VELFAC Reviews 460

Replacement door sill infill provided free of charge!

Friendly professional service, quickly resolving the issue to my full satisfaction. This is how customer service should be. Highly recommended

Polite and speedy service at all points. Although an incorrect item was delivered the replacement came immediately. Very pleased to recommend this company.

UPDATE 6th July 2022
You will see below a response from "VELFAC team". A young lady called me on the phone to offer condolences and said she would get back to me. She didn't put her name on the reply and it has been many weeks now with no further news. There is no chance to connect with her and it seems she has just dumped this into someone else in-tray without any expectations of a result. No responsibility, no traceability, no customer service.
This is exactly our experience of dealing with Velfac.

+++

If I could give a score of zero I would. The litany of bad reviews here reflects our experience with Velfac. Due to poor office administration on their behalf our windows were delivered three months late. The doors we discovered are made by another company owned by Velfac in Poland and they had numerous faults one door was badly damaged with a big gouge out of the wood. It was packed this way in Poland, another door had damage to the frame under the seal so the seal must’ve been put in with the damage visible to the operator. This company accepts that 90% quality for an expensive product is good enough.

Unfortunately the quality of the administration staff and managers is as bad as the products.

Each time you send an email it is answered by someone you’ve never spoken to and they never include the previous thread on their return email. This means at the end of three months we had many emails from different people. No one seemed to be in charge. They refused to give me the managers name or email address and put down every obstacle to resolution. Eventually I found his name here on Trustpilot where he had given these details to another complainant. I finally got through to him and found him evasive and noncommittal. They agreed to replacing the opening leaves to the doors (4) but when they arrived 6 weeks later there were major finishing faults in the woodwork and I was absolutely furious. This was like water off a duck’s back to Velfac who sent their specially organised repair team who came and repaired the defects. The strong impression from this team was that this was very common and they were stacked out with work to do.
Velfac is in every respect and evasive and careless company to deal and with with respect to the doors they repeatedly supplied me with substandard product and appalling service and I wish I had never heard of this company.
I tried to escalate my complaint to the managing director but could never find his details apart from a non-Velfac email address and he never replied.
It is my opinion that defects and in service and product that is repeatedly visited on a customer is as a result of a culture that comes from the very top. I put him fully to blame.
My main complaint regarding the service is that there is no one in Velfac who seems to take responsibility for anything and you cannot dial people direct.
Avoid this company.

We had a latent defect with a door handle, it was reported to Velfac, and a replacement dispatched within a week.

Very quick response.
Good service and nice company!

If I could rate Velfac any less than zero then I would.
In 2015, before I spent £30k for windows and a few doors for 2 houses, I visited their head office several times in Kettering.
I explained the houses were coastal and how brutal the weather can be.
They assured me their windows and doors would stand up to this harsh salty coastal climate and there was nothing to worry about.
However, after only 2 years the salt corrosion had started to eat away at all the ironmongery and I was barely able to open the windows. The windows and doors had faded so much that they looked like they were 20 years old and not 2. The timber on the doors had began to split and crack.

Of course, I know now that the paint was not marine grade and the ironmongery is not galvanised and so they were corroding from day 1.

I have reported all of this damage to Velfac, spent much time over the years emailing customer services and sending images only to be fobbed off with a ticket number and someone’s looking into it. No one does unless you keep chasing it up and keep on and on but then still get fobbed off.

Last year I finally thought I was getting somewhere. Velfac sent professional sprayers to respray a few of the windows and doors but that was a complete nightmare. I’m now waiting for them to come back and respray🙈

They also sent independent installers to inspect all of the ironmongery and their report advises that all the ironmongery should be changed due to corrosion. Good news I thought!

However, 7 years on I’m still waiting for Velfac to accept responsibility for their useless coastal! ironmongery but still they’re totally uninterested and ignoring my emails.
Apparently all I had to do was wash them with water, soap and a brush and lubricate once a year and there would be no corrosion. Of course I did this, several times a year and it made absolutely no difference whatsoever.

The sales people at Velfac/Dovista should be upfront and tell people with properties in coastal locations that their products are totally unsuitable for them and their guarantee does NOT include corroded ironmongery.
It will save customers like me such a lot of time, money and stress in the long run.

very good service. well understanding of my request. respond with helpful solutions.

Brilliant from start to finish.

This company is first class

We ordered Velfac windows based on our architects recommendation. We followed instruction and provided structural openings, the finish and size of the finish. The document clearly stating exactly what each window was and that it was a structural opening. However, it transpires that Velfac did not take into account the finish and finish size and used the structural opening size as the finished size.

This of course meant that the windows were too big and would not fit into the openings.

NKG came and did a site inspection on 18th May and confirmed that the windows were made too big. NKG said they had seen it happen before and that the solution was to use pressings in the reveals and that once they was back in the office the following day they would work out the pressing sizes, give us a quote for the manufacture and installation and said they would need around 10 days. The following day I chased them, then again on the Thursday, and on the Friday they replied and said they would have costs ready for the following Monday. We received an email from on the Monday and instead of getting everything as promised, we had an email asking the architect to draw up the schedule, soon followed by telling us to get the pressings manufactured as well. We did our best, but then our contact at NKG went on holiday for a week, and even though they said they would be available, they weren’t. Unsurprisingly, when they got back to us, it was seen that the we had got it wrong, even though we had been pleading for help.

Finally it was agreed the pressings were correct and went into manufacture on 11th June and after more delays we had a fitting date for the 7th July.

In between all this, Velfac delivered the windows the week of the 24th May. The driver refused to reverse into the driveway and dumped all the windows in the driveway entrance. This meant we were then unable to accept any other deliveries, have any rubbish removed and ending up costing us money to delay multiple jobs.

On the day of install, two people turned up in a van. I asked where the rest of the team was and was told it was just them. I asked how they would install our massive windows and what kit they had to lift the huge windows into place. They said they didn’t need it. An hour later they asked for our help. It took 6 people including myself to lift the larger windows up to the second floor. Then to my horror, the fitters started to drag the windows around, some on a concrete floor! I let it go as I had to put my trust in them and they assured me it wouldn’t damage them. They were wrong.

Once the install started to happen, the fitters said the openings were not perfect and square and it meant they were struggling to fit the windows to their tolerances. I tried to explain it was a structural opening and I was not sure any structural opening would be perfect as that is what the finish is for.

Our builders ran around after the fitters, doing everything that was asked, making windows smaller, making them bigger. Then, on the third day, after agreeing with the fitters that they would install the larger windows and the bay window, they walked off site leaving the windows where they had left them.

We decided that there was no way we could now trust NKG and brought in another contractor who managed to fit the windows with relative ease with the help of our builders.

The costs, time wasted, unprofessionalism and broken promises have caused a huge amount of stress and delays to the build and has just left a bad taste with Velfac and NKG as well has now having scratched and damaged windows.

This was all put to Velfac and in short, they couldn't care less and said it was our fault as we should have supplied finished sizes (even though their document has structural sizes) and to speak to NKG about the damage.

We are receiving terrible service from velfac.

Please really think twice before ordering.

we have had a really dodgey install. Velfac/Dovista do not install themselves but outsource the work. we had an inspection from velfac who concluded the works were not good enough. since then they have been terrible at replying. the issues have not yet been resolved in full.

we have also paid in full but yet they are chasing for further payments. an admin error on their side.

They said they would provide correction paint, we have emailed 7 times and still not sent.

nice windows but really not worth the hassle.

UPDATE: despite Kirsty saying below that she would like to help, i have emailed her but she is still to reply (15 days later).

UPDATE: Velfac and their distrubutor have been round to the house. Velfac agreed the windows have been installed wrongly in many areas. The distributor is now wanting to charge £900 to fix the issues. They are utterly disgusting. Please stay clear.

Thankfully a very nice lady called ‘Lou’ contacted us to tell us we were to be refunded our deposit after many months had passed and being told at first that it was non refundable. Whilst it was never our wish to cancel we had no choice as the approved fitter (who came twice, charged twice and only refunded part of his bill) knew from the off it was unlikely we could have the lovely Velfac windows due to structural reasons. We’re very grateful to have been refunded as we needed the funds to go with another firm who are charging us £5000 more than Velfac!

Lovely product but dreadful customer service. We purchased approx £60k worth of windows and doors for 3 houses, from Velfac. The after care service is awful. We had an issue with a patio door (timber cill blackened) informed the warranty department within 6 months of receipt. Endless phone calls and emails, 2 years later we are no further forward. Please can we get this sorted! Unless their customer service improves, I would not use them again!

I have been trying very hard to contact Velfac's after sales team for a warranty claim since Christmas.
At present I am getting nowhere with them.
I have a sliding door to my rental property that cannot be used meaning I am not able to accept guests until the door is repaired.
Velfac (Dovista)- why don't you care?
* Reply to Velfac's post- Chris you already have our details- in fact one of you colleagues told us you would be calling my husband- quite some time ago. We look forward to speaking with you and turning this sorry situation around.
* Chris- I have emailed you our details as requested.

Need to use them as they fitted my doors, looking a replacement lock. Submitted request for part 3 October, quote came through on 26 October, after numerous calls and email chasers. Responded to say wanted to proceed (as I have no choice) no reply, Called up and they told me I have to wait for email reply and then call the correct number to make a payment. Very much a company of computer says no. Customer service is non existence as is speed or efficiency. On a side note my door handle is £41.00. Shipping costs however are £25.00 as apparently only shipped from Europe. Best needs a complete and utter rethink.

I had some windows & doors fitted in 2017 spent over £25,000 and had some issues with some french doors, this has been going on for at least 2years now and they keep avoiding the issue, engineers have reported the problem and velfac are not even responding to my phone calls, the doors were fitted by a recommended velfac installer and apparently a plate may have been required for additional support but was never highlighted by velfac during the design & costing stage.
They keep saying they are trying to find the records but this has gone on far too long.
I forget how many times & how many people I have discussed this with totally unacceptable.
Shocking after sales & I am now in the process of taking this further, I would never recommend these to anyone & I am in the Building trade

NOT SAFE - AWFUL SERVICE FROM THEIR FITTERS - Windows wont stay open on hinges - they are top hung and are meant to stay put - they dont - they swing widly open so I have to have one tied to a tabel leg and the other held back with a walking stick & heavy pot - NOT GOOD -

AND ..where is my FENSA certificate - the installer walked off.........

This company promotes the use of approved installers. I was ensured that, if I used one, any future issues at all with my windows or doors it would be covered by the warranty that I would gain by doing so. An approved installer charges around £100 per m2 per window, double usual fitter prices, they will drop other work to fit your windows. Guess what, I have a problem with a bi-fold (completely unusable) and it is not covered by my warranty. I have to pay for a service engineer to assess it. Absolutely disgusted. I have had previous complains about doors that were supplied with wrong colour gaskets completely ignored or fobbed off too. Do not buy from this company. The after sales is shockingly bad, by the time you need them you have spent all your money and they don’t care.

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY.

We ordered windows for our extension with a 6-8 week lead time in mid April. 19 weeks later, we're still waiting for the final 4 windows!

Excuses change each time, first it was mullions, now it's bow caps. It's been a total and utter nightmare, the lease is about to expire on our rental (which we never thought we'd need this long) so about to be homeless. Delivery dates are a fantasy, they change every time we ask.

They don't quite take your money and waltz off into the sunset, but feels like it's not far off....

I've just moved into a new build house where all the windows and doors are made by Velfac. They look good, and I have no complaints so far..... except for the fact that it appears nigh-on impossible to install a cat flap into them. I've already had two experienced fitters turn the job down on the grounds that it would be too difficult, and Velfac UK were polite but completely unhelpful when I rang them for advice. Given how many people in the UK have cat flaps, this feels like a major design flaw.