Jim bought an industrial-strength Karcher power washer new on eBay a few months ago, didn’t open it until recently and found that the pump didn’t work.

When he tried to warranty it out through Karcher, he was denied because he bought the washer via eBay. Jim writes:

Karcher, which bills itself as the biggest seller of power washers in the US, is playing games with people who buy their products and then try to get warranty coverage.

I bought a Karcher power washer in late February, unboxed it yesterday and found it is defective (pump doesn’t pump). So I called their ‘customer care center’ to get a replacement unit (they say their warranty is good for one year). They asked the model number, the purchase date, and then, where I bought the unit. I told them it was bought, brand-new, via eBay.

Their response — they don’t warranty their products unless they are purchased from an “approved retailer,” and they specifically deny all warranty coverage to products bought on eBay.

Aside from this being a dumb policy, there’s no way for consumers to know this before the fact, and they don’t mention on their website that if you don’t buy from an authorized outlet they will deny all warranty coverage. They simply say that you aren’t eligible for what they call their ‘Rapid Exchange Program’. Nowhere do they disclose that this is their only warranty program, and that the rest of us are left out in the cold.

Disreputable business practice!

Even though months have inexplicably passed since the eBay transaction, it’s still worth contacting eBay and the seller to see if he can return or exchange the washer. It’s disappointing that Karcher won’t stand by its product, though.

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