A couple of years ago I tried to replace the original Boge shocks on my car only to find that fronts were unavailable. I bought a pair of Boge for the rear but, working on the principle they were cheap and not difficult to change, took a gamble on a pair of Britpart on the front. Up until recently they have been OK but must have done around 60k miles (if not more) by now and I noticed a slight 'shimmy' through the steering when crossing joins in the tarmac. Initially thought it was the lower rubbers which looked pretty soggy so replaced those. That improved things but it still wasn't right. Checked the LH front shock and found no damping at all for the first half millimetre or so of movement. New front shocks required. Googled the part number (STC3672) and found Rimmers could supply genuine (which I'm assuming would be Boge) at over £200 each, Island 4x4 and LRDirect could supply multiple different makes but not Boge but a company I had never used before called British Parts UK in Stevenage (www.britishparts.co.uk) showed Boge OE as being in stock. Not only did they claim to have them but they were listed at £28 each, so I ordered a pair.

That was Wednesday evening and DPD delivered a parcel on Friday afternoon. However, when I opened it, I found it contained a pair of Chinese made, Pro branded, front shocks. So I emailed them saying I ordered Boge OE but had been sent the Pro units. Timed at 07.11 on Saturday I received an email apologising, saying that it must have been a mistake in the warehouse and it would be dealt with on Monday. Around 10am on Monday I get a phone call saying they would arrange for DPD to collect the Pro units later that day and they would send me what I had ordered. DPD man duly turns up and collects the pro units on Monday afternoon and today (Tuesday) DPD delivered a box containing a pair of genuine Boge front shocks.

With service like that I have a feeling I may be using British Parts UK again (and it would take me about the same time to drive to them as it does to Rimmers so may well go there if I need something in a hurry too).

Edited to add that their website no longer lists the Boge units, just 'quality aftermarket' which I suspect will be the Pro units......

Good idea to see feedback on suppliers. It helps us all. I have found Island4x4 consistantly good over the years., Rimmers is another. They have gone the extra mile in the past and have been very helpful over the phone. I remember one occasion when the guy went walkabout in the warehouse while we were on the phone. He found and described the part on the shelf "live" over the phone. It doesn't get better than that.

I got pissed off with John Craddock only last week. My MOT is due and I needed a couple of rubber boots for the track rod ball joints, which were split. It was and advisory on the MOT a year ago, so needed to be done asap before the test.
I ordered them online from their website. So far so good, order confirmed and money taken from my account.
Then I get an email saying the prices have gone up and I need to pay extra. This was after accepting the order in the first place. . Clearly the prices on their website were incorrect. Basically selling what they don't have. Some bullshit about suppliers putting their prices up and they need to pass on the costs. I made a fuss and called it a sharp business practice and got a full refund. I than ordered from Island4x4. Got them in 2 days.