Looking for an independent Waltons Garden Buildings review? If so look no further. Offering a vast range of budget-priced and high-quality sheds and other garden structures, Waltons are a retailer who is very popular. One of the things that makes Waltons so popular is how they have pretty much any kind of garden structure you could want. Sheds, summerhouses, playhouses, greenhouses and much more. They have them in all kinds of shapes, sizes and at prices that work for all budgets. Today we are going to have a real close look at this retailer in our Waltons review. We are going to make sure you know exactly what kind of retailer this is, and if they are worth your hard-earned money. If you are looking at saving some money you can also check out our Waltons discount code page.
What we rate
Site has been designed so that it is very easy to use
Plenty of lower cost products for people on a tighter budget
Some gorgeous and large higher end products are available
The majority of their garden buildings come with a ten year guarantee
Many of the Waltons customer reviews are very positive
What we slate
With so much choice it can be hard to know what is the right product for you
You may need some good DIY skills to install some of the larger products
Perhaps too many extras for some of their products
How We Rate It
9.5
Amount Of Products Available9.5/10
95% Complete
Extras On Offer9/10
90% Complete
Customer Service Support9.5/10
95% Complete
Delivery Times9.5/10
95% Complete
Prices9.5/10
95% Complete
Let's Take a Closer Look...
Waltons: A quick overview
Recently, Waltons became part of the BVG Group and as such we have seen a few changes at the company. Over the course of almost a year, we have monitored the change in ownership. We are pleased to say that the results we are seeing are very, very encouraging as you can read in this review.
Incredibly, Waltons have been in business since the 1870’s, which does not just make them one of the longest operating UK retailers, but one of the oldest garden building retailers in the whole world! We would love to jump in Doc Brown’s DeLorean and have a look at what they were like back then. Waltons have always tried to keep up with the times and as a result they have had a web presence for many, many years. One thing in particular that they are well known for is their own range of sheds and other garden buildings.
The amount of products that Waltons sell is really quite amazing and we feel their vast amount of products is one of the highlights of this Waltons review. If you can erect it in your garden, then chances are they will have it. They have one of the largest ranges of sheds we have ever seen and they do not just have wooden sheds, but they also have metal and plastic sheds. You can spend ages looking through all their sheds and we are certain that no matter what kind of space you have in your garden, what your budget is, or what your needs are, Waltons will have a shed for you. It is not just sheds either. Things like summerhouses, playhouses, greenhouses and an awesome range of large garden rooms are available here. We really love the way they have gone above and beyond to have such a wide variety of products. One thing that we really like about Waltons, is how they have some sheds and other structures that are their own Waltons branded products.
Many people, though, will want to know about the wooden sheds that Waltons have and we were so impressed with their wooden sheds section that we actually put them top in our wooden sheds category. Add to that they also featured in our 8 X 6 shed top 20, as well as many other of our best of lists such as our corner summer house list which they also came out on top on. We feel that they really do have one of the best selection of products and that they have a fantastic mix of really high quality, top of the line products as well as more modestly priced products as well.
Waltons manufacture all their products right here in the UK, which is nice to see, and the majority of their products come with a very generous ten year anti rot guarantee – which does require you to annual treat your shed or whatever structure it is, but it is still a fantastic guarantee. Waltons products tend to have a lot of personality with many of them allowing you to flex your creative muscles a little bit and customise them. One of the best things, though, that Waltons have is their fantastic Space Shed which is made to resemble the Millennium Falcon from Star Wars! Honestly, this shed makes us very excited to see what other kind of fun and interesting things Waltons have in store.
Waltons: The Prices
As we touched upon earlier in our Waltons review, they really are a retailer who have something for everyone. This is not just because of the different shapes and sizes, but because of their prices as well. We have looked at pretty much every major garden building retailer and Waltons is certainly up there with the best of them when it comes to prices. They have a great range of cheaper products that are just ideal for those on a more strict budgets. For example, you can get their 6 X 4 Waltons Overlap Wooden Shed for £169.99, which is a great budget shed. It is not just sheds, they even have budget priced summerhouses such as their 7 x 5 Waltons Bournemouth Wooden Summer House, which is one of a range of summerhouses that are available for under £500. Kids playhouses and other structures all have a few budget products in their range. In keeping with getting great deals, Waltons also do a good job in showing what structures are on offer and what the current sale is, so be sure to look at that if you are wanting to get the best deal possible. One other product we have to give special mention to is their 8 x 6 Waltons Ultra Value Tongue and Groove Apex Garden Shed, which we felt was one of the best budget priced sheds released in the last few years.
While our Waltons review may have focussed on their budget priced products so far, they also are a retailer who know how to wow you with some high end, high priced items as well. While they have some very extravagant sheds, playhouses and greenhouses, we feel that it is their summerhouses that show off Waltons more impressive side. Summerhouses like the amazing 12 x 8 Waltons Contemporary Summerhouse with Side Shed, which may cost over £1,200, but it is as large as a small conservatory would be and just as well made. Honestly, while some people may come to the Waltons site to look at the lower priced products, just having a look at their more high end stuff is something we highly recommend you do.
Waltons: Using The Site
This Waltons review so far has been mainly positive and we are happy to say that they have made sure their site is as user friendly as possible. Right from the homepage, you can clearly find what it is you are looking for. They have tabs at the top of the screen where you can click sheds, summerhouses, greenhouses or whatever it is you are looking for. Or you can just hover the mouse over the tab and then select something more specific like plastic or metal sheds, for example. They really have done a wonderful job ensuring that even those not too skilled at surfing the old web will be able to navigate the site. There is also a search engine which can come in handy and save you some serious time if you know what product it is you are looking for.
When you click on a tab, let’s say sheds for example, on the left of the screen you can then get a bit more specific with what you are looking for. They have all these check boxes where you can pick sizes, building type, cladding type and even a particular brand as well as other things. Or if you are not sure what you want, then you can just have a look at all the sheds they have to offer. Once you find something you like the look of and click on it, you will be taken to that product’s page. Here you can read the product specifications, a detailed description and even see what special features it has. Each of these has their own little tab so the page is not filled with text. You just read one section then click the tab to read the next. It makes learning about a product much less overwhelming. Each product description also gives you a list of accessories that may interest you.
Waltons: Onsite Reviews
There are actually a lot of Waltons reviews on their site. Every single product has the option for a customer to leave a review if they want. Now not all products have a review, but considering the amount of products that are sold here, honestly that is not surprising. Before you even click on a product you can tell if there are any customer reviews as there will be a star ranking and a number indicating how many reviews for this product there are. We really like this and think it is something other retailers should think about adding.
Now, the actual reviews themselves: recently Waltons became part of the BVG Group and as such we have seen a few changes at the company. One of the most important changes that we have see is the use of FeeFo as a way allowing customers to independently review products on Waltons actual site. Previously when we looked at reviews, we had an issue where it looked like a lot of the reviews seemed to only have 4 and 5 start reviews. This lack of transparency is something we have also talked about with other retailers.
Waltons are quite frankly leading the market with the use of FeeFo, as it truly is an independent platform where customers can leave any type of review. The BVG Group has a very strong customer satisfaction ethos and this clearly shows in the response that we are now seeing when a customer has a problem with an order. We wish that more retailers would follow suit and take customer service as seriously as we are now seeing Waltons doing.
What Are The People Saying About Waltons?
As Waltons are one of the larger garden buildings retailers in the UK, there are actually a whole lot of Waltons customer reviews out there. Well, to save you the time of looking for them, below we have three sites who will let you see exactly what customers who have purchased a product from Waltons think. You will get to see good and bad reviews which will hopefully help you form your own opinion about Waltons. Considering the fact that Walstons is now under new management and the fact that this change is obviously having a positive influence on customer experiences, we have decided to update this section to reflect this.
Please remember that as this is a retailer who has thousands and thousands of customers per year, there is always going to be a bit of a mixed opinion as it is impossible to please everyone and as always people are more likely to leave a negative review than a positive one. So please try to keep that in mind as you read the Waltons reviews. Also, do not just focus on the 5 star or 1 star reviews. Make an effort to look at the ones in between as well so you can get a more fairly balanced look at Waltons.
FeeFo: With a 91% service rating, Waltons really are one of the highest rated garden building retailers in the market. The only minor complaints we previously had all revolved around customers who seemed to have a bad time with Waltons customer service. Since the BVG Group took over and introduced the more customer centric and transparent review service FeeFo, we can say we have seen a clear shift in the company’s attitude towards customer service. We are now seeing a much more proactive “lets solve the problem” approach. Overall, we are really impressed with this new and improved direction and after reading customer reviews, we feel you will be as well.
Facebook: We have seen many garden building retailers who have reviews on their Facebook page, but the Waltons reviews that are here are just the ones that are going to be from FeeFo. But that does not mean coming to the Waltons Facebook page is a waste of your time. So while there are not what you would class as proper Waltons customer reviews on here, you do have plenty of posts from Waltons themselves. Now most of these are about new products or special offers, but you can actually see some customer comments and view what people’s feelings are on the products they have bought.
Now Facebook is a place where people can sometimes be a little bit emotional, so we would say take some of the rants on here with a pinch of salt. Still, there is some good back and forth on here with Waltons and their customers and we see this as a good way to get an idea of the way they treat their customers.
Trust Pilot: Due to the adoption of the more transparent and more customer focused FeeFo, the Trust Pilot reviews tend to reflect the customer opinions before the BVG Group took over Waltons. As such, if you want to have a more up top date look at what customers are thinking, then we would recommend looking at FeeFo.
Having said that, here at WhatShed we have been looking at garden building retailers and putting them through their paces for quite some time, but when it comes to customer reviews the amount of Waltons customer reviews on TrustPilot shows you that they clearly are one of the most used garden building retailers in the whole UK. As of writing, there are 10,361 Waltons customer reviews here. Now the majority of these are actually positive, with just over 50 percent of them awarding Waltons 5 stars. Add into this the 18 percent of 4 star reviews and you have a retailer who is very close to having three quarters of their reviews being great and good. These 5 and 4 star reviews actually add up to 7,308 positive reviews, which we feel is just incredible.
At this point in time we really don’t have any concerns. Previously, we had pointed out that customer service could have been improved. Over the last year as the new owners have taken charge, we must say that they seem to have nailed everything relating to customer service. If a customer has an issue, it seems that Waltons are right on it, and they don’t seem to shy away from the after sales care like we have seen with other retailers. Overall, we have to say that Waltons is one of the top three retailers in our book.
Waltons: How We Rate It
Here at WhatShed, we have always been impressed with Waltons. They have a website that really could not be any easier to use and their range of products is just incredible. Even with the vast amount of products that they sell, looking around their site is nice, easy and not confusing at all. We feel that the fact they have products in all kinds of sizes and at all types of prices, Waltons really are a retailer who have something for everything. Without a doubt, this is a retailer you should have a look at if you are in the market for a new shed, summerhouse or any other kind of garden structure.
Pros:
Site has been designed so that it is very easy to use
Plenty of lower cost products for people on a tighter budget
Some gorgeous and large higher end products are available
The majority of their garden buildings come with a ten year guarantee
Many of the Waltons customer reviews are very positive
Cons:
With so much choice it can be hard to know what is the right product for you
You may need some good DIY skills to install some of the larger products
Perhaps too many extras for some of their products
Waltons: How You Rate It
As you can tell from our Waltons review, this is a retailer that we really, really like and they have impressed us for a number of years now. Still, here at WhatShed we love to hear from you guys and if you have purchased a garden building from Waltons, then we would like to hear about your experience in the comments section below.
Great shed. Delivery on time, 07.15hrs in the morning as stated by delivery driver night before. Shed very aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Only problem was shed base. Very flimsy and had to go buy loft boards to firm it up. Easy to erect. So far so good. Treated it twice on day of delivery.
I am very disappointed with the Skylight shed recently received.
1.It took twice as long to erect due to the fact that several screws were missing.
2.Several pre-drilled holes were out of alignment & had to be re-drilled.
3.When I rang Waltons for some spare screws was informed that the shed was made in N.Z. & the company did not carry spares! This is a first for me,a company not carrying spares?
4.I was told to send the shed back,as it was faulty,which I was reluctant to do as the man (I had paid an hourly rate for incidentally) Had already taken four hours to erect it to the current stage.
The following day the floor had lifted, where both halves join & will need further attention to secure them down to avoid tripping over them.
In total, it took eight hours to complete the shed to it’s current state ,double what the fitter had envisaged.
Requesting an invoice proved very difficult as I had not know they are not usually provided, just the order confirmation.
In conclusion I have to say that for a U.K. company I am very disappointed & will not be recommending your company.
Jean Boyd.
Asking for my money back for the superior roofing felt which I didn’t get when they delivered my shed ,then being promised twice that they would deliver it and waited in but it never turn up and they don’t tell you that if you order the extra base to put the shed on you have to build it yourself would not recommend this company to anybody
Bought a 6×6 shed a couple of months ago initially very disappointed with quality,very thin wood not all nailed secured etc after several coats of treatment still let rain in!!!!,contacted customer services who said id used the wrong product lol!now with a few months of settling in its warping gappy and just a pile of crap!read reviews before i bought it,are they real?as mine must be the runt of sheds!never again be warned!
Cannot fault waltons on price service and product they were brilliant have no hesitation in recommending them they went extra mile as we are pensioners they. We’re more than helpful brilliant
‘Pallet’ Summerhouse.
We did a fair bit of hunting around but decided on Walton’s for our summerhouse – it seemed ‘ok’.
FOOLS WE WERE – the website is good, but that’s where it all ends.
The website states that this is 12mm T&G, which is total fabrication. Even after a period of heavy rain our T&G had only swollen to just over 11mm. In the instructions it states you will need: a Phillips screwdriver, Stanley knife, wood saw, step ladder and drill with 2mm bit. However, one ladder is not enough, and we had to use a table saw, an oscillating saw (multi-tool), a second drill/driver (as there are 340 screws to put in), a hammer (to bang in the sticking out nails), sealers + gun to seal all the HOLES (because of the crap timber, not knots), wood filler, sandpaper, tape measure & a lot of energy.
PROS: The large sections fitted together quite well, and all the pieces were present (however MANY were damaged).
CONS: Just where do we start? Our findings seem endless.
1. The T&G supplied was only 11.1 to 11.6mm thick, not the 12mm claimed on their website.
2. There were at least 30 nails sticking out, or crooked, where they hadn’t been banged in.
3. The gap in the frame (between jambs) was too large for the doors, so we had to pack the hinges out so that the doors met, & the lock would even catch.
4. One door was badly warped, before fitting (so was the replacement door too).
5. Large splits & poor quality timber throughout (knots we expected).
6. A hole through the wall, under a window, where the T&G was totally missing.
7. The front exterior corner trim wouldn’t fit as they had neglected to trim the wood. I had to cut it VERY carefully with a multi-tool – that’s > 2 x 110cm lengths, free hand.
8. Large sections of the ‘dip treatment’ were bare.
9. The instructions are poor, and without a good set of DIY skills you will have trouble.
10. We had to fill approx 50 holes, splits, cracks & badly fitting T&G.
11. The person using the nail gun must have 20/1000 vision.
12. The customer service manager was arrogant, unhelpful & dismissive. She tried to tell me about DIY – only been doing it 40+ years (I have previously installed 3x kitchens, double glazed a whole house, all new doors, new bathroom fitted etc).
13. In my opinion there is no quality control in place. The wood was VERY poor grade timber.
14. The CEO just DOES NOT exist/not contactable, so there is no accountability.
15. We had to request replacement parts: a door as warped, 6 pieces of timber (as faulty/damaged/split) & more screws (as the internal window ledges wobble/loose) – and then had to wait 16 days from the original delivery date for replacements. Then on the 2nd delivery the screws were missing – MORE exasperation.
16. When we complained their response was ‘we will come & collect it & refund you’. No consideration to our efforts, laying a concrete slab of the correct size & the problem of waiting 9 weeks for this ‘shack’ to arrive, then erecting it to discover the catalogue of faults.
17. Before painting we painstakingly filled all the knot holes/cracks/splits with sealant. After painting & a 3 day spell of rain, the WALLS leak water – not from the roof, THROUGH the walls, probably because the wood is so thin.
18. If you dont believe us read the reviews from other buyers, we wish we had.
19. No doubt Waltons will respond with the usual ‘please contact customer service and we will put it right’………..LOL…have I heard that one anywhere before?
OUR OPINION: Walton’s (Mercia) products are sold via many popular retail sites, under different names. At one time this may have been a great product, but in our opinion it’s not worth the money we paid. We should have built it ourselves, or found a small local company who will take pride in what they do – they will rely on ‘word of mouth’, rather than a flashy website. Would we buy from Walton’s again? – NO, a million NO’s.
PS: it still leaks.
First class from start to finish. Thank you for our new shed
Scores
Great shed. Delivery on time, 07.15hrs in the morning as stated by delivery driver night before. Shed very aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Only problem was shed base. Very flimsy and had to go buy loft boards to firm it up. Easy to erect. So far so good. Treated it twice on day of delivery.
Scores
I am very disappointed with the Skylight shed recently received.
1.It took twice as long to erect due to the fact that several screws were missing.
2.Several pre-drilled holes were out of alignment & had to be re-drilled.
3.When I rang Waltons for some spare screws was informed that the shed was made in N.Z. & the company did not carry spares! This is a first for me,a company not carrying spares?
4.I was told to send the shed back,as it was faulty,which I was reluctant to do as the man (I had paid an hourly rate for incidentally) Had already taken four hours to erect it to the current stage.
The following day the floor had lifted, where both halves join & will need further attention to secure them down to avoid tripping over them.
In total, it took eight hours to complete the shed to it’s current state ,double what the fitter had envisaged.
Requesting an invoice proved very difficult as I had not know they are not usually provided, just the order confirmation.
In conclusion I have to say that for a U.K. company I am very disappointed & will not be recommending your company.
Jean Boyd.
Scores
Asking for my money back for the superior roofing felt which I didn’t get when they delivered my shed ,then being promised twice that they would deliver it and waited in but it never turn up and they don’t tell you that if you order the extra base to put the shed on you have to build it yourself would not recommend this company to anybody
Scores
Just a note to say very pleased with our Helios summerhouse 10 X 10. Had it two months now and it’s been very beneficial.
Scores
Bought a 6×6 shed a couple of months ago initially very disappointed with quality,very thin wood not all nailed secured etc after several coats of treatment still let rain in!!!!,contacted customer services who said id used the wrong product lol!now with a few months of settling in its warping gappy and just a pile of crap!read reviews before i bought it,are they real?as mine must be the runt of sheds!never again be warned!
Scores
Cannot fault waltons on price service and product they were brilliant have no hesitation in recommending them they went extra mile as we are pensioners they. We’re more than helpful brilliant
Scores
‘Pallet’ Summerhouse.
We did a fair bit of hunting around but decided on Walton’s for our summerhouse – it seemed ‘ok’.
FOOLS WE WERE – the website is good, but that’s where it all ends.
The website states that this is 12mm T&G, which is total fabrication. Even after a period of heavy rain our T&G had only swollen to just over 11mm. In the instructions it states you will need: a Phillips screwdriver, Stanley knife, wood saw, step ladder and drill with 2mm bit. However, one ladder is not enough, and we had to use a table saw, an oscillating saw (multi-tool), a second drill/driver (as there are 340 screws to put in), a hammer (to bang in the sticking out nails), sealers + gun to seal all the HOLES (because of the crap timber, not knots), wood filler, sandpaper, tape measure & a lot of energy.
PROS: The large sections fitted together quite well, and all the pieces were present (however MANY were damaged).
CONS: Just where do we start? Our findings seem endless.
1. The T&G supplied was only 11.1 to 11.6mm thick, not the 12mm claimed on their website.
2. There were at least 30 nails sticking out, or crooked, where they hadn’t been banged in.
3. The gap in the frame (between jambs) was too large for the doors, so we had to pack the hinges out so that the doors met, & the lock would even catch.
4. One door was badly warped, before fitting (so was the replacement door too).
5. Large splits & poor quality timber throughout (knots we expected).
6. A hole through the wall, under a window, where the T&G was totally missing.
7. The front exterior corner trim wouldn’t fit as they had neglected to trim the wood. I had to cut it VERY carefully with a multi-tool – that’s > 2 x 110cm lengths, free hand.
8. Large sections of the ‘dip treatment’ were bare.
9. The instructions are poor, and without a good set of DIY skills you will have trouble.
10. We had to fill approx 50 holes, splits, cracks & badly fitting T&G.
11. The person using the nail gun must have 20/1000 vision.
12. The customer service manager was arrogant, unhelpful & dismissive. She tried to tell me about DIY – only been doing it 40+ years (I have previously installed 3x kitchens, double glazed a whole house, all new doors, new bathroom fitted etc).
13. In my opinion there is no quality control in place. The wood was VERY poor grade timber.
14. The CEO just DOES NOT exist/not contactable, so there is no accountability.
15. We had to request replacement parts: a door as warped, 6 pieces of timber (as faulty/damaged/split) & more screws (as the internal window ledges wobble/loose) – and then had to wait 16 days from the original delivery date for replacements. Then on the 2nd delivery the screws were missing – MORE exasperation.
16. When we complained their response was ‘we will come & collect it & refund you’. No consideration to our efforts, laying a concrete slab of the correct size & the problem of waiting 9 weeks for this ‘shack’ to arrive, then erecting it to discover the catalogue of faults.
17. Before painting we painstakingly filled all the knot holes/cracks/splits with sealant. After painting & a 3 day spell of rain, the WALLS leak water – not from the roof, THROUGH the walls, probably because the wood is so thin.
18. If you dont believe us read the reviews from other buyers, we wish we had.
19. No doubt Waltons will respond with the usual ‘please contact customer service and we will put it right’………..LOL…have I heard that one anywhere before?
OUR OPINION: Walton’s (Mercia) products are sold via many popular retail sites, under different names. At one time this may have been a great product, but in our opinion it’s not worth the money we paid. We should have built it ourselves, or found a small local company who will take pride in what they do – they will rely on ‘word of mouth’, rather than a flashy website. Would we buy from Walton’s again? – NO, a million NO’s.
PS: it still leaks.
Scores