Shepherds Friendly Reviews 954

TrustScore 4 out of 5

4.1

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Evaluating 152 reviews, reviewers had a great experience with this company. Customers frequently highlight the ease and speed of setting up accounts and plans, often describing the process as straightforward and simple. Many people appreciate the helpful and professional staff, noting excellent customer service and clear explanations that make them feel confident in their decisions. The overall user experience is consistently praised, with consumers finding the website easy to use for managing accounts and making deposits. However, some people were dissatisfied with aspects of payment and customer service, experiencing confusion with money transfers or issues with payouts for claims. A few other people also felt that the process for adding money to accounts was not as easy as with other providers, specifically mentioning the use of debit cards. There were also concerns about delayed responses and difficulties with claims, with some reviewers reporting that the company did not pay out as expected.

What people talk about most

User experience

Reviewers highlight positive aspects of user experience, consistently praising the ease and simplicity of... See more

Payment

Customers consistently note ambiguous experiences with payment, with some finding it easy to set up accounts... See more

Customer service

Users describe ambiguous interactions with customer service, with many reviewers praising the helpfulness and... See more

Service

People report ambiguous experiences with service, with many customers expressing satisfaction, citing... See more

Staff

Customers had positive experiences with staff, frequently describing them as helpful, friendly, and... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

i do sincerely apologise for the review I left yesterday frustrated as I am out of the UK and had completely forgotten it was a bank holiday. It was even worse when the voice message didn't specify... See more

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

The Shares ISA account has some appealing features however, it’s not as easy to add money as other providers, e.g. having to use a debit card. Similarly, the colour scheme of the app means that you ca... See more

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Nice and easy to join and get set up, but the platform and profile are somewhat limited (in terms of information about the stocks and shares invested in, direct debit controls etc.). Overall nice UX a... See more

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

A bit of confusion with money going into my account instead of my wife's, but all sorted with a phone call. A shame that joint accounts are no longer available.


Company details

  1. Money & Insurance

Written by the company

It is an incorporated society in the United Kingdom within the meaning of the Friendly Societies Act 1992.


Contact info

4.1

Great

TrustScore 4 out of 5

954 reviews

5-star
4-star
3-star
2-star
1-star

No history of asking for reviews

This company hasn't invited their customers, so reviews may not be representative

Replied to 100% of negative reviews

Typically replies within 1 week

How this company uses Trustpilot

See how their reviews and ratings are sourced, scored, and moderated.

Companies on Trustpilot aren't allowed to offer incentives or pay to hide reviews. Reviews are the opinions of individual users and not of Trustpilot. Read more

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Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Very good so far

I've not had extensive contact. I opened an account online. This was very easy to do and thr email communications prompt and clear.

January 28, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I open accounts via Quidco and the…

I open accounts via Quidco and the cashback has been declined while I am saving as per the instructions

January 31, 2026
Unprompted review
Shepherds Friendly logo

Reply from Shepherds Friendly

Hello Alban,
Thank you for your review. I'm sorry to hear that your experience wasn't as you'd expected.

I've looked into this, and, unfortunately, it doesn’t meet the terms and conditions to receive cashback. This is because cashback is only available for new members who haven't held a plan with us before. You can find the terms and conditions listed on Quidco’s website, on the page you originally visited when you opened your plan.

If there's anything else we can support with, please don't hesitate to reach out using our Help and Support form: shepherdsfriendly.co.uk/help-and-support/.
Kind regards,
Elena

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Absolutely terrible devices.

Was originally with DeadHappy until they went into receivership and as Shephards Friendly were the underwriters they took over the account. Since they took over, we no longer have access to pour policies or account with DeadHappy. Instead of writing to us saying that they are taking over and don’t offer the same benefits as DeadHappy did so invite us to open a new account with them, they just told us that they are taking over and that was that.

There is no Deadhappy account to access, no DeadHappy account to modify your plan in or anything else. Shephards Friendly just tell you they are going to increase your payment every year and thats all the communication they give you. There’s no email saying they've taken the money and the first time they did it there wasn't any email saying they had increased the amount and when they were going to take it out.

Early November i told them i was going elsewhere with my life insurance as there was no control or access over my account with them and i wasn’t happy with their services. They told me that they had escalated it to their Senior DeadHappy Team and that the policy would not auto renew but would continue until 31.12. I received three emails on that date saying the policy had been cancelled. On looking through my bank the week after I discovered that they had taken out without authorisation another years fee, without notification or acknowledgement.

Sent them 3 emails which they ignored and ended up calling on the Monday morning to lodge my complaint. Customer service advisor was good enough but the company he works for sucks. Told me he’d escalated it to high level complaint and cc in his manager in order to refund the amount which wasn't authorised to be taken asap. He also told me that I could have had the policy cancelled in the November when I called and they would have refunded back a month upto the 31.12 and cancelled it there and then in one keyboard stroke. This wasn’t offered to me and instead I’ve had to make a 34 minute phone call, send 3 emails and complain to them for messing me around. I wouldn’t recommend Shephards Friendly to deal with my or anyone else’s life insurance if they make a mess of this then god only knows what they’d do when they actually need to pay out.

Instead of just taking peoples money, they should offer old DeadHappy customers new accounts and offer them a new policy one in which they can access and change online. They are not the only life insurance out there and they need to know that they are nothing special and that they need to treat their customers better than the rubbish I’ve just been put through. I’m still waiting for my refund.

Definitely going elsewhere.
FYI, this has now been sorted out and they have refunded my money, took 2weeks, trustpilot withdrew my review so I’m writing it again as this is what happened to me.

January 5, 2026
Unprompted review
Shepherds Friendly logo

Reply from Shepherds Friendly

Hello Tim,
Thank you for your review. I'm sorry to hear about your experience and that you decided not to continue with us.

We understand that there has been a lot of change for those who opened a policy under DeadHappy which can lead to questions and concerns. However, the terms and conditions of your policy would have remained the same, all valid claims are paid and we've aimed to make this transition as smooth as possible. We take all feedback seriously as we continue to improve how we communicate with you and support our members.

Due to an error, the payment was collected before the policy was cancelled on the 31st. As soon as we were made aware, we worked to process the refund, and I'm glad that this has been resolved.

If there's anything we can support with, please don't hesitate to reach out here: shepherdsfriendly.co.uk/help-and-support/.
Kind regards,
Elena

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Dishonourable Shepherds Fleecing Flock

Honour your promises/advertisements.

Took the policy out via Topcashback because they offered a very good incentive cashback. The policy went through. The cashback was not recorded.

This is utterly dishonest and fraudulent. Will not do business with Shepherds UnFriendly again. Have cancelled investment.

January 6, 2026
Unprompted review
Shepherds Friendly logo

Reply from Shepherds Friendly

Hello,

Thank you for your review. I'm sorry to hear about your experience. I'd like to assure you that our cashback and voucher offers are honoured when all terms and conditions are met.

Whilst most transactions track successfully on TopCashback, occasionally a transaction may not get reported. If your cashback hasn’t tracked, you can easily submit a “Missing Cashback” query on the TopCashback website and they will look into this for you.

If there's anything else we can support with, please don't hesitate to reach out to our Member Services team using our Help and Support form here: https://www.shepherdsfriendly.co.uk/help-and-support/.

Kind regards,
Elena

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Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Easy to join and get set up

Nice and easy to join and get set up, but the platform and profile are somewhat limited (in terms of information about the stocks and shares invested in, direct debit controls etc.). Overall nice UX and helpful customer service.

January 5, 2026
Unprompted review
Shepherds Friendly logo

Reply from Shepherds Friendly

Hello Gideon,
Thank you for your review. We’re always looking at ways to improve the experience for our members. Feedback like yours is incredibly helpful and will be shared with the relevant teams as we continue to review and improve our services.

If you need any support, our Member Services team is happy to help: https://www.shepherdsfriendly.co.uk/help-and-support/.

Kind regards,
Elena

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Rated 3 out of 5 stars

I had two fixed bonds maturing in December

I had two fixed bonds maturing on the 8/12/2025 and 15/12/25 totaling £65k so talked to the team who took my instructions and told me what is going to happen. Waited for the time period plus extra days, but i was disappointed that my instructions were not executed as the team promised. I called on Christmas eve 23/12/2025 to ask why my interest was not credited to my nominated account and why i had not received my new bond letter. The person who answered the call asked me to send them a photo of my nominated account to prove that i hadn't received the credit. i said sorry your team needs trace the transaction from your end. i was kept hold on the phone ( please trace this call and listen to it). eventually i was told it was a human error and it will be corrected by the end of the day. I was not happy that the team are going on leave and the i will have to call on the next working day. However this error was corrected. I felt that the team member did not know the banking process. I was very happy with the service provided when i opened the accounts and hope that i only experience good service going forward.

December 23, 2025
Unprompted review
Shepherds Friendly logo

Reply from Shepherds Friendly

Hello,

Thank you for your review. We’re always looking at ways to improve the experience for our members, so we really value your feedback.

I'm glad you found our service to be supportive when opening your plan and I'm sorry to hear about your recent experience.

I've looked into this and understand that there was a delay due to human error on our side. When you let us know, we organised a same day payment.

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out using our Help and Support page: https://www.shepherdsfriendly.co.uk/help-and-support/.

Kind regards,
Elena

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