I recently ordered a pair of SOREL Caribou boots directly from the official SOREL online shop.

The Caribou boots themselves have an excellent reputation. They are warm, sturdy and well suited to cold and wet winter weather. Unfortunately, my experience with SOREL’s online shop and customer service was considerably less positive.

Shortly after I placed my order, SOREL cancelled it because the boots were apparently no longer in stock. The boots were therefore never dispatched or delivered.

The payment, however, had already been taken from my bank account. My bank confirmed that the transaction had been completed successfully, while SOREL continued to maintain that they had not received the money.

Although SOREL claims to provide Dutch-language customer service, communication proved difficult. The representatives I spoke to appeared to be English- or German-speaking employees with some knowledge of Dutch, but they did not properly understand the Dutch banking terminology being used.

In particular, a Dutch “betaalverzoek” — a payment request commonly used to transfer money or split a bill — was interpreted as merely a “payment attempt”. Based on that misunderstanding, SOREL concluded that no payment had taken place, despite confirmation from my bank that the money had left my account.

This resulted in an unnecessarily frustrating situation in which I repeatedly had to explain that the payment had been completed, while SOREL continued to deny having received it.

Only afterwards did I discover that there are numerous similar complaints online concerning SOREL’s ordering process, stock administration and customer service.

My conclusion is therefore straightforward:

SOREL Caribou boots appear to be an excellent product.

However, I would not recommend purchasing them directly from SOREL’s online shop.

It would be wiser to buy them from a reputable local or third-party retailer. That way, you can still purchase the boots, while also benefiting from a proper point of contact, clearer communication and a stock system that accurately reflects whether the product is actually available.

Based on my experience, SOREL’s handling of this order and payment was deeply disappointing.

Take care, and be aware! Marco