Delivery chaos as Lush shoppers left waiting weeks for deliveries

SHOPPERS have been left fuming after waiting up to two weeks for orders from Lush amid delivery delays.

Customers are still awaiting their parcels after placing orders during the retailer’s popular post-Christmas sale.

The cosmetics giant is famed for its annual Boxing Day sale and customers were quick to bag 50% of its bestsellers.

But furious shoppers have been left empty handed with thousands understood to be affected by the issue.

Angry shoppers have resorted to complaining to the retailer on social media.

One customer said on Facebook: “I’ve placed an order twice on Boxing Day and once on December 30 but nothing has arrived yet and their customer service has been pretty useless.”

Another said: “Mine was ordered on Boxing Day and I’ve still got nothing.”

A third said: “I ordered on Boxing Day and no order number has since been given but money has been taken and I’ve got no response to my emails.”

Another angry shopper said on X (formerly Twitter): “Can you please ship my package.

“It has been like 10 days since i ordered! I can’t do this anymore!”

Lush confirmed to The Sun that it’s battling a backlog of orders due to a surge in demand and delivery delays due to bad weather.

A spokesperson said: “In the same way as all Lush products are handmade, all Lush orders are also hand picked, packed, and dispatched by people.

“An incredibly busy festive and sale period, coupled with distribution networks already in disarray due to adverse weather conditions before and after Christmas, has left our dedicated teams with a backlog but they are working around the clock to fulfil all the orders as quickly as humanly possible.

“We are grateful for the patience of our customers at this incredibly busy time.”

Lush confirmed that all outstanding orders will still be delivered, though it is unable to provide a specific time frame or say when delivery times will return to normal.

This is not the first time Lush has come under fire for its handling of its annual Boxing Day sale.

Last year, The Sun revealed how a website crash caused payments to be taken for orders that could not be fulfilled.

In response to thousands of complaints, Lush temporarily shut down its online chat and closed its customer service helpline.

The cosmetics chain ended up refunding thousands of affected customers and issued goodwill gift vouchers as an apology.

What are my rights?

There are several ways to reclaim your money if your item is not delivered.

Claim against the retailer

If your parcel does not arrive by the date agreed, you can make a claim against the retailer.

And if you didn’t select a particular delivery date or window at checkout, you are ­entitled to a refund if the item doesn’t show up within 30 days.

When buying online, if there isn’t an option to select a specific delivery date, try to add a note stating “time is of the essence” and that you need it by a specific date.

Follow this up with an email asking the company to commit to this timeframe.

It will give you extra refund rights if something goes wrong.

Cancel and buy again

With anything you buy online or over the phone – apart from items that have been personalised such as with your initials – you have the right to a refund within a 14-day window.

This cooling-off period applies even if there is nothing wrong with your ­purchase. The clock starts the day after you receive delivery.

The only other exception is for electronic items where the seal on the box has been broken.

But when refunding you for the item, companies only need to reimburse the cost of the cheapest delivery option.

So if you paid for a ­premium “next day” or “named day” service, you may not get all of your money back.

Seek damages

If your purchase is damaged when it arrives, it is the retailer’s responsibility to then refund you.

Sometimes if you or the courier are in a rush, you might not have time to properly remove the item from its packaging and inspect it before signing.

Most of the time you are just signing to accept delivery rather than confirm the condition of your purchase – but to cover yourself, add “not examined” when you sign.

Pay by credit card

Using a credit card gives you an extra layer of protection under the Consumer Rights Act.

Section 75 protection can help claw back your cash in the event that something you buy arrives faulty or undelivered.

A lesser-known protection offered to those who make purchases with a debit card could also help in these circumstances.

Chargeback lets you ask your bank to reverse a payment if there is an issue, like not getting what you paid for.

We’ve previously explained how to reclaim your cash using these methods.