Halfords Retail
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Very Disappointing Experience at Halfords Balham – Parking Charge Issued Due to Staff Delays
I had a very frustrating and disappointing experience at Halfords Balham, located at 316-324 Balham High Road, Balham, SW17 7AA, on the 10th of May 2025. I went to collect my order: Road Angel Halo Vision 2 – 2K Mirror Dash Cam with memory card and installation kit. Unfortunately, I received a £60 parking charge, which was completely unfair and caused solely due to Halfords’ poor service and delays. When I arrived, the staff took an unusually long time to locate my order. I informed the main receptionist, Nick S, that my car was parked outside and specifically asked him to extend my parking time, as the delay was not my fault. During this visit, Nick also booked my car in for front and rear dash cam fitting and checked the car’s controls to assess whether the installation was feasible. This process extended my stay well beyond the 30-minute parking limit. Two days later, I received a £60 parking charge in the post, issued by Total Parking Solutions. I called Halfords customer service immediately, but was told they couldn’t cancel the parking charge over the phone and that I needed to go back to the Balham store in person to resolve it. Since then, I have made multiple visits to the store, each time providing my car registration number, email address, and a photo of the parking charge letter. I was repeatedly told that the charge would be cancelled and that I would receive a confirmation email – but I have never received any confirmation. On Saturday 31st May 2025, I was told that no written proof or reference is given in-store on the same day and would receive update via email and that I would just have to keep checking back in-store if Halfords cancel the parking charge. Between visits, I also called Halfords customer service several times to follow up. On each occasion, I was told that Halfords Balham were not answering their phone, and I would have to go to the store in person to get any update. This is completely unreasonable. Customer care doesn’t begin when a purchase is made, nor does it end when payment is received — it starts the moment a customer walks through the door and continues throughout their entire experience. I should never have received a parking fine, especially when I had informed the staff and was kept waiting due to their inefficiency. The responsibility lies fully with Halfords Balham. I am now left with a parking charge that is increasing over time because Halfords Balham has failed to follow through on their assurances. I urge you to cancel this parking charge immediately and take accountability for the inconvenience and poor service I have experienced. I strongly advise others to avoid Halfords Balham – this level of disorganisation and lack of follow-up is unacceptable.