Builders Warehouse is an online platform specializing in providing contractor-grade building materials directly to consumers. The company offers a wide range of products, including roofing, siding, and sheet metal materials, catering primarily to contractors, builders, and homeowners undertaking construction and renovation projects. With a focus on quality, Builders Warehouse ensures that customers have access to top-tier materials at competitive prices.
The company has been operational since 1985, establishing a reputation for delivering excellent customer service alongside its product offerings. Builders Warehouse aims to simplify the purchasing process for customers by providing a comprehensive online shopping experience that includes detailed product information and convenient home delivery options. By focusing on essential building materials, Builders Warehouse serves as a reliable resource for those in the construction industry and DIY enthusiasts alike.
Builders Warehouse has a poor customer experience.
Builders Warehouse faces significant criticism from consumers, with many expressing frustration over poor service and product quality. Reviewers frequently mention long wait times for assistance in-store, with reports of inadequate staff presence leading to subpar customer experiences.
Read full summaryShow less
Complaints about delivery issues are rampant, including missed deliveries and lack of communication regarding stock availability. While a few customers appreciate the speed of delivery for certain products, these positive experiences are overshadowed by the overwhelming number of negative reviews highlighting dishonesty and dissatisfaction with refunds. Additionally, some consumers report issues with specific products, such as the AutoWorx PVC Car Mats, which did not meet expectations.
Each source counts by its number of reviews. Only reviews written by people are scored.
Rating, volume, share of the score, six-month trend and fake-review risk for each source
Source
Rating
Reviews
Weight
6-mo
Fake risk
★
Trustpilot
Imported Trustpilot reviews
1.9
36
100%
-0.2
● Low
1.9 / 5 overall
=
36 reviews across 1 scored source
How fake risk works ⓘ
Reputation trend
Monthly average rating from reviews written by people · latest review Jun 2025.
Last 3 months
1.0▼ 0.2
12-month avg
1.7
All-time
1.9
Category avg
4.4
Monthly averageCategory average
Monthly average rating and review count
Month
Average
Reviews
Jul 24
3.7
3
Aug 24
1.0
1
Sep 24
2.3
3
Oct 24
3.0
2
Nov 24
1.0
2
Dec 24
1.0
3
Jan 25
1.0
2
Feb 25
1.5
2
Mar 25
—
0
Apr 25
1.0
3
May 25
1.0
1
Jun 25
1.0
2
What people praise & complain about
Share of positive (4–5★) and negative (1–2★) reviews mentioning each topic · based on the 36 most recent reviews.
Top praiseof 7 positive reviews
Customer service57%
4 mentions
Delivery43%
3 mentions
Friendly staff43%
3 mentions
Helpful support29%
2 mentions
“Shout out to Builders Warehouse Nelspruit
Enock Masinga excellent service keep it up”
On “Customer service” · Sep 1, 2024
Top complaintsof 28 negative reviews
Customer service61%
17 mentions
Delivery32%
9 mentions
Payment issues21%
6 mentions
Refund18%
5 mentions
“Customer Service subpar”
On “Customer service” · Apr 15, 2025
How it compares
Same method for every company: overall rating, legitimacy checks, the average rating of reviews mentioning each area and the 6-month trend · Building Materials.
Overall rating and review count for this company and similar companies
BUILDERS WAREHOUSE SOMERSET MALL IS AN ABSOLUTE JOKE!
This review has been a long time coming, I'm done holding my mouth shut on this terrible business.
I've never in my life ever dealt with either really incompetent people, people who think I'm dense an... See more
My disappointment with Builders is immense. I purchased items, and the following day I got a message saying that the delivery men had arrived and had not found anyone, so I should reschedule. This wa... See more
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with a product I purchased from Builders Warehouse in Alberton on the 4th of April — the Autoworx car mats.
As an Uber driver, I was looking for mats that wo... See more
Customer Service subpar. We went to Builders in Kearney, Nebraska with intent to purchase paint. There were very few associates in the store and waited a long time for anyone to help. The person th... See more
Anyone can write a CrowdTrust review. People who write reviews have ownership to edit or delete them at any time, and they'll be displayed as long as an account is active.
BUILDERS WAREHOUSE SOMERSET MALL IS AN ABSOLUTE JOKE!
This review has been a long time coming, I'm done holding my mouth shut on this terrible business.
I've never in my life ever dealt with either really incompetent people, people who think I'm dense and in the wrong, or plain straight up sexist staff members. For years I've had issues with builders warehouse Somerset West mall and today is the final straw for me. Had seen a post on Facebook about a baby safety gate that was marked down from R1600 to R300, a friend had phoned into the branch and asked for one to be put aside for collection within the hour. First alarm bell that went off is that no name was asked for in order to know who was collecting the item. Landed up going to the branch and went to the information counter as instructed by the person on the other end of the phone call. Spoke to the lady at the counter and showed her the photo from Facebook and asked to collect the item only to be told nothing of the sort was put aside. Multiple calls later between staff members landed up resulting in a gentlemen approaching me saying there were only 3 in stock and were all sold to a woman who had come in the morning. Now please explain how you can tell someone that stock would be kept aside when stock is not existing. Communication within this business is beyond revolting as it resulted in a blame game against one another. Over and above the issue of today let's tackle some other serious issues I have with this store.
-sexist staff: woman are never attended to as they walk in or browsing around at items but the minute a male enters the store or is browsing around they are treated like absolute royalty and are taken care of within seconds. This makes woman who enter this store feel very belittled and off put by the situation and I can speak from multiple experiences and can speak on behalf of friends of mine who have had the exact same experience with the store.
-staff who are disrespectful to its clients: I will never ever forgive the one male staff member in the lighting department who came right up in our faces screaming at us for not greeting him. Excuse me you do not speak to clients like that EVER!
-Staff not knowing the stores products or where things are: My mother had come into the store a good few months ago after seeing builders sold dropsheets which she required. When she entered the store, firstly to know suprise was never asked if help was needed but then when she eventually found someone herself and asked about dropsheets the staff member had not a clue what she was speaking about and showed him the website and he said that the store didn't have any, which then she landed up finding herself and approached him to show him and he basically laughed her off. Staff in general at the store don't know where things are and shove people pillar to post between different departments which don't have anything to do with what the client is looking for.
I STRONGLY suggest that this store gets it ducks in order very soon as I'm highly annoyed after today. You have honestly lost such a good client over such simple things that shouldn't even be an issue!
Here is a simple list of ways to resolve all these issues just in case whoever deals with these issues are just as incompetent:
- TRAIN STAFF BETTER
-HIRE WELL SPEAKING STAFF WHO UNDERSTAND BASIC ENGLISH AND HAVE MANNERS
-INFORMATION COUNTER NEED TO STOP PLAYING BLAME GAME WITH OTHER STAFF MEMBERS OR CLIENTS
*Also just a side note, I know for a fact that the complaint forms at the information desks have been just chucked to the side before or straight up thrown away as I've completed numerous ones which I have physically watched been thrown in the bin in front of my eyes.
What you do with this complaint or suggestions are completely up to you, but just know I will never set foot in that store again!
My disappointment with Builders is immense. I purchased items, and the following day I got a message saying that the delivery men had arrived and had not found anyone, so I should reschedule. This was untrue because I had been at home all day, but I still did so, and they assured me that they would come at around 10 a.m. in the morning. As of today, June 18, there has been no communication or delivery since that occurred on June 10. They're quiet with my belongings! You can shop at BUILDERS WAREHOUSE MIDRAND if you enjoy issues. You will cry at the end.
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with a product I purchased from Builders Warehouse in Alberton on the 4th of April — the Autoworx car mats.
As an Uber driver, I was looking for mats that would effectively protect my vehicle’s original flooring from dirt and stains caused by frequent passenger use. Unfortunately, the mats I purchased have proven to be inadequate. They are too thin, do not stay in place, and slide under the front seat during use. As a result, the original mats are left exposed, and dirt collects directly on the car floor, which defeats the purpose of having protective mats.
This has been a very disappointing experience and I consider the purchase a waste of money. I would appreciate it if Builders Warehouse. I reached out to Builders Warehouse with pictures of the Autoworx mats & POP from my account and was told that unfortunately they can’t help me.
Customer Service subpar. We went to Builders in Kearney, Nebraska with intent to purchase paint. There were very few associates in the store and waited a long time for anyone to help. The person that came to our assistance seemed to be annoyed that we were even there. When we started asking questions about certain textures of finishes, the associate acted like they didn't know where anything was. Maybe it was lack of training. We have purchased paint at this site for years, probably not again. I would revisit your customer service training for these associates, they can make you or break you.
I am disappointed in the level of service I received
I am disappointed in the level of service I received from BWH Tygerberg.
Saturday 05/04/2025 around 11:59 I’ve purchased x13 battens
It was advised that the delivery was scheduled for Tuesday 08/04/2025
I called the Wednesday to enquire about the delivery and the message was that they spoke to their manager advising there wasn’t any in stock
However, nobody bothered to inform me.
I called Thursday to find out what’s happening and I was told that they might only get stock in Thursday or Fridays and the delivery would then only happen in the following week..
I Called again this morning, and it was said that they are unsure when they will get stock & I quote “ Maybe next week not sure”
This is unacceptable!
I made a big mistake by opening an account with RCS. It was quick and easy to sign up, but closing the account has been a nightmare. I had a builder's card with them, paid off the balance, and asked for a closure letter. However, they demanded an extra R76, which I paid. Even after that, they kept delaying and giving me excuses. Now they're saying I have a credit balance of R76 and won't close the account. I've asked them to write off the credit balance, but they're still not giving me a closure letter. Dealing with their customer service is frustrating - long hold times, unhelpful responses, and it feels like they're not taking me seriously. Avoid RCS at all costs!
Bought goods online and then returned a small number of items. Received credit notes and was told that the amounts would be reversed back to my credit card. No reversal so enquired. They take 7-14 WORKING days to settle the return. This is disgraceful. With current banking systems, this should take a maximum of 24 hours.
It was my birthday recently. Was thrilled when I received message below. NOWHERE does it mention that one has to spend R1499 to redeem this voucher!!
"It’s your birthday month and we can undeniably agree that some things get better with time. Here’s to getting older, wiser, and obviously finer! To make your day extra special, we’re giving you R200 OFF your next online purchase. It’s our way of wishing you a happy birthday and helping you channel your inner DIYer.
Make sure you use your voucher to shop online before the end of this month. To redeem it, use this code below when you check out."
Went online shopping. The code did not work. A 2nd code was sent. Also didn't work...I then received an email saying that I had to spend R1499 to be able to redeem the voucher!!
When I complained about their lack of clarity, this is the response I received.
"The birthday voucher can only be redeemable online.
I completely understand your disappointment regarding the birthday voucher.
Please accept my sincere apologies."
Why bother with giving clients false hope...Most disappointing, Builders!!
It took from the 21st January until the 5th February to "Sort out this issue" which in my humble opinion is not sorted at all.
I just visited Builder Cherry Lane plant department and was shocked about all the dead plants that they do not water - disgusting!!!!!!!!!! If you do not want to water the plant please remove them from your premises as it is very sad to see. I will not buy from you again!!!!!!!!!!
In preparation for the summer break, I planned to set up a pool for the kids during their school holiday period. While at the Builders Warehouse branch in N1 City, Cape Town, I noticed a Kreapy Krauly sand filter pump set on sale. I previously had the exact one but the multi-valve port broke. I immediately thought this would be a great replacement. I noticed the pipes were not included, which wasn't a deal breaker for me as I already had these. Before paying for the set, I asked if anything was wrong with the product as the price was much lower than the original price. The employee said everything was in working order and just the pipes were not included. I was sceptical but they reassured me that everything was okay with the product. This was mid-November.
In December, my wife and I bought everything else we needed for the pool built purely on the pool pump filter purchase. We had a pool technician come and set it up. When everything was connected correctly, we switched on the pump and immediately, water started gushing from the top of the MVP. This is when we found out that it was a defective product. According to Builders T&Cs, with any sale product (the ones with the stickers) it should have been disclosed any issues with the product. This wasn't done.
I took the product back to the store on 16 December 2024. The manager opened the MVP and found that the pipe connected to the handle was indeed broken. Luckily, the part was still under warranty and the manager instructed an employee to complete the return-to-supplier process with me. On the document, she wrote that it would take approx. 14-21 working days. Here, I would lose most of the peak summer swimming time. Nonetheless, I was okay with it and made other arrangements by using another filter pump which required cartridges. By mid-January, I hadn't heard back from Builders. I wrote an email to customer support. Two days later I got a call from Builders N1 City. The employee told me (and I'm not making this up) that she just received the email I sent and it turns out that the initial employee did not send the defective MVP to the supplier. Apparently, the initial employee resigned and did not tell anyone about it. It was lying in some corner of the store. But it gets better... This was all mentioned to me on the phone with the employee thinking I was the supplier asking me to come collect the product. Realising that the employee was speaking to the customer, it was said that she would try to rush the process, as by this time, my pool where I spent a few thousand bucks, was in a bad state. A day later, the employee calls me back to say that it would take another 3 weeks to get a replacement and I should just come get a refund. This made me very angry. She handed the phone to the manager (the same one who authorised the return) and said it was best to get a refund. This showed me that they took no ownership and accountability for their negligence and the best thing they could do is give me a refund. Unacceptable!!! The least they could have done was offer me a replacement from in-store or check another branch. But now I'm stuck with the problem of Builders N1 City not taking any responsibility!!!
I ordered a water tank online on the 11th of December. Delivery was supposed to be between 2 to 5 days. 7days later, no one contacted me. I called and was told they have no stock and waiting for supplier. Why have items online when there are no stock. Asked to make customer complaint, but not even they bothered to call. Very poor customer service!!!!
Customer Service
Builders Warehouse
Dear Sir/Madam,
Re: Demand for Fulfillment of Contract – Order Cancellation (Order No. 2022900391)
I am writing to formally address an issue regarding my recent order made via your online store. On 13 December 2024 at 09:30 AM, I purchased two 5kg Alva gas cylinders for the price of R50 each, under order number 2022900391. I also made a separate purchase for two additional cylinders through my company at 10:59 AM, which was subsequently confirmed, and payment processed for both transactions.
However, at 10:59 AM, I received a call from your store informing me that head office had identified a pricing error and as a result, my order had been cancelled. I understand that the price may have been mistakenly listed at R50 per cylinder, but I must remind you that, according to the National Consumer Protection Act (NCPA), once payment has been processed and an order is confirmed, a legally binding contract is formed between the consumer and the supplier.
I hereby request that you honor the sale as per the terms of our agreement. I refer you to the following key provisions of the NCPA which support my position:
Formation of a Binding Contract: According to Section 23 of the NCPA, when a consumer places an order and the supplier confirms the order and processes the payment, a contract is established. In this case, both transactions were confirmed, and payment was made, thus creating a binding agreement.
Unilateral Cancellation: While Builders Warehouse claims the right to cancel the order due to a pricing error, I must inform you that the NCPA offers protection against the unilateral cancellation of contracts unless there is a legitimate reason. A pricing error alone does not provide an automatic right to cancel, especially if the consumer could not have reasonably known it was an error. If the error was obvious, then a claim for cancellation might be valid; however, in this case, I do not believe the price was so unusually low that a reasonable person should have expected it to be incorrect.
Unfair Contract Terms: Section 48 of the NCPA states that terms in consumer agreements which are unfair, unreasonable, or unjust may be deemed invalid. If Builders Warehouse’s terms and conditions attempt to override the provisions of the NCPA and allow for cancellation of an order under such circumstances, such a term may be deemed to be unfair and unenforceable. Your terms cannot take precedence over the protections provided to consumers under South African law.
Consumer Rights: Under the NCPA, consumers have the right to fair treatment, and a supplier is obligated to fulfill the terms of the agreement once a contract has been formed. Builders Warehouse is required by law to honor the price at which the goods were ordered and paid for unless there is a valid and reasonable reason for cancellation (e.g., fraud or misrepresentation).
Given the above, I request that Builders Warehouse honor the contract and fulfill the order as placed, delivering the goods at the agreed-upon price. Failure to do so will leave me with no choice but to escalate the matter, including lodging a formal complaint with the Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO) or the National Consumer Commission (NCC), or seeking legal remedies through the Small Claims Court.
Please confirm your decision within 48 hours of receiving this letter. I trust that Builders Warehouse will adhere to its obligations under the National Consumer Protection Act and resolve this matter swiftly and amicably.
I look forward to your prompt response and the delivery of my order.
Yours sincerely,
Charl Erasmus
Order Number: 2022900391
Treated unfairly: Complaint against Builders Express (Ms H. Mguni).
I bought a product from Builders Express in Middelburg. The delivery was done on Wednesday, November 20th, 2024.
I requested assembling assistance from the store manager Theresa. She agreed to take the product back and promised that the product will be delivered either a Monday the 2nd or a Tuesday the 3rd of December 2024. The product was unfortunately not delivered as communicated.
I called today the store, Wednesday December 4th, and received professional assistance from Katlego, who advised that Theresa is on leave and that she referred me to delivery department.
I was met with an unhelpful response from Ms H Mguni who said that Theresa made those arrangements without consulting with her. She further stated she may deliver either tomorrow or Friday. When I enquired as to why I was not informed about the possibility of not meeting the Monday, Tuesday delivery schedule, she indicated that she called me 30 min ago. I indicated that I don’t have a missed call from the 013 number, she was not bothered to engage. I pleaded with her to provide a specific day of delivery as we have to make access arrangements to the property. She informed me that delivery is scheduled for Friday 6th December 2924. I felt treated very poorly and unfairly.
Why do you have a call centre that doesn't know how to reach a store or solve an issue!
Good day
This is the most atrocious experience ever received from your Northgate store in Cape Town.
I literally called the whole day on 15 November 2024 to follow up on my delivery that I was promised will happen today, to everytime get told by your call center that they are unable to reach the store by telephone and that they sent an
email to confirm if the delivery will occur, but I must rest assured that delivery will happen between 8 am and 17:00.
Well it's 17:22 and no delivery! I had to send the people home who waited for the materials.
You will probably only read this mail on Monday because I can see your customer service leaves much to be desired.
Be Careful of taking any building loans from Builders Warehouse, they work with a scam company called Evolution Finance, which is predatory in nature and is like a professional mashonisa. I was adviced that this will help pick up my credit score as i did not have any credit history but in truth i was duped into it for the sake of making a sale. The loans in reality will mess up your credit score, even if you pay on time and never miss a payment. Builders how could you do this to your brand reputation? its really sad and appalling.
Grace Vycor eNV-S
For some reason this seems to be the hardest product to locate - Builders Warehouse had what we needed and it was delivered even faster than they promised!
I want to say, in the past I was skeptical about using this website because of questionable review - I'm here to say they are LEGIT and they performed on their word and delivered!
Why can't I simply call the branch directly? If I want to buy online I will - and Builders will certainly not be in the top 10 sites I choose from. So if I try to call up front to enquire about something I want to buy at a specific store, I get your inefficient call center, and they typically want to refer me to your online presence. It has always been a total waste of my time, your call center has NEVER assisted me in any way.
Besides, I don't know why you have this half-hearted effort at going online - you should be ashamed about the level of effort you put in to populate the information associated with the items you sell online, which appears to be limited to just getting the item description and the price to show. But then again, this perfectly matches your stores. Why have a 10/10 online presence if it shows up the quality of your brick and mortar stores, that can hardly ever scrape in at a 3/10 - so I guess you want everything you do to be equally bad, is that the strategy?
How did you manage to demotivate all of your workforce? When there was a "go slow" some years ago I would not have noticed, except for the Builders employees in the parking lot, who - for once - seemed to be at least partially engaged and interested in what they were doing. Inside, the same crappy service and lack of interest, the only difference with the "go-slow" was that there were fewer clusters of employees having their own private conversations. The level of customer service did not budge from the normal "mediocre".
I honestly believe that Builders ranks among the very top of the most terrible retailers in South Africa. The only reason I would go to one of your stores would be if I need something quickly, and it would have to be something where the quality is generic, and after-sales service is not a factor. Seeing that I took the trouble to type all of this in response to your survey feedback request, I will copy it and post it publicly as well.
Absolute scam artists! I recently made the mistake of visiting Builders Warehouse in Vanderbijlpark after seeing prices on their website, only to find out that the in-store prices were inflated by over 150% more than the prices online. This is beyond ridiculous and feels like nothing short of a bait-and-switch tactic, I'm guessing the shop does this to make extra cash.
How is it acceptable for a company to deceive customers like this?
Not only did I waste time driving to the store, but I also wasted fuel and energy, expecting the prices to match what was shown online. If you're thinking about shopping here, DON'T. It's clear they don't care about customers or honesty. Builders Warehouse should be ashamed, and frankly, they deserve to shut down if this is how they operate. I'll take my money elsewhere from now on.
No service, unprofessional rude employees, high level of disrespect and laziness…
Builders Gezina in Pretoria is the worst of them all. They sold me an expired Rhinolite. After ceiling installation and painting it started wearing-off. I paid for the labor and paint. I went to report it and was told it will be resolved. I waited more than a week with no feedback. I then decided to go again only to be told that the responsible manager Johan Steyn is not available. One employee (which I will name later after confirming her name) told me I did not buy from them but Zambesi store. I was shocked as the store loaded it. She rudely left me when I was still talking. The second one who claimed to be a supervisor came mocking another elderly person who also had a complaint and was angry. He then said he was not going to answer someone who has hypertension and diabetic and can die any moment. The third one called Alicia was the worst who was swearing at me and banging the counter. At the end my inquiry was not resolved.
Builders Warehouse is an online platform specializing in providing contractor-grade building materials directly to consumers. The company offers a wide range of products, including roofing, siding, and sheet metal materials, catering primarily to contractors, builders, and homeowners undertaking construction and renovation projects. With a focus on quality, Builders Warehouse ensures that customers have access to top-tier materials at competitive prices.
The company has been operational since 1985, establishing a reputation for delivering excellent customer service alongside its product offerings. Builders Warehouse aims to simplify the purchasing process for customers by providing a comprehensive online shopping experience that includes detailed product information and convenient home delivery options. By focusing on essential building materials, Builders Warehouse serves as a reliable resource for those in the construction industry and DIY enthusiasts alike.
