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Marks & Spencer accused of 'ruining Mother's Day' with 'disgraceful' flower delivery service

Poor: Many customers have complained that the flowers were of bad quality: Twitter
Poor: Many customers have complained that the flowers were of bad quality: Twitter

Furious Marks & Spencer customers have accused the store of “ruining Mother’s Day” after pre-ordered flowers were not delivered or arrived in a “disgraceful” state.

Scores of people have complained about carefully-selected gifts not being delivered on-time despite the shop widely advertising its Mother’s Day “free delivery” deal.

And many who did receive their gifts have shared pictures of drooping, broken or squashed flowers.

The store had promoted its floral range and assured shoppers would “make Mother’s Day truly special”, offering free delivery on Sunday of a “stunning range of hand-tied bouquets”.

Disappointed: The 'flowering barrel' (Twitter)
Disappointed: The 'flowering barrel' (Twitter)

But disappointed customers have, instead, said the shabby service has made their mothers think they “don’t care about her” or “forgot”.

One person ordered the “Flowering Barrel” present, priced between £30 and £45, which is shown on the website as a wooden pot containing five springtime plants.

But a post shared on social media shows the gift arrived looking more like a box of compost – with the plants completely unearthed.

Another upset punter, Andy Langley, ordered the Anemones Bouquet but said they arrived looking “like they’ve come from a garage forecourt”.

He told the Standard: “They cost £30, but look more like they've come from garage forecourt. They wouldn't sell these in the shop but think it's OK via the website on such an important family day.

“They clearly have no quality control.”

Mr Langley said he has not had a response from the M&S Twitter account but said: “I’ll be getting my money back one way or another.”

Numerous customers also complained that, despite ordering her Mother’s Day gift upto two weeks in advance, they failed to arrive.

One person tweeted: “Absolutely appalled at your service! Ordered flowers on 12/03 for my mother for delivery today and never arrived-Disgusted!”

Another wrote: "Thanks for making my mum think I don't care!"

Many of the frustrated shoppers have blamed the delivery service Yodel and exclaimed it is “not up to M&S standards”, with one person accusing the delivery driver of leaving the flowers outside their elderly mother's apartment block without even ringing the bell.

And one person warned against using the service in the future, writing: "How to ruin Mothers' Day, rely on Royal Mail to deliver within three days and Marks and Spencer to deliver on the promised day. Thanks for nothing!"

A Marks & Spencer spokeswoman said: "Our Mother's Day flowers are extremely popular and we pride ourselves on quality and service.

"We are disappointed if anyone feels let down and encourage them to contact our customer service team."

On Monday M&S added: ""We have made nearly 200,000 special deliveries to mothers across the UK this weekend.

"Of course every delivery is important and we have received very positive feedback, but we're sorry to hear of any complaints where deliveries were not as we would want them to be.

"We hope that nobody's day has been spoilt and advise anyone who isn’t satisfied to contact the company from where they bought the gift and we will work with them to ensure that appropriate action is taken."

A Yodel spokeswoman said: "We have made nearly 200,000 special deliveries to mothers across the UK this weekend.

"Of course every delivery is important and we have received very positive feedback, but we're sorry to hear of any complaints where deliveries were not as we would want them to be. We hope that nobody's day has been spoilt and advise anyone who isn’t satisfied to contact the company from where they bought the gift and we will work with them to ensure that appropriate action is taken."