Aussemble

I ordered IKEA PAX wardrobe and Aus assemble was assigned the task. They butchered my skirting board, tried to charge me $100 and promised to come fix it but they never came.

It has been months now. They damaged my brand new wardrobe frame and scratched the ceiling.

I let that pass in good faith they will fix my skirting board. Very disappointed with the service.

Let me start by stating that I have never written a bad review about anything or anyone online before. This is definitely a first.

We purchased a small IKEA kitchen a few years ago for our flat and had it installed by Aussemble, which were their preferred provider at the time. This was by far the worst assembly job ever that has consequences for the kitchen to date and for this we paid in excess of $6,000.00 total (that's just the assembly part of the cost).

Basic Assembly:

Let's first go over the basics of the assembly. We probably all purchased an IKEA product and went through the assembly process, which although time-consuming is fairly straight-forward. Granted, setting up an entire kitchen take a lot more work (hence why we went with 'professionals'), the principle remains the same.

Aussemble managed to assemble the kitchen to use the term 'assemble' loosely because the workmanship was terrible: Most of the cupboard were misaligned; doors were not closing properly and had gaps. Where the previous kitchen was ripped out, Aussemble left holes and gaps unpainted and unfilled. Finishing was awful, with silicon gel spilling out from every gap around the sink and the gaps between bench tops (that were also not properly filled in certain places).

Now for the big errors.

Dishwasher:

They installed a dishwasher that was propped up on two lose planks of wood. The plumbing job was so awesome, that the dishwasher promptly began to leak days after and went on to destroy our floorboards and cause water damage to the flat below ours. Following threats of legal action Aussemble re-sent their plumber, that charged us ~$3,000.00 originally for the installation, to realise that the water was not connected properly, hence causing the leak. Clearly a plumber that knows what he is doing and is worth every cent of the $3,000.00 he charged for this.

Range hood/Power points:

The Electrician cost around $2,500.00 to connect the range hood and to install 2 dual power-points. Excessive? Yes. But we were assured that the job required all kinds of quality certificates that cost money. Anywho... the Range Hood lasted a week before the lights died. I queried this with Aussemble and was mailed 2 new lights - which didn't help because it was a wiring issue. Subsequently the hood just decided to switch on full blast and work for 3 days straight (not able to switch it off) before it eventually died. It still looks good though... stainless steel and all. No matter that it has no functional value at all.

Power-points work great... except that you cannot actually switch them off. The little button on top of the point does absolutely nothing and the power keeps flowing through. Those safety certificates are certainly worth a lot in this case.

Outcome:

After wrestling with Aussemble around the kitchen workmanship and the water damage caused by poor dishwasher installation, threatening legal and media action and having to wait weeks for them and IKEA to play the blame game (is it the warranty or is it the installation), seemingly enjoying that tennis match as time flowed on - we decided that it was too much trouble to keep chasing them up for... well everything else. That was probably their desired outcome.

So, after spending $10,000.00 jointly on the kitchen material and installation, we have a dysfunctional and semi-operational kitchen. I think IKEA has now dumped Aussemble - although this is unconfirmed; however a word of advice:

Never go with Aussemble for any work you need to do, whether as an individual or a company. Not only is their ability to do even the most basic work questionable, their safety standards are appalling - and although one may write this off as an isolated incident; what

Extremely dissatisfied with Install, 4 years down the track - IKEA kitchen. Oven and dishwasher not protected with 'diffuser' product that protects the benchtop from subsequent steam and moisture.

Wooden Kitchen benchtop is moulded, bubbly and warping. When approaching AUSSEMBLE for assistance in rectifying this situation and for compensation was told that their Warranty of Workmanship only covers work within a 12month period. Would not reccommend this company, save your money, stress and time down the track.

I now have a mouldy benchtop and have been quoted ovr $2000 to fix the errors made. IKEA have given me benchtops in replacement, but at the end of the day it is the Assembly company that made the mistake

Hi, I just want to inform people who are considering having their IKEA kitchen installed by Aussemble that even if you have already purchased your kitchen and don't require measuring you still have to pay the $200 for the "design review" (refundable if you go ahead with them)

I was told by IKEA the $200 design review was optional. I think there should be better communication between both companies so customers are given the correct information.

I did let Aussemble know that $200 was a lot of money just for a quote.

Please let me know if I was given the incorrect information but this is what I was told today when I contacted Aussemble.

Reputed DIY furniture retailers like IKEA should be careful,when associating with Aussemble, a flat pack furniture installation company, who are quick to take your money; for delayed and over priced services.

When I called Aussemble, to have my IKEA kitchen installed, the sales consultant charged me a hefty $230, for a quote; which was described as "˜compulsory'.

I felt that it was overpriced, considering most companies quote free of charge, these days.

"We need to send someone to your property to do the measurements, in order to verify your IKEA Home Planner design, as it is required by regulations", said the Aussemble sales consultant, who answered the call.

IKEA home planner is free application software that can be downloaded from the IKEA websites, for DIY-interior designing.

The sales consultant told me that Aussemble will send a contractor, for measuring and quoting, within seven days.

After seven days, I called Aussemble to inquire about the service I did not receive.

"We will remind the tradesman about it. Sorry for the inconvenience," said the sales consultant.

By this time, the new IKEA kitchen cabinets were taking up a lot of the living space, and they were an inconvenience to me and my family.

After waiting for a few more days, I called Aussemble again to inquire.

"Sorry about that. I will make sure that he (tradesman) calls you before the end of the day," said the sales consultant.

When I didn't receive the call as promised, my wife took matters to her own hands, and called Aussemble.

Third time lucky, I received an acknowledgement call from the assigned contractor, and he promised to call that evening, to follow up with a date and a time, once he has checked his schedule.

When he didn't call as promised, I rang him up the next day, and he mumbled on for a few minutes about some personal situation, which kept him from calling the previous day, and promised to attend that the evening.

When he did not, I called him the next day, and he finally arrived to take the measurements, and said that he will call me with a quote, over the coming weekend.

By this time, I've had the kitchen cabinets for over three weeks, sitting in my lounge room.

Some of the cabinets didn't look as new as they did, when I assembled them, since my toddler son has scribbled over them with a pen.

When I didn't receive a call from him over the weekend, I called him the following week, asking for a quote; and again, he mumbled on about some personal circumstances which kept him from calling over the weekend, and promised to call me the next day with the quote.

After waiting for two more days, I called him again, and this time, he quoted me a figure of $1750 for the job.

Since the kitchen cabinets only cost me about that much, and the Aussemble website cost estimator gave me a figure that was less than half as much as his quote, I asked him to explain the figure.

He assured me that he calculated the figure using the $90 per assembled cabinet price quoted in the Aussemble website, and the charges include the cost for demolishing the existing kitchen cabinets and modifications.

When I told him that I can demolish the old cabinets, he took $250 off the price.

Furthermore, he added that he could not start work any time soon, and that I may have to wait for two more weeks.

I decided to forgo the amount I paid to Aussemble for measuring and quoting, and hire an independent carpenter.

The plumber I hired, for the kitchen waterworks, demolished the old kitchen free of charge, and it only took him 20 minutes.

The carpenter I hired, showed up on time, and did a magnificent job with the kitchen; and above all, charged me $450 for 12 hours of work.

Aussemble clearly showed a lack of commitment towards me, their customer; and I will not be using their services in the future, nor will I recommend them to my acquaintances.