When you spend more than two grand on a refrigerator, you sort of assume that it will keep your food cold. At least, Kim did. The fridge is less than a year and a half old. Whenever the power goes off, even if just for a few seconds, the refrigerator starts slacking off on its keeping-things-cold duties. The gauge says that it’s at the proper temperature, but it’s inaccurate. The refrigerator’s contents, including her infant son’s medications that need to stay cold and a large supply of frozen breast milk, thaw or warm. It’s happened four times since December. [More]
It’s Totally Not Cool That My Fridge Stops Working And Tells The Wrong Temperature
By March 8, 2013
Sears’s Definition Of ‘In Stock’ Differs From Reality
By January 28, 2013
Matt needed a new refrigerator, and he needed one quickly. Well, his tenant did, and he needed to pay for it. He saw that Sears had one available for immediate delivery, and even advertised on their site that they could help consumers out in appliance emergencies. Sweet! Only their definition of “in stock” differs from the real meaning of that term. The refrigerator isn’t in their warehouse. They can’t deliver it. They’re waiting to get more from the manufacturer, and have to leave Matt and his tenant in limbo. [More]
Maytag Repair Bumbling Leaves Us Without Fridge For Five Weeks
By January 8, 2013
Kristine’s family has managed for a month without a refrigerator. Sure, if you’re a single person who subsists on takeout, that’s not so hard. Try being a family with small children and eating out of an ice chest for more than a month…starting just after Thanksgiving [More]
Whirlpool Welcomes Me To The Era Of Disposable Appliances
By October 17, 2012
What’s worse than an appliance breaking down and having to pay for the expensive repair? When it happens and the appliance is only a few weeks out of warranty. That’s what happened to Jonathan. His Whirlpool refrigerator broke down when he had owned it for thirteen months. Yes, a repair was possible, but cost only $300 less than he originally paid for the fridge. What’s with all of these disposable appliances? [More]
Everything This Appliance Delivery Service Could Screw Up, They Did
By June 13, 2012
When Sears sent a delivery service to Stephen’s house with a new dishwasher and fridge, he didn’t have ridiculously high expectations. He did expect installers to show up, not damage the new appliances or his home, not remove items necessary to install the new appliances, and bring all of the items that he paid for. They managed none of these things. And they were late. Now it’s three weeks after the delivery, and he still doesn’t have a working dishwasher. [More]
Sears Doesn’t Handle Rejection Well, Incessantly Robocalls After You Refuse Fridge Delivery
By June 7, 2012
Based on previous Consumerist stories about Sears, it might surprise you to learn that the refrigerator that Ginger and her husband purchased was brought to their home in one piece, on the correct day, and actually existed. Only they had discovered after placing the order that it was too wide for their kitchen, and they had ordered a new one instead. They were instructed to refuse the delivery, and then they would receive a correctly-sized fridge on a different day, and a refund. Yay! Only instead, they’ve received a barrage of robocalls from Sears, despite four separate attempts to cancel the order for the larger refrigerator. [More]
Is Paying $400 More For The Same Refrigerator Really A Replacement?
By June 5, 2012
E-mails to Consumerist about Electrolux products typically usually contain expressions of dismay. Customers are upset that appliances that are supposed to be “the best” around and are priced accordingly have failed, even within the warranty period, and the company won’t help. You may recall the story of George from a few weeks ago. After some effort, George got Electrolux to offer to buy back his refrigerator, but not to pay the $400 difference between the price of the unit a year ago and its current price. Here’s the interesting thing, though: somehow he managed to buy two separate warranties that replace defective appliances. Not buy back, replace. [More]
Even A Happy Ending To An Appliance Saga Doesn't Leave Customer Happy
By May 22, 2012
Last year, George purchased an Electrolux refrigerator from HH Gregg. Just barely a year after the first anniversary of his purchase, the fridge broke down. After he contacted four separate repair shops trying to find someone to fix it, the search came up empty. No repair tech, no working fridge. But wait! Electrolux contacted him, offering to buy back the fridge for the same price he paid for it. Hooray! But he’s still not satisfied, since the refund doesn’t cover the full cost of getting a new appliance. [More]
This Frigidaire Mini Fridge Has A Mini Lifespan
By December 14, 2011
Living far from home in a dorm, Damian took advantage of a Black Friday sale at Best Buy to purchase a tiny refrigerator that could hold the necessities of life. (Insert joke about what you thought the “necessities of life” were when you were in college here.) The Frigidaire appliance didn’t last long, though. It’s already dead after less than a month. And while Best Buy would be happy to take the fridge back, he doesn’t have a truck and can’t take it back to the store it came from. What can he do? [More]
Samsung's Kafkaesque Refrigerator Executive Customer Service Runaround
By September 9, 2010
Jason’s story about his Samsung refrigerator seems, for the first few paragraphs, to be a relatively mundane incident involving a customer who is (justifiably) annoyed when some relatively small features of his $2,700 refrigerator kept breaking, requiring repairs. But when the icemaker and the entire freezer began to fail, Jason’s story took a different turn. A repairman encouraged him to seek a replacement for the frequently failing fridge, which he did. Now his quest for a new fridge looks more like a part-time job, and Samsung’s executive customer service is beginning to look like … regular customer service. [More]
Lowe's Replaces The Refrigerator From Hell
By October 8, 2009
Buddy, owner of the refrigerator from hell, has sent us a follow-up. Lowe’s has agreed to send him a check for the replacement cost of the evil fridge. Hooray!
Kenmore Fridge Doubles As Easy-Bake Oven, Saves Valuable Space In Kitchen
By August 13, 2009
It’s good to have an Easy-Bake Oven around for those times when you want to serve a tiny, partially baked cake-like product to your parents or little sister. The last thing you want, though, is another appliance cluttering the counter. Kenmore has solved that problem with a built-in fridge model with light bulbs that stay on even when the door is shut—and explode when you try to unscrew them! Okay, the exploding glass part is maybe not so convenient.
Crisis At The Florist: When Cooler Heads Prevail
By June 19, 2009
After weeks of trying to get our floral cooler fixed, it has been fixed as of 2:00pm today! The issue was with the dryer valve and not the compressor. The valve was completely clogged and we had a new one soldiered on. It went from 85 degrees to 44 degrees in 15 minutes. It is the best $324.45 I have ever spent!
Recall Roundup – Strollers, Hair Dryers, And Zombie Coffee Grinders
By June 17, 2009
Hazardous hair dryers, unstoppable strollers, zombie coffee grinders, and breakable cribs are this week’s stars of the Recall Roundup. Watch out!
LG Refrigerator Causes Flash Floods, Mini-Glaciers
By May 4, 2009
Jason’s refrigerator wouldn’t work correctly, no matter how many times it was repaired. Eventually, Best Buy had to intervene. Yes, that Best Buy.
This !@#$% KitchenAid Refrigerator Won't Stop !@$% Beeping!
By October 4, 2008
Beep… Beep… Beep… That’s all Robin’s new KitchenAid fridge does. For the past two months, nothing but !@#$ beeping. Sears claims that they replaced every circuit board in the fridge, and that Robin’s only choice is to wait another beeping month for a replacement unit. Think that might drive you a little crazy? Try reading Robin’s letter…
8 Tips That Will Keep Your Refrigerator Healthy And Your Bills Low
By August 19, 2008
Consumer Reports has some tips for keeping your refrigerator happy and your utility bills low. Keeping the door shut as much as possible is apparently very important. As mom always said, “We’re not trying to refrigerate the entire State of Illinois, are we?”
