Reader Ryan installed an Intermatic Wall Switch Timer to control the lights on his porch, but was forced to reset the unit when the lights began to flash inexplicably. Ryan called Intermatic to make sure the problem wasn’t indicative of a larger issue that could, say, burn down his house. He was blindsided by Intermatic’s response.

A few months ago I installed a timer on the front porch light at my new home. After looking through many models I found at Home Depot I finally settled on the Intermatic Digital 7-Day Wall Switch Timer SS7C. It worked perfectly for several months. Then, one day, my wife came home to find the front porch light flashing on and off. After pulling the battery and reseting the unit it seemed to work just fine.

When it comes to electricity I’m a careful person. I didn’t want some kind of short occurring and then come home to a smoldering pile of ash where my house used to be. So, I decided to go on the Intermatic website to see if there was some FAQ about our problem. Finding the site not all that easy to get around, I settled on calling their customer service hotline.

After a very short wait a gentleman answered the phone. I described my problem and asked if there was something wrong with the unit. He was knowledgeable about the product and very pleasant to speak with. I told him I managed to get it working again but didn’t want something bad to happen. He suggested that this is sometimes a precursor to the electric motor in the unit failing told me he’d be happy to send an updated model my way via USPS. He required no receipt, no old unit in exchange, just my word that there was a problem and that I had actually purchased one of his products.

“But it’s working,” I said.

“We don’t want you to be without one if it does decide to quit on you. Let me go ahead and send this one out so you won’t be at a loss,” was his reply.

So, now I have two Intermatic timers, both working perfectly, happily installed in my home. And one is a newer model!

Yes, it’s a small victory. But it has sold me on a company I really didn’t even know existed a few months ago.

It is unfortunately rare to hear of companies that take their customer at their word. Intermatic should be proud of their CSR’s eagerness to go the extra mile to keep Ryan happy.

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