported waits of a month for delivery of their goods.
"We have had an overwhelming response in online orders that have resulted in some of our delivery promises being longer than usual," a spokesperson for Ikea told The National.
"In addition to this, there has also been a high volume of requests for assembly of furniture which in the current situation is a process that is time-consuming and requires extra care to ensure the safety of our team and customers."
Ikea customers have told The National about orders arriving late – with complaints ranging from a fortnight's delay, to six weeks. Some have taken to social media to air their concerns as they say they are unable to get through to customer service personnel by phone.
"Their phones do not connect, no one responds by email," a Dubai Ikea customer told The National earlier this week. This person has since, however, received their order.
"The only way to reach them is through Instagram... they promised and posted that all delayed orders will be delivered by April 20 and then we reached May with nothing."
On Twitter, customers are regularly seen complaining about late or missing deliveries, and a customer service team that isn't contactable.
Dubai resident Haneen Joudiyeh first placed her Ikea order on April 6, expecting it to be delivered on April 14. Joudiyeh has been stuck in a back-and-forth between Ikea and their delivery company and is yet to receive her order.
She told The National: "A delivery company called Elite arrived at my door with half the order and refused to assemble it (it was a closet). Although I'd paid for assembly and it said assembly on the boxes. The delivery man refused to help and left with the items. He said he'll return next morning with the drill to do the assembly ... that didn't happen."
Joudiyeh has since tried to contact Ikea and waited on hold for up to an hour to speak to customer service.
She adds: "I completely understand that the orders are overwhelming. But put a cap on orders and extend delivery dates."
As of Wednesday, May 6, it was possible to place orders online at ikea.ae, with the earliest delivery date available on Saturday, May 16.
Ikea sent a response to the complaints to The National, explaining that they've taken new steps to hopefully avoid lengthy delays and unreachable customer service lines in the future.
The full statement reads:
“At Ikea, our priority as always is the health and safety of our co-workers and customers. Providing a safe and hygienic home delivery service is a key commitment for us while taking all necessary health precautions as advised by the UAE Government during the delivery process.
"We understand the demand for online shopping is constantly increasing, and we are developing new services and e-commerce capabilities to adjust to the new reality. We have had an overwhelming response in online orders that have resulted in some of our delivery promises being longer than usual.
"In addition to this, there has also been a high volume of requests for assembly of furniture, which in the current situation is a process that is time consuming and requires extra care to ensure the safety of our team and customers.
"To ensure our customer issues are addressed and responded to; we have set up a dedicated call centre who are reaching out to customers on a case by case basis with new delivery timelines and solutions to their concerns. We have also reallocated our resources in our fulfilment centres giving additional focus on training of our co-workers to ensure customer requests are attended to promptly.
"We are trying our best to overcome the situation and want to ensure everyone that our commitment at IKEA is towards our customers to have an easy shopping experience anywhere and anytime."
