SelectBlinds.com review: Scam and cheating 31

We were excited to order out 2 1/2" wood blinds from them for our new home. We had over 25 windows to cover and the prices were very good compared to other vendors.

That is where the nightmare begins. $2700 later the blinds arrived crooked, warped with major gaps in between the slats. After countless email and phone calls with the customer service reps we finally filed a claim against them with our credit card company.

The product and service was so horrible that I wouldn't wish them on our worst enemy.

We sent back several of the blinds for repair and they were returned to us after two months in the EXACT same condition. I finally spoke with someone at the company and they said "We stand by our product, and sometimes that happends". They agreed to remake the blinds and they arrived in similar condition.

If you're reading this review and see some of the recommended reviews, do yourself a favor and find a vendor who you can talk to and pay more.

I have always lived under the credo that "you get what you pay for" and "cost is always an issue in the absence of value". There is no value, and you get crap for what you pay for.

Avoid at all cost.

I would agree that Selectblinds is a ripoff! I placed an order and it arrived in about 1 week. The top of the metal blind was horribly bent and it was obvious it did not happen during shipping (as the box was fine) but when they shipped it.
I phoned customer service and you get a recording saying "we have higher than usual calls to return, please leave a message.." They never phoned back and I can understand why they have so many calls as they must be all complaints.
The bottom line is you get what you pay for. They are much cheaper because they have no quality control. I'm going to Lowes from now on and ALSO placing this info on my Facebook...that should help spread the word!

I tried to place an order, had trouble with their site and never received a confirmation email (they say I did and read it?) I made the mistake of paying with PayPal (or maybe not) I have contacted PayPal, so they had my money 6 weeks and today, what arrives? The blinds that it kept telling me "no order by that number exist" so when I contact them they tell me that I verified the email that I was ordering them, I was sent the delivery notification (I never received either) so now I am stuck with blinds that don't meet their criteria for "satisfaction guaranteed" because I didn't order samples before I placed the order and all these other things I have listed, just happy I only have one blind not a house full like some others indicate. A valuable lesson learned, deal with local folks you can go and speak with and look them in the eye! What an eye opener for me!

I have to say I'm floored. I'm a real estate agent here in Kentucky and have ordered blinds 7 times for myself and clients new rental properties. On 2 occasions, the blinds had damages, but customer service was always helpful in getting it resolved. They even had my new blinds shipped overnight one time (probably cost them a thousand bucks or so as there were 9 boxes and 30 blinds!). I'm a believer in Select Blinds.

oops... meant to say I disagree with comments... sorry

Buying from this vendor was the worse retail experience for me. I received a defective product and the customer service center couldn't do anything about it. They said it was a productions team issue and I had to wait until the productions people contacted me.

Most of the time when I call customer service, it goes to a voicemail box. I leave my contact info but no one ever calls back. I had to keep calling several times until someone finally picks. The customer service rep could care less about my complaints. Instead of offering a solution, the rep was literally silent on the phone, which irritated me even more. You would think companies cared about appeasing customers when they send a faulty product to make up for their mistake.

In terms of product quality, you really get what you paid for. The items are cheap in price and quality (my order was already defective when it was shipped to me). Overall, I would never order from this site again.

I ordered 28 faux-wood blinds last year. They were mostly cut 1/2 short, so they don't settle perfectly on the sill. They are not very good for up and down, since the mechanisms are dainty. One of them get daily wear and now broken (up and down frayed the cord). I called for their "Lifetime Warranty", but they wanted me to ship it back for repair. Too much trouble for me and what are we to do without the blind for maybe a month until they get the thing returned. Also, will it be properly repaired? So I ordered a new replacement at my cost.
Bottom line: their product is not terrible, but it's cheap stuff.

Selectblinds.com is the worst online business I have ever done business with - and I buy online all the time! Yes their prices are tempting, but if there is a problem with your order, you should just know up front that they will make you eat it. Terrible customer satification. They want to email you different sections of their legal documents to prove that they are not responsible for your problem. They work 10 times harder at sticking it to you that just providing decent customer service. BUYER BEWARE ***AVOID SELECTBLINDS.COM!

i was charged for an order that was cancelled within 24 hours. It was never prepared nor shipped. It was on hold. I placed another order a few days later, which was shipped, but was charged over $600 for an order I never received. I have tried to get this resolved but am sent round in circles from Bill Me Later to Select Blinds. Am fed up.

Oct. 2, 2010 I put an order from SelectBlinds.com for three woven wood shades. Part of the attraction of this site was the offer “Made in one day or they are free”. When I received the confirmation of the order, there was the following statement “ Please allow 1 to 5 business days after the production time for delivery”, which was OK with me. In spite of their advertisement for fast delivery, on Oct. 4 I received the following message:

You will be pleased to know that you have selected a very popular product. In fact, it is so popular that we are temporarily backordered on some of the materials necessary (LUCIA) to complete your order. Our expectations are to receive this material shortly, as we already have it on order with our suppliers, and have informed them of the need to expedite our shipment. We ask for your patience, which will allow us to complete your custom made window fashion order to your exact specifications. At this time, the expected arrival date of the material necessary to complete your order is: 10/29/10. Rest assured that as soon as these materials are delivered to us, we will complete your custom window fashions order, and ship it directly to you.

Before placing the order, I had requested samples twice, and talked to customer service innumerable times, explaining them that I was going to paint my room to match the particular sample that they had sent me, so they could have told me in advance that the material was not available. Moreover, and rather glaringly, the material I ordered was LIVINGSTON (and NOT LUCIA as in the message above). I also started to suspect that things were not quite as advertised, when the samples took much longer than the advertised 3 days for delivery (the second set took over 2 weeks, and they were delivered only after I phoned and complained).

On Oct 11, I received the following message:

Your order number XXX, for your custom made window covering products is in process now. Our goal is to deliver the right product, made correctly, the 1st time. We strive to make that happen quickly, but sometimes a little extra time is required. Your patience while your custom order is being manufactured is greatly appreciated. As soon as your order ships, which should be any day now, we will email you the tracking information.

However, on Oct. 27 I got the following e-mail:

Thank you for your recent order. You will be pleased to know that you have selected a very popular product. In fact, it is so popular that we are temporarily backordered on some of the materials necessary (LIVINGSTON) to complete your order. Our expectations are to receive this material shortly, as we already have it on order with our suppliers, and have informed them of the need to expedite our shipment. We ask for your patience, which will allow us to complete your custom made window fashion order to your exact specifications. At this time, the expected arrival date of the material necessary to complete your order is: 11/15/2010.

After that message, I got another identical message telling me that that the expected date (for materials that I had NOT ordered) was in December. After I got this message, I phoned and complained: not only I had painted the walls and bought stuff to match the selected blinds, but also these blinds were meant for our bedroom (I ordered them with blackout lining). Since the advertising was “Made in one day or they are free”, I had got rid of my old blinds, which was a problem for my bedroom. The agent in customer support gave me a 10% discount (which hasn’t shown up in my credit card yet, and I’m wondering if it ever will), and I hanged up with the understanding that the blinds would be delivered before the end of the year. On Nov. 5, I got the following message:

Thank you for your recent order. You will be pleased to know that you have selected a very popular product. In fact, it is so popular that we are temporarily backordered on some of the materials necessary (LIVINGSTON & VENETO SUMATRA) to complete your order. Our expectations are to receive this material shortly, as we already have it on order with our suppliers, and have informed them of the need to expedite our shipment. We ask for your patience, which will allow us to complete your custom made window fashion order to your exact specifications. At this time, the expected arrival date of the material necessary to complete your order is: 2011. Rest assured that as soon as these materials are delivered to us, we will complete your custom window fashions order, and ship it directly to you.

Notice two things: no month is specified for 2011, and “VENETO SUMATRA” (something that I didn’t order). Meanwhile, on Nov 11, I received a new advertisement from SelectBlinds that states:

“Receive your product in time for Thanksgiving or you don't pay! Plus get 30% off only at SelectBlinds”, blah, blah, blah

I phoned once more on Nov 12: first, I was put on hold for over 45 minutes. When I finally managed to talk to the customer support agent, I challenged the company about their policy of delivering in time or making the blinds for free. This, not surprisingly, they refused. Finally, I gave in once more and accepted an arrangement in which they would send me “all the samples”, so that I could match them to the walls, etc. In complete accordance with their behavior of lies and deceit, the samples have not been sent.

All these facts indicate to me that selectblinds is using a policy of deception, false promises and just blatant lies to attract buyers. It would be interesting to find out how many people (those buying not only the “LIVINGSTON”, but also the “VENETO SUMATRA” and the “LUCIA”, and God knows what else) have been reeled in under the promise of fast delivery, only to be put on hold with the “backorder” excuse. It would also be interesting to know whether selectblinds, after having cashed in the money of its buyers, has any intention of delivering at all.

Moreover, I have checked through the web. It is clear that SelectBlinds is flooding the web with phony, positive reviews. The Bureau for Better Business (BBB), also located in Arizona, gives them a rate of A+, in spite of having 148 complaints against the company. The company rates itself with ``reviews” as 5-star. However, if you go to a more independent website, like epinions.com, the company only rates 2.5 out of 5. I suggest to everyone that has posted here to file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection (http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/index.shtml). This is a government agency that only accepts complaints, and so the phony reviews by SelectBlinds will not muddy the waters. It is a relatively easy to file the complaint at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/ If enough of us do it, FTC might initiate an investigation.

I agree with all of the above complaints. I ordered blinds on December 7th. Select Blinds immediately charged my credit card. They claimed that they would send me a e-mail with contact information and status verification. After receiving no communication I called and the person I talked to told me that she had made a typo in my e-mail address and would send me another e-mail with the information and her e-mail in case there was a problem. I still received no communication. Today, December 15th, I finally got through to a Representative named "Jose". He said that they had sent me five e-mails. He claimed that he would ask the IT department about the problem. He stated that their e-mail sometimes end up in the customers junk e-mail box. Good to know! "Jose" said that my blinds were still in production and that he did not have the status of my order. I decided after not being able to communicate with the company or to find out the status of my order that things seemed somewhat suspicious and canceled my order through their e-mail system as directed. I also called and left a message on their answering machine as a follow-up to the cancellation of my order. Now after finding all these complaints against Select Blinds I have a feeling it's going to be a trial to have my credit card credited back.

Really? i have ordered 3/8" double cell blinds on two different occasions from selectblinds.com without any issues. I ordered 6 blinds the first time around and then 3 blinds the second. All my blinds that I received were perfect, cut to correct size, no blemishes, straight and square, and a color match to the samples they gave me. I stumbled acrossed this page while I was searching for a coupon code because I'm about to order the last 3 blinds for my house. No I am not being paid to comment here by select blinds. I'm sumprised to find complaints I guess. In my experience they have provided very good communication and a quality product. Just wanted to add my 2 cents.

Thanks for the kind words, Matt. Our Customer Care Department and production facilities around the country work diligently to deliver your order correctly and on-time. In our business, fabrication mistakes and shipment damages do occur a small percentage of the time. However, we work diligently to immediately correct mistakes for our beloved customers.

Best regards,

Sean B. Ardry,
Customer Care Manager, Selectshops.com
sean.ardry@selectshops.com

To our valued customers on this thread,
Selectblinds.com not only stands behind our products and services, but works diligently to ensure customer satisfaction. We find that most complaints offered online don't include all details, and are most often resolved quickly after being posted. As with any online purchase, it is a good practice to research prior to buying. We suggest checking our seller ratings here:
http://www.google.com/products/seller?cmi=31770959332638720&zmi=selectblinds.com
http://reviews.pricegrabber.com/selectblindscom/r/6114/
http://www.nextag.com/Select+Blinds~650324zzzreviewsz1zzzzzmainz17-htm
http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Select_Blinds
http://www.bizrate.com/ratings_guide/cust_reviews__mid--60050.html

If you need any assistance at all, contact me directly. I'll be more than happy to help.

Best regards,

Sean B. Ardry,
Customer Care Manager, Selectshops.com
sean.ardry@selectshops.com
[protected]

I ordered my blinds on 2/12. 4 of them are made too large for my windows. After back and forth with them, I give up and decided to pay for the cut down and have my peace. Sent them back on 3/14. As of nowI still don't have my blinds yet.

I ask them to send me the actual measurements of the blinds because it has been a long while. I also want to make sure it comes out perfect since I have to pay for the cut down. This simple request took 2 weeks. Finally they send me the measurements BUT these measurement are the same as the size of my window... All I want is the size of the blinds!

They said these ARE the sizes and ask me how much I want it to cut down... Something is really wrong with this company. Not only they can't make the blinds the right size, they have major communication issue.

I just had my first and LAST experience with Selectblinds. Not only was the order wrong, the quality is awful and the customer service people are arrogant and hostile. I asked to speak to a manager and one was supposed to get back to me a week ago - still waiting. These are going right in the trash.

I'm filing a complaint with the FTC for deceptive business practices too. Voiding their entire warranty because you didn't order a color swatch when your problem has nothing to do with color is a fraud and a scam. They coax you into not wanting to wait for a swatch by offering a discount only if you order on the spot, so if you don't really care that much that white will be white, then you don't have a warranty and they can send you any junk at all with impunity. After a few hours on hold you get the point that they only want to mess with you and take your money.

I have been a select blinds customer since 1999, and have covered dozens of windows in 4 different homes. I have always had exemplary service, delivery and product from them. Not one complaint! Give them a shot.

This exact thing happened to me...you would think they would have fixed their website by now...almost 3 years later. This just proves to me that they are a company without integrity. Please avoid them!

Ordered my blinds 30 days ago. Got 1 out of 5 and it was too long and not adjustable. Never get anyone on the phone, plays recordings for TEN minutes then goes to voice mail. Chat never works.
Never ever again!

I ordered two sets of blinds on 1/6/13. yhis experience has turned into a nightmare. I needed to make a slight change to my order, which you can only do by email. I decided to call and try and speak with an actual person because i felt i could better explain what i needed over the phone... That was a total joke, I called three times, each waiting ten or more minutes only to get a voice mail. As if they are actually that busy. When someone did return my call my phone rang twice. It was quite obvious at that point that their goal is to get your money and make it as difficult as possible to cancel an order . I don't want to forget that when you choose the option to speak with a representative about an existing order the call is automatically disconnected. i attempted this three times in a row. Long story short, this is the worst online shopping experience i have ever had and will warn everyone I know about this greedy, deceitful business. caveat emptor! Buy local!

We have done business with this outfit twice and they have failed to come close to their advertised claims each time. One order took 2 1/2 months with five incorrectly made blinds. Online communication was ineffective and calling was a fifteen minute wait, waste of time. If you need a cutout, send them a diagram and a picture of your request.

I ordered roller shades from them in April 2012. I was in the middle of a remodel so didn't install them until September. All of my roller shades were put on backwards! When I contacted the company stating that I put the shades up with the brackets are stated and the shades were backwards they said well those are the only brackets we have for those roller shades. I was going back and forth on email with them because like others here could never get anyone to answer their phone or return my calls. I was so disappointed because I had searched so long for these type of roller shades (reminiscent) that now I have over $400 worth of junk. I was excited by their affiliation with a reputable TV show but obviously all they sell is garbage. Buyer beware!

I ordered blinds from SelectBlinds and wished I didn't! I choose $200.00 worth of faux wood 2-1/2 blinds in Oak based off the picture on the website. The website showed the blind with a wood grain-like feature. I received my blinds and there is no wood appearance to the blind and they are orange colored, not Oak. I contacted customer service via the chat service and was told since I didn't order a sample the blinds were not eligible for a return. So much for 100% satisfaction! I will never order from them again and will tell others to do the same.

I placed my order with select blinds for vertical blinds for my kitchen window. After shipping and handling the total came to about 87 dollars. They came pretty quick and they fit perfectly with my husband put them up in the window. They also work the way they're supposed to. We made sure to measure the windows to where we wanted the blinds to fall and to run across. After reading all the complaints on here I can only assume that they have either changed the way they do business or nobody was measuring their windows the right way. Select Blinds is a discount outlet its not Lowes, Home Depot, its not a designer window coverings store its just a place to get cheap window coverings.

It's difficult to take this seriously when you state from the get go that you were aware of discrepancies in your measurements of the blinds. Special order purchases of custom goods require 100 percent correct measurements from the beginning unless they are spec'd with an allowance for a specific margin of error. I would say this is a measure twice cut once scenario. For future reference, when measuring a window measure top middle and bottom in width and record the smallest measurement; measure left, middle, and right for height and record the smallest measurement. Then specify inside or outside mount. Given those variables, it is difficult for blinds to be misshipped. Now how said blinds look installed is a matter of bow in the window frame, adherance to the stated measurements, and the initial accuracy of measurement. Sounds like maybe there is blame to be spread around everywhere.

Terrible customer service. I ordered two blinds. They arrived very swiftly. They got the measurements completely wrong. They were the wrong colour and they did not include the right amount of vanes for the larger blind. A complete rip-off. Now they refuse to take any responsibility or admit their mistakes.

Nice shades but one out of the 4 was too long by about 1/2" and would not fit. I followed their measurement instructions to the letter and measured at least 3 times to make sure there was no problems. The shade in question was cut only 1/4" narrower (width-wise) than the measurement I provided compared to the other 3 that were 1/2" to 3/4" narrower. I contacted customer (lack of) service and they said they would look into it... two weeks later still no resolution. I will pay my local shade man $75 to fit them right and go on with life. You save money but pay in aggravation... Mike, Destin, Florida

this place is a dump, I agree they would rather spend more time on explaining to you how to rip you off than to just send back the product and remake. They told me I had to go donate the blinds to salvation army and then they would wait for receipt to remake the correctly measured blinds. What a joke! I even offered to pay for the shipping to have them returned. nope. unreal!

By accident I ordered from the wrong .com blind company, So, I ordered faux wood no holes for one window. From selectblinds.com After I hung the blind i was able to see that the slats are warped, (not able to close all the way for privacy, with gaps between some of the slats. I had wokrd for H. D. In the blind department for 5 and a half years.
I inspected the blinds at that point to see if the gap could be adjusted. Not doable, the slats them self are warped. Also the top slat is a full inch down from the head rail, so when you close the blind you have a large gap at the top. Which lets the light in in the AM. Called no customer service, did get a I Live person, but he was no help, required that I send pictures, which I did, and his production department will look at them and decide If they are REALLY warped. I would recommend the other blinds.(company), which is much better with their return policies, and have always been excellent to work with. Have waited for a call back but after reading the above reviews, I am going right to my credit card for a refund.

Like many others, I carefully measured (I've ordered blinds for other homes from other companies and never had an issue) and select blinds took over an inch off of some of them and the rest were defective. Customer service said they would only exchange one even though they did not send the correct measurements for any. They wanted to see a picture of the defective ones, pics were sent, and I never heard from them again. They are a scam.