Osborns Avis 

I some items ordered online, made payment by Paypal online (over £300) , then heard nothing for over a week. When I phoned I was told many of the items were out of stock, with no expectation of stock arriving soon.
I had no difficulty contacting Osborns, and an immediate refund was made. But it is disappointing that the website shows items in stock, when they are not; and that my payment for out-of-stock items was not acknowledged, and not refunded immediately, without my having to phone and demand refund..

Impossible to contact, typical couldn’t care less attitude that unfortunately still prevails.
Only way you could resolve any issues would be in person I suppose.

Almost 5 months ago I placed an order and paid for it on March 11th 2019 (It is now July 30th 2019). Received 3 items out of 8 and have called several times to find out when he will have it in stock (bear in mind he still has £156.00 of my money in his bank and how do I get that back) Everytime I phone him he tells me he is going to find out from Preiser how long the order will be and call me back - HE NEVER CALLS ME BACK. Obviously I will never deal with Osbornes again and I buy a lot of model railway scenery. If this is how he treats his customers I am surprised he is still in business.

total failure to reply to any emails, sent 4 mails over 4 days, replies = zero. Tho must say they were extremely quick to take the money. never ever do any business with them, no goods and zero communication

very quick delivery quality items clear indication of out of stock or awaiting issue use with trust

Osbornes are basically a very decent model railway trader to deal with. They have some very good products, in particular their own brand of laser cut n gauge buildings and wagons. Yes they are not always good at communication or answering emails and I can understand why people get upset with their website, when items are shown as available when they are out of stock or not ready. The golden rule, particularly when it is a birthday or Christmas gift is to phone them first to check availability. It might take a few tries to get hold of them, but Michael is always helpful and will advise the current situation regarding the items wanted. Most orders usually arrive with in a couple of days of ordering, once I have spoken to him.

Mixed feelings about Osborns as I've had great service and fast delivery in the past when ordering by phone. However...their website lets them down - It has a wide range shown, but often they're not in stock though it'll still allow you to place an order. I wish they'd use a "cross-through" or "out of stock" label on the pictures to avoid time consuming searching - also it would stop disappointment of ordering and finding it'll be 4 weeks before delivery.

My most recent experience is that items which appear to be available to order on their website, are not actually in stock and have to be ordered in - sometimes from abroad.

Having placed an order on the 21st November, and paid by PayPal (who sent an immediate confirmation of payment to me), I received no similar confirmation email from Osborn's to say that my order had been received or that it would be processed shortly - which I felt was unusual.

Left it for a day, but when no confirmation email from Osborn's had arrived, I sent an email to ask if they had received my order, to which I had no response.

I made a phone call a few days later as I was getting concerned. A very pleasant 'Michael'answered the phone and said he's look into it and phone me back - which he did.

He said that the items were not in stock and that he had placed an order with his supplier and that my order would be fulfilled when the stock came in.

I received an email on the 30th November: 'We are still awaiting arrival of the parcel from Holland for your wagons, this should be with us shortly and then straight out to you.'

7th December - I've received an email to say that the items have been despatched to me - that is 13 working days after I placed my order.

My advice if using Osborns - check by telephone to ensure your items are in stock before ordering online - especially if your order is a gift for a birthday or Christmas!

Ordered on Monday night and delivered Wednesday morning. Superb service.

Excellent service, all items ordered were delivered and in good order.
Very friendly staff on the phone when I checked for delivery date.
Thanks!
A James, Fareham

NEVER had any problems with osborns, over the past 12+years I've ordered from them. WELL AT LEAST THEY DON'T BAND THERE CUSTOMERS FROM ORDERING ITEMS AFTER U HAVE RATED THEM OR CANCELLED AN ORDER OR A ORDER HAS GONE MISSING IN THE Post and told u that's your fault, or sold secondhand as new and lied ABOUT. RAILS OF SHEFFIELD AND HATTONS.
MICHAEL AND FAMILY TREAT MY TWO BOYS LIKE ADULTS While IN THE SHOP, plus WITH MY Eldest who is disabled treats him like a king by replacing his loco which broke three times outside of its warranty. (farish, dapol)

The worst service since October 2017 has no response to my order.
They are selling items they do not have in stock.
Please do not order any of the osborns models because you will never get what you ordered

Ordered several items on 7th Jan, two weeks later sent e-mail which was ignored, sent second e-mail also ignored a few days later, phoned to be told one item was out of stock and didn't know if they could obtain it, I asked for this item to be taken off the order so that the rest could be dispatched, four days later and yet another phone call still no delivery from them. Phoned a second time was told items were dispatched and they would check if they could trace the package with Royal Mail and promised a call back so far not heard anything.

Why couldn't they have told me that the one item was not available in the first place and why do they not respond to their emails. Why have I not received a callback

I previously ordered the Märklin 29100 Regional train LINT from Fruugo.co.uk and received it in a few days. The concept seemed good to run without track power under the xmas tree for my grand children. With an arduino nano I controlled two sets of points by IR. The Marklin 36101 seemed a good addition. It was unavailable in Uk initially but on 10/11/17 many online suppliers showed it in stock including Osborns. I ordered it paying through Paypal with my credit card. Big mistake number one, I did not check them out first. Big mistake number two - trusting that a contract is a contract.
Waited a week after the auto receipt and emailed when they might send the item. They replied that they would contact Marklin UK. Over the ensuing weeks total silence to my escalating emails. Now struggling to get Paypal to sort it out…..
Every day’s a learning day!
Postscript - after contacting Paypal and raising a case finally an email from Osborns stating their previous emails had not reached me and that the model was on its way! Arrived 6/12/17. If an item is not in stock it should be advertised as on order and better communication could have eased this situation. An experience I shall not repeat.

Ordered one item from Osbourns in august 2017. I found out the item wasn't even in stock and every time I phoned or emailed I was told my item was on order from their wholesalers. I finally gave up and asked for my money back November 2017 which I received as I had paid through PayPal. I would not use this shop again. They are selling items they do not have in stock.

they a fraudsters, stay away....normal process is..

you as customer order, then they take the money and when you request delivery via email, they are not responding. I have requested a refund via Paypal but also will go the extra mile and report those creatures to the police.

How Osborns Models remain in business I do not know! They take your money but do not send you the ordered goods. You send them emails and receive no response. I opened a non-receipt case with PayPal and sent another message as requested. As I did not receive a reply, I escalated the dispute to a PayPal claim. After PayPal's deadline for Osborns to resolve was passed, the case was found to be in my favour and my payment refunded. I will not be buying from this shop again.

I did not experience any of the problems some of the other reviewers have. I placed my order on line on a Saturday, and received an automatic acknowledgement immediately. On Wednesday I received an email notification that my order status has been updated to Despatched, and the order arrived on Thursday by Royal Mail 24 signed for.

Utter confusion all round. a hapless outfit. how they stay in business I have not a clue. Order not taken correctly. said parcel sent when it hadn't been.
No communication. no update on progress of ordered item.
Pleasant chap on other end of phone but that's it.

Respond to my emails! I want my items that I ordered or my money back!