Fishkeeper Reviews

Telford MAI recently purchased a Fishtank which was due for delivery in 6 to 8 weeks On the day I thought this was okay however on reflection I decided that was too long to wait I found a very similar fish tank of the same standards for less on the Internet Also when making further enquiries before cancelling I asked about delivery as this had possibly not been mentioned whilst in store I was informed I d need to collect it as MA don t do home delivery This really put me off as the box would definitely not fit in my car sort that out MA it s crazy in todays world and I m also disabled and wouldn t be able to lift anything I tried to cancel the order over the phone however I was told they had to get permission from the head office before the refund could be carried out Two days later I was informed that I needed to go into the aquarium as they would not do a refund over the phone This seemed very backwards as they knew who I was it was the very same card the money was being returned to and there was no issue of fraud yet I was forced to travel to the aquarium Upon arrival there was confusion as to how too carry out a refund which even the branch manager struggled with Surely this is a regular thing even if it was for a large amount There is only one till in the aquarium and so while trying to sort me out a large queue appeared behind me What happens if that till stops working and why only have one till Eventually after phoning their head office to find out how to do the refund I was returned my money via the same way they could ve quite easily achieved over the phone Most of the staff were very helpful and knowledgeable Helen when I initially enquired about a tank I think the store manager is a little incompetent for the role Overall the store had plenty of equipment as long as it was physically on the shelf Fish tanks were a disaster and must lose the company tens of thousands in lost sales and although they say made in the U K when I was buying the tank the reason for the delay was a shipment for it was needed from Vietnam This isn t very British guys even if it s assembled in the U K that s not British The fish selection was ok yet I wouldnt personally wouldn t have purchased any fish from there

I have been a customer of Maidenhead Aquatics specifically the Newbury Thatcham branch for around 5 years The customer service has never been brilliant but I have always put that down to the particular staff member perhaps having a bad day When you require assistance you have to seek it out yourself and when available to help there is no small talk smiles or friendly interaction Very poor customer service overall Not the cheapest place to purchase fish in the first instance they do have a varied selection but overall quality is poor missing fins deformities etc Will be shopping elsewhere from now on

I bought a pond skimmer online On opening the box it was apparent that the item was either ex-display or used Badly re-packaged with no attempt to disguise its origins Items also loose in the box Disappointing

I visited Maidenhead today for some pond fish they wanted 30 for three common goldfish at around 3-4 inches I felt this was very expensive so I visited bradshaws where their goldfish were 4 each it was a no brainer I bought six for cheaper than Maidenhead

Yesterday I visited your Beverley site where Harvey was pleasant and charged me 6 49 for TetraPond sticks 4004218751255 When booking out of the main Strikes Woodmansey garden centre there was confusion at the tills with my 98 year old mother so did not take the sticks and receipt out of the basket so was charged twice Most jnteresting in that the price charged for the same item was 5 25 Why is this and why did Sykes have your item in its system with the same reference number BB 19 8 22

Further to my initial review I sent an email to customerservice at Maidenhead Aquatics and no response so I have today resent the email together with a copy of both till receipts I trust this will now be resolved

I went to the Brighton branch today with a list of fish I wanted to add to various tanks the store was clean and well stocked but with a few obviously unwell specimens Most fish were one pound each more expensive than elsewhere but ok however some were way more when I went to get shrimp the nothing special Cherry shrimp were 10 pound each Needless to say I didn t buy anything and will continue to buy elsewhere

Not great customer service staff get on as if they are doing you a favour by even serving you or God forbid you want advice Also clownfish as a company sign They sell nothing to do with marine fish

I live quite close to Maidenhead Aquatics in Newport and have bought from them 5 or 6 times in the last couple of years I ve had a tank The staff and their level of knowledge is good with maybe a bit of a push to sell more animals than is right for your tank I ve bought plants twice and the second time got an infestation of pest snails Most recently though I bought 4 guppies nothing to break the bank but over the last 6 weeks I ve become tired of watching them get sick and die I have 1 surviving now I have guppies from another shop who have been in my tank longer and who have all survived all of this so it does seem to be an issue specifically with the fish from Maidenhead Aquatics I also have hydra now which as I have shrimp too is a concern I would suggest not shopping there for live animals

Prices here are extortionate compared to finest aquatics How do they make any profits the aquarium plants are so much more expensive and in my opinion on really poor quality compared to other shops nearby