Hachette Partworks review: Scammers 58

I have had a terrible time with Hachette Partworks, their scamming knows no bounds, I'm pulling my hair out! I 'subscribed' to the art of knitting last February, giving them a direct debit. Come may, I hadn't received a single issue, despite my £1.99 initial issue being taken. I got a few letters saying there was a delay in sending. So, I cancelled my subscription via email as the newsagents had issue 6 and I hadn't even had issue 2! I then start getting letters demanding money for the issues etc! I never received ANY, AND the're the ones who took money from me! The've now passed it onto a debt collection agency, but no matter how many times I write/email, I still get debt collection letters! I simply can't get s bad credit rating as I'm trying to buy my first house next year...
I really don't know what to do, and it angers me that something like this is happening, when financially I'm very responsible. Grr!
It's terrible that a company like this exists in the credit crunch when there are so many lovely businesses with incredible customer service that fail!
My boyfriend's half tempted just to pay the debt collection fee just to get rid of the problem as we're both incredibly busy and really can't risk a bad credit rating.

OMG, i should have checked this website before i ordered anything from Hachette, they are really cheaters. initially it was £1.99 per month and after about 6 issues all of a sudden it went up to £11.99, having no received any issues they are sending letter to me to pay and if not the matter will be passed to a debt collection agency, i tried to contact them via email so many times, but there was no reply back from them. tried their 0871 premium number a few times and no one seems to talk but its connecting and i was charged 0.18/ minute, i was wondering if i can take them to court.

I too have been having problems. I subscribed to The Art of Quilting, and after 8 or so issues, decided to cancel. I tried to email them, but the address on my letter from them bounced, so I contacted them via their website. I received no reply.

Around that time, my debit card changed, so they sent the next parcel (despite the fact I'd cancelled) and were unable to get payment as the card was now invalid. Several months later, I received a letter telling me to pay up or they'd add £5 to the bill and pass it on to a debt collection agency. I called them, explained that it was their mistake (expecting to be told not to worry about it and have an apology on the phone). They told me to either pay or return the items. I asked for a pre-paid envelope to be sent so I could return the items. They sent me an address, but not packaging. I didn't have anything large enough to post it in, and had no intention of buying something special when they had said they would send something, so waited till I received a large box from Amazon and returned the items to them. (I have proof of postage). Two weeks later, they sent another letter, telling me they were now passing on the details to a debt collection agency. I called them today, and told them I'd sent the box nearly 3 weeks ago. They said it could take up to 28 days to process returns, and asked me to call back in two weeks.

How the heck does it take 4 weeks to open a box, and match of the stuff on their files?! I would suspect Amazon deal with more returns, and do so much more efficiently! Issue is still unresolved, but could/would they seriously take me to court for £21?!

Gosh, I wish I had read this earlier. I had a subscription to a Classic Pocketwatches magazine for my grandfather. He decided that it wasn't really for him so I cancelled in January. I then received a letter last week saying that there was a payment due - my card had actually expired around the time of cancellation so I thought I may have missed a payment.
I went to saynoto0870 and the alternative number I called was for a London office. She said I had come through to the wrong company so I resigned myself to the 10p a min line and got through to - I think - South Africa. I didn't feel comfortable giving my card details but was told it was my only payment option. The lady I spoke to refused to give me email confirmation of payment, and I don't like not having written records of transactions. I'm thinking I may need to cancel my card ASAP.

Like many of the above, I too ordered items from Hackets Partworks Ltd. After several issues I noted that the items I was paying for increasingly worsened and were of very poor quality. I cancelled my subscription in August 2014 but a month later I received yet another issue of pocket watches. I contacted Hackets and informed them that I had cancelled my subscription and they instructed me to return the items to an address they provided on a free post address. I did so and received an email a few days later confirming reciept and i thought the matter closed. In March 2015 I received a threatening letter from a debt collection firm call CCS Collection demanding payment or they will seized goods from my home. I contacted CCS and explained their clients had made a mistake and the items were returned at their request to an address they supplied. CCS blatantly called me a liar and a con artist and said if they have to they will force entry to take my goods with or without a court order.
I fully agree with everything I have read in regards to this company. It is they who are the con artist and are using bully boy tactics for force payments for they clearly do not provide.

I have learned through investigations that Hackets Partworks Ltd is owned by a French company and the address given on their website and letters is little more than a mail drop with the mail being collected once a week. This company has had numerous complaints made against it throughout Europe dating back to 2001 but because the company is French owned the UK Trading Standards have little authority to act against them.
I have further learned that the debt collection company's employed by Hackets Partworks Ltd have also been reported on numerous occasions for threatening behaviour when collecting debts on behalf of Hackets.
Having read all of the above appalling accounts of abuse and poor service being provided by Hackets and the tactics they employ to fraudulently make money from its customers and listening to hundreds of accounts from customers who have lost money due to their trading practices it is my intention to collect all the details and records concerning this company and force the issue into the Courts to stop them trading and to bring them to account for their criminal actions.
With this view in mind I would invite any and all customers of Hackets Partworks Ltd both past and present to contact me with details of their experiences so that I may be able to produce a file for legal action with the intention of having money unlawfully collected by this company returned to the customers concerned.
I can be contacted by email a tony.kerry12@ntlworld.com. Please note that NO charge will be made for this service.
Signed..Tony Kerry

I am frustrated by this company. I subscribed to Art Therapy after picking up Issue 1 in a newsagent. I wanted to make sure I got each issue, but shortly after subscribing I received an email telling me that demand was high and I wouldn't be receiving the four issues a month I was initially promised, but two, and maybe not in order. Sure enough, I received issues 2 and 3, then 4 and 5 then 8 and 9, with one free gift missing too. I have looked on their website, and my missing issues, plus where I should be up to, are all available to buy there and then. I emailed them about this and did receive a reply, but it didn't address the issues I had raised, namely why my issues were so behind when they were available to buy on the website, or why they couldn't start supplying me with the four a month I had been initially promised. I emailed again asking for my questions to be answered, but their second reply still did not address the issues. I have only been billed for what I have received, but am wary about how they will handle me cancelling my subscription which I will be doing shortly.

I have been building Hachette's Part Works U96 Submarine and Mallard Engine due to problems with having copies pulled by my Newsagents supplier WH Smith, I thought that contacting Hachette by E-Mail possibly 5 times Phone, several times, Letter once and a Recorded Letter I would have received a reply but looking at the correspondence this company has had over the years I do not know how they have remained in business, I thought it was WH Smith was the problem but it looks as though the problem is not theirs but their supplier Hachette Ltd., if this is the case how does one proceed with obtaining a satisfactory outcome

Seems like my wife and I've also got trapped in this Hachette Partworks scam. We never subscribed or said yes for any books but they sent some Disney books for our little one to arrive in few months. And followed by that they are asking to pay for them. We returned the books to their mailbox (fortunately it had free postage), though may not have been in their 14 days period. Now getting letters from their litigation department that our payment is transferred to Debt collection agency. Has anyone managed to get on top of these scamsters? Tony Kerry - (tony.kerry12@ntlworld.com) - did you manage to make any progress? I'm happy to provide our account if it helps the case.

AVOID the hackets partworks. SCAMMERS!.They would give out vouchers to expectant mothers and ask you to keep some books and send the others back to them.They will never acknowledge receipt of books and they will start threatening you with forceful collection of debts. They are simply taking advantage of people in a very disgusting way.

What a headache. Cancelled my subscription to Judge Dredd as found them cheaper elsewhere. Whilst I was away, I received four more copies AFTER cancelling which i didn't know until I got back and started to receive the letters demanding payment. I tried calling several times - either terrible line, or I get hung up on or no answer. Sent emails (which get answered 5-8 days later) asking them to let me back in my account on their website (which no longer shows up any of my subscription information) so that I can see for myself when I cancelled and when the copies were sent out. Each response from them did not address my question but instead answered a question I didn't ask?! Now they have the debt collection agency on me without addressing my questions (I would have paid or returned the goods if I was mistaken but no answer to my question was given). Told the agency to hold off until I resolve this - they've given me 14 days yet Hatchette still not responding to my questions (yet writing back with stuff that doesn't make too much sense). I don't know who to turn to for help as the Debt collection agency will be calling me again and Hatchette not being cooperative. Extremely bad customer service and impolite staff.

As of this moment, I have been on hold to their "customer services" for 1 hour 17 minutes (and still waiting) with no answer. I am trying to ensure that they do not send any more books from the Wonderful World of Disney collection.

Their non-existent customer services suggests that this is not a legitimate business.

I have never heard of this company before but the have been taking money out my bank account on an old card for 5 months! just been given a refund via bank and they are looking into it.. STAY AWAY FROM HATCHETTE PARTWORKS!

Hachette are still up to the tricks above!
I have not had anything from them since September, leaving me with a half complete collection and now a threat of debt collectors!

they are nothing but a bunch of legalised con artists!

I am not a subscriber but have made several one-off orders from this questionable outfit, as I wanted to collect the volumes of Doctor Who The Complete History covering the 1960s and 1970s only. Quite simply, more often than not, they have not sent my orders, leading to a series of Emails and phone calls to an overseas call centre, which have resulted in my being constantly lied to until the books are eventually sent or I receive a refund. The books are difficult to obtain elsewhere, but the way things are going I will probably only finally complete my modest collection when I am an old man at a car boot sale!

Utter cowboys.

I have been in touch with Hachette customer services department on numerous occasions via the telephone, email & now by letter concerning missing orders I have via their UK based website shop.
Thier business now owes me a great deal of money from ether missing items or failures to make promised refunds for items their customer services department are claiming are out of stock, these are for fact items that they still at this time of writing shave on sale in your website shop.
I find the contempt their business has to its customers beyond unacceptable, it is unacceptable for any business to fail to even bother to contact their customer over missing items or refund money for items that are out of stock.
I have been lied to by their customer services colleagues & managers about receiving return calls, ether refunds or being sent missing orders on many occasions now.
I have written to them, emailed them & told them over the telephone that any future failure to respond to me will result in the following actions being taken against their business:
I will file a complaint with the UK Financial Ombudsman on their businesses fraudulent behaviour.
I will file out and report to Action Fraud for theft & provide them with a crime reference number.
I will take legal advice if they do not respond to me.