Alstons Upholstery Avis 17

I consider Alstons the Ol'reliable. Had one of their products for 10 years, gave it away when we moved, it still sat almost the same way (if not better). Just bought a new one from Lucas, and its been so far so good. Great construction, great materials.

ADVISE AGAINST PURCHASE. Very poor quality. Due to faults our sofa was inspected by an “independent” expert. He reported a fault of “sagging springs”. He stated the cause to be “Customer expectation” therefore no repair required. I requested a second “independent inspection”. The second inspection also noted sagging springs, together with a number of upholstery issues. He also ordered two replacement seat cushions. These cushions have “Cold-cured foam” interiors, which are hard and uncomfortable. During the required repairs being carried out at our property, I had the opportunity to inspect the internal construction of the frame. It appears to be made from the cheapest low quality wood – not as their web site states: “Our commitment to quality in all stages of our manufacturing….” & “comfortable, affordable and ideally suited to everyday life”. Regrettably, legal action against the retailer looks like the next step.

We ordered the 3 seater “Fleming” on 2 October 2024 and were told that we could expect delivery before Christmas but did not actually get delivery until the end of January - they were apparently awaiting delivery of the material we had chosen (ordered through a reputable retailer in Harrogate). On delivery I could see that the back cushions on the sofa presented very badly. I had thought either the fibre filling insert was too big for the fabric or conversely the fabric was poorly put together and just too tight on the back rest cushion. Called Alstons myself who said that I would have to go through the retailer with whom they had the contract. Even via the retailer in has taken months for Alstons to finally get an independent reviewer and the retailer had to call them any number of times on my behalf to remind them of this. When he came the independent reviewer took the inserts out of the fabric and variously punched them, hit them hard against his own knees and shook them with vigour and finally put them back into the fabric. They do look better than when they first arrived and there is a “tolerance” so he has reported that the customer is now happy - I said to him they looked much better but I never actually said that I was happy. He also stated in the report that the problem had been “customer damage” - a description to which I take exception and wholly disagree. I can only assume he has written this because I had taken the inserts out myself on a couple of occasions to try to make them look presentable and I did tell him this but to describe the problem as “CUSTOMER DAMAGE” is a bit rich. I would describe it as Alstons no longer holding to the standards they once held and using cheaper product, in my opinion. I only bought this second Alstons sofa because my first one had worn so well, and the back rest cushions looked as good when it was taken away as the day it had arrived in 2009 because it had Quallofil in the back rests and not some sort of fibre (I believe fibre filling is much cheaper that Quallofil). When I want a new sofa for whatever reason, it is very unlikely to be an Alstons ever again - a great shame because the seating is firm as they do use cold cure foam which suits us very well and we like the styles. I believe they are no longer a family run firm and for me I would say it shows.

I purchased 2 nevada sofas, love them, very comfortable, great quality, friends admire them, best sofas iv ever bought, delivered on time, would purchase again when time comes round again.

Bought two sofas and armchair made by these from Roomes,very disappointed wouldn’t touch them again.
Went through the usual channels of complaint got nowhere,seems all the so called furniture “experts” support each other.
Bottom line as stated wouldn’t touch them

Waiting and waiting for settee - 2 seater delivered told they waiting for material for Grande settee so delivery put back 4 weeks due with me next zMonday. Now another delay with 2 different delivery dates for 1 item! Must be cutting it in half and sending box of nails so I can nail it together. Would recommend you save time, stress and energy and not order from this company. We were considering another settee for other room but will not be from this company. Terrible attitude to customers and evident they just dont care - avoid avoid avoid.

Just have to say what a fantastic service I have had when buying my lovely new sofa. The upholstery is top quality and looks very luxurious. The sofa is very comfortable.

I recently purchased a Evesham sofa from my local Alstons retailer. The sofa is so comfortable and really suits the decor we have gone for in our new home. We have bought various Alstons models now through our house moves and every time we have bought a new model the quality is the exact same high quality and offers great value for the high level of spec that is included. We are really pleased with them and the sales staff who sold us the Evesham model were so complimentary to the company and I can see why. We love the fact that the cold cure seat cushions don’t require hardly any dressing and all we do from time to time is flip them over and they stay really neat and comfortable. It’s really great to see a British sofa company doing well ! Keep up the hard work Alstons well done.

Ordered a Lowry 2 seater sofa a snuggle chair and armchair from our local furniture shop at the beginning of September we were given a date for the furniture to be delivered never happened got given another 4 different dates nothing we got rid of our old 3 piece so was sitting on two very uncomfortable chairs awaiting for the delivery of our suite which never happened now the date we have been given is the end of January complete joke apparently the fabric hasn’t arrived so why give dates if they haven’t got fabric. In all fairness our shop we ordered it through are very embarrassed about the whole situation and have loaned us a brand new suite until our suite is ready, we shall now wait til after Christmas and see if that date still stands if not we will cancel the order and get deposit back, terrible service from alstons. I did manage to speak to a rep there who was apparently dealing with this and he was very rude and even laughed at me so pleased he found it funny terrible customer service, so would not recommend using this company, at the moment I have no choice if we go somewhere else will have to wait a good few weeks so will see if it’s delivered at the end of January.

We purchased an Alsons Memphis 3 seater sofa and 2 armchairs, which we had delivered in January 2024. Within a few weeks it became apparent that the quality was terrible .. arms on the armchair became dented just by resting our arms, back cushions on the sofa lost their shape, requiring constant maintenance and the seating cushions had so little filling that they looked almost flat, we could feel the springs / structure of the chairs. Having also unfortunately bought the 3 piece suite from a retailer in Kent that refused to help / take it back, after 10 months its been donated to charity as we simply can't sit on it. The quality is frankly crap and having bought a number of sofas over 30+ years this has been the worst I've ever had -- I would very much suggest people avoid Alstons - they are not cheap and are sold as quality items, they simply are not... buyer beware :-(((

I encountered a dangerous driver in Somerset who was driving an Alston’s of Colchester lorry, which I will be contacting them about today. Whilst I was driving (safely adhering to the 40mph speed limit), the driver of the Alston’s lorry was behind me at a very dangerously close distance. This was on a road with no road markings, that has only very recently been resurfaced and contained hazard signs, warning road users of skid risks. The lorry driver beeped at me very loudly (and unnecessarily) and proceeded to overtake me aggressively into oncoming traffic without any consideration of the safety of themselves and other road users. I am disgusted. This is an embarrassment to Alston’s and is without a doubt, an accident waiting to happen. This is my usual commute to and from work and I’ve never encountered such despicable behaviour. There was approximately 10-20 cars ahead of this lorry, so overtaking achieved nothing.

I provided Alstons with all of the above information (in addition to vehicle details) but they closed the query within 20 mins and marked it as ‘resolved’ without providing any response.

I worked here with clueless bosses and the people who train you just bully and pick on you would not recommend

Had the suite just over a year, bought from Fenwicks, which is usually a good indication of quality. Not on this occasion. After ten days the seat pads didn't fit well and had to be adjusted but they still don't look right. The back cushions with sewn indentations came out and had to be replaced. Had the suite just over a year and can't help thinking it's not going to last too long. Really poor quality in my opinion.

We recently purchased an Emelia sofa and 2 chairs on the recommendation of our son who bought an Alstons suite 8+ years ago and still looks and feels like new. The sofa seat cushions on ours which is still only 6 months old have now been replaced 4 times due to severe vertical creasing on the front of each cushion. The 4th set arrived on Thursday and one is now OK whilst the other though better is still not as I would have liked or expected. Very disappointing from what was a reputable company. Never again.

Utter rubbish, they give a 12 month guarantee on their Lowry sofas and will not fix manufacturing issues.
Basically you pay out £3000 and they expect you to buy another after the years warranty despite them being aware the issues are manufacturing based.

ALSTONS SOFAS…..DO NOT BUY, VERY POOR STANDARDS AND FINISH OF SOFA SEAT AND BACK CUSHIONS IS EXCEPTIONALLY BAD. THEY USED TO BE HIGH QUALITY AND MY PREVIOUS 10 YEAR OLD SOFA FROM ALSTONS IS BETTER THAN THE NEW ONE. ALSTONS ADVERTISE GREAT QUALITY BUT THE TECHNICIAN REPORT STATES QUALITY IS GOOD AND CUSTOMERS EXPECTATIONS ARE HIGH. TECHNICIAN STATES IT IS A DRESSING ISSUE AND WITHIN MANUFACTURING GUIDELINES. I CAN ONLY ADVISE OTHER PEOPLE NOT TO BUY, IT IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE STANDARD.