Forum Topic

Trouble with Milk & More

Over the last few months I have been having trouble with Milk & More, the company and definitely not with our lovely milkman who has looked after us for the last 30+ years.Since they took over the dairy, they have done nothing to engender good customer relations and seem intent on antagonising their customer base.  In April/May we all received an aggressive letter which certainly did not apply to me and the milkman confirmed that this was an error, so it was ignored.In June we all received a letter headed 'Service Update - Payment by Cheque' announcing that with effect from 28th June they would no longer accept cheques in payment for monthly bills.  It is either credit/Debit cards or direct debit.In addition they say the usual guff thanking customers for their continued support and that they must safeguard their employees, etc.  and a telephone number is supplied.  That number only allows you to make a payment but I have come to the conclusion that they dont want you to pay that way and would really like you to set up a direct debit.For a number of reasons I did not want to set up a DD not least because we were going through a period where our bank account, cards and O2 accounts were hacked and persistent attempts were made to charge for purchases we had not made and to withdraw funds or to divert regular payments over the ensuing months.  So I went through the process of trying to pay by credit card.  It took several goes and I was able to get a payment through in July.  August and September we were away a lot and the milk bill for the period amounted to around £17.  At the beginning of September I tried again to pay but fell at the point where they said ''now enter only the numbers of your postcode''.  I did just that but failed.  I redialled and tried again and again putting in the full postcode - both numbers and letters and on each occasion I was unable to get to the payment point.At the end of September, having been away for 3 weeks, we received 1 pint of milk and a letter saying I hadn't paid for 15 weeks and to ensure continued service I must pay.  I spent sometime trying to find another way to get in touch with them to explain the situation but failed.  I then realised that the usual deliveries had stopped.  No warning, no note to say please ring us, nothing.  Instead, on a weekly basis I am receiving statements demanding payment.So irritated by their attitude that I wrote a letter to them saying that I would no longer use their service and enclosing a cheque to pay the outstanding amount.  That was on 7th October and yesterday I received another statement date stamped 15th October.  This morning my bank confirms that they have not presented the cheque for payment so now we are in a Mexican standoff.  No communication from them in any form.I tried to speak to the milkman who apologised but told me he had been instructed not to communicate with me.In discussing this with other people, I am aware that there are other customers experiencing similar difficulties and whilst we all feel loyalty to our milkman who has for decades looked after us we don't feel the same about the bean counters at Muller UK & Ireland Group.Someone told me that they cannot refuse my payment but I suspect that they will wait and ultimately serve proceedings for non payment.Anyone else in a similar position?

Elizabeth Ross ● 2198d10 Comments

I used to have a monthly variable direct debit with Milk & More which worked well.  Any cancellations or extra orders were handled by adjusting the next month's debit.  Then in 2018 they insisted on weekly payments, claiming that this was more manageable for customers, though why 52 payments plus adjustments were more manageable than 12 DD payments was a mystery.I now have all the payments and adjustments made to my credit card account automatically. My regular order is debited weekly, and any cancellations or extra orders are transacted immediately to the credit card.  This is complicated to track but does work.If there are any problems, e.g. a missed delivery one day last week, I email M&M and they sort out any refunds etc.  I'm not a fan of M&M but regard their service as just about acceptable.

Richard Jennings ● 2198d

Thanks Richard.  I have opted to walk away from them but will not be setting up any DD just to pay them one outstanding amount.I have sent them the means to clear the debt but in the absence of any means of communicating with them it is a simple matter for them to bank my cheque and have done with it.

Elizabeth Ross ● 2198d

Some time ago I noticed that they were advertising for staff.  I'm sure they will have been trying to take on a lot of new customers now that there has been a big change to online ordering.  I was trying to find out if you could still organise deliveries for a family member living away from you but they seem to have changed that.  They have changed their systems a lot since I used them. https://www.minttwist.com/our-work/milk-more/

Philippa Bond ● 2198d

Loyalty doesn't seem to count for much with companies nowadays.  They could of course find that their customers don't want to stay if they can't be flexible.

Philippa Bond ● 2198d

No point crying over spilt milk 😂

Giles Feta ● 2197d

Thank you Pat.  Good to know I’m in good company.

Elizabeth Ross ● 2197d

Never having previously heard of this company, the title sounded to me like an episode of some old fifties sitcom - ‘Trouble with milk - and more’.  And then with a contribution from someone called Feta I thought, here we go.  Goats.(Sorry, just me feeling silly on this lovely lie-in Sunday :-)

Alastair Banton ● 2197d

A friend's mother who lives in Norfolk had problems with this company so I sent her the initial post on this thread.She wrote back asking me to put this on here....."My mother has had problems with Milk and More. At the start of lockdown, 8 pints were missing from her weekly delivery. She phoned them more than once to let them know. In spite of this, she started receiving demands for payment for milk she never had. She is 80 and this was very worrying for her. We phoned several times, but the demands kept coming. Eventually had to make a formal complaint through Resolver to stop these.My mother also got a letter saying they wouldn't accept cheques. They then asked for her debit card details and take the payment weekly just like a direct debit anyway.Unfortunately, we have no other milk delivery company where my mother lives, so we are stuck with Milk & More."

Sarah Vickers ● 2196d

This thread has brought back memories. My dad was a milkman and i can remember him sitting in the kitchen trying to balance the books. No2 paid every day, No 4 paid weekly, No 6 asked if she could roll it over til thursday, No 8 hadnt paid for 3 weeks and didnt look as if they ever would etc. and those were the days of cash only. He could play centre forward worrier for for England and he did. So now, with No 2 paying cash daily, No 4 paying by cheque whenever they felt like it, No 6 DD, No 8 monthly, No 10 weekly etc. Who'd be a milko?

Stephen Gould ● 2196d

I have had the occasional blip with Milk and More.  Non delivery and dirty bottles. On occasion the order online not working. I phoned  on each occasion. Each time I was dealt with courteously,  the problem sorted and refunds made promptly. .  My moan is that often , when an order has been accepted,  the items are not delivered as they are out of stock. I do get the refund on my  statement . BUT  have to go out and buy what I expected to be in my doorstep bin. Not much fun in the winter.

Beryl Bashford ● 2196d