In 2009, Ian’s family had their kitchen remodeled to become super-awesome. One of the additions was a pricey, but fast and energy-efficient, Kenmore induction range. While the new cabinets and granite countertops are still going strong, the family has been without a stove for six weeks now, severely hampering their ability to make their own meals at home. Sears and the repair company that tried to fix the stove keep blaming each other for the failure, but it’s Ian’s family that ends up paying to eat out every night. Update: Sears has delivered a new, functioning stove.
At the beginning of March, Ian sent this message to the Sears executive customer service team: [More]
sears
Sears Leaves Family Without Functioning Stove For 6 Weeks
By 3.11.11
I Took The Day Off, Sears Cancels Service Appointment Without Telling Me
By 3.5.11
Reader Anthony L. isn’t too happy with Sears, and has one less vacation day to boot. He wrote in with a story of woe, after Sears canceled their appointment to service his washing machine but failed to inform him they wouldn’t be showing up. [More]
Sears Replaces Reader's Basement-Flooding Washer
By 2.22.11
Consumer victory! After being featured on this site last week, reader Sharon’s basement-flooding washing machine is going to be replaced. While the replacement itself is due to Sharon’s own diligent work trying to make Sears see logic, she’ll be getting more expensive replacement washer for her trouble after her Consumerist appearance. [More]
Brand-New Kenmore Washer Won't Stop Flooding My Basement
By 2.16.11
Sharon bought a Kenmore Elite Steam washer and dryer from Sears in August 2010. When the appliances showed up in September, they promptly began flooding her basement. She’s been scolded for not following directions correctly (even though she claims to follow the washer’s instructions to the letter) and is coming up on her fourth repair visit for the same problem. Sears keeps reassuring her that she’s a valued customer. Right. Tell that to her basement floor. Update: Sharon is getting a new washer. [More]
What Do You Think Of The Stores-Within-Stores Trend?
By 1.26.11
These days, more and more big box and department store chains are taking a cue from shopping malls by renting out floor space to retailers to create smaller stores within stores. It’s a model that has helped some businesses to stay afloat in these tough times, but does it benefit you? [More]
The Item You Ordered From Sears May Or May Not Have Ever Existed
By 1.20.11
Michael admits that he probably should have known better than to order something from Ssears.com and…well, to expect it to show up. What he didn’t expect was to spend two suspenseful weeks where the retailer apparently wasn’t sure whether the items had been shipped, would be shipped, were in stock, were ever in stock, or actually existed. At least that’s how it sounds to us. This is impressive even by typical Sears standards. [More]
3 Hours Before Delivery, Sears Notices Your Stove Is Out Of Stock And Discontinued
By 1.13.11
Oh, Sears. Why don’t you understand that the point of commerce is to sell merchandise to your customers? Chad tells Consumerist ordered a set of appliances for his new home from Sears, with a delivery time 8 days in the future. Three hours before his delivery window, Sears called to let Chad know–oh, yeah, the stove that he ordered was discontinued. [More]
Sears Launches Video Download Service
By 12.28.10
As we reported back in June, Sears would be launching a video download service sometime around the holidays. Well, the holidays are here and so is the service. [More]
Why It Sucks To Be Sears Right Now
By 12.23.10
Five years after their merger, how are Sears and Kmart faring? Not so well. The company faces deteriorating stores in near-abandoned malls, fierce competition in nearly every category, locations that were prime retail space in about 1974, and snarky consumer bloggers that mock the company at every turn. Oh. [More]
Sears, Don't Make Me Give My Dad A Box Of Air Filters For Christmas
By 12.17.10
Robert found an amazing Black Friday deal on a cordless drill/driver/saw kit, and ordered it as a Christmas gift for his dad. Unfortunately, he ordered it from the notorious anti-capitalist pranksters at Sears, a company whose apparent mission it is to not successfully sell anything to anyone, ever. Sears shipped Robert a giant box of air filters instead of his backordered drill set. Fair enough: he arranged to ship the air filters back. Sears refused delivery of the package. He’s stuck with the air filters, and has no gift. He wants to know whether other readers have had similar experiences with their Black Friday orders from Sears. [More]
How To Get The Best Deals At 10 Major Retail Chains
By 9.22.10
Everyone wants a bargain, which is why more Americans shop at discount chains like Target and Walmart than at any other type of big store. But a new survey of more than 30,000 subscribers by the Consumer Reports National Research Center reveals that folks are also finding low prices at department stores, warehouse clubs, and general-merchandise retailers. We recently reported on why consumers shop where they do. [More]
Samsung's Kafkaesque Refrigerator Executive Customer Service Runaround
By 9.9.10
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]
10 Companies That Were Once Great But Now Kinda Suck
By 8.19.10
There was a time when many of us got our videos at Blockbuster after shopping for a Sony Discman at Sears, all while talking on our Motorola phone. All of these companies have had their glory days, but now they’re on the U.S. News & World Report’s list of 10 Companies That Have Lost Their Edge. [More]
New Kenmore Washer/Dryers Can Talk Directly To Tech Support
By 8.17.10
New Kenmore washer/dryers come equipped with voodoo science: when they have a service issue, you can dial the service number, press some buttons on the machine and then hold the phone up to the washer/dryer and it will transmit troubleshooting data directly through the phone to the company. “Over time, this technology will solve every problem. That’s our goal,” said a Kenmore product engineer. [More]
American Family Association Accuses Sears Of Selling Porn, Needs To Learn What Porn Really Is
By 8.12.10
Remember those posters you used to flip through at the back of Spencer Gifts in the mall? The ones featuring scantily clad women — and some bare-chested dudes — looking all sexy-like into the camera? Well, apparently the not-at-all-insane people at the American Family Association are convinced that these are pornographic… and they are absolutely livid that they can be purchased at Sears.com. [More]
Sears Still Has Customers, Can't Manage To Sell Them Actual Merchandise
By 7.28.10
Freddy tells Consumerist that his girlfriend tried to buy a vacuum cleaner from Sears, but the self-destructive retailer stopped her at every turn. After waiting through six weeks of delays and broken promises, she finally asked for a refund and bought the same item at a lower price at Walmart. [More]
Sears Has Your Mower And Doesn't Feel Like Answering The Phone
By 7.22.10
Jeff Pearlman is a columnist for SportsIllustrated.com, and his lawn probably looks like crap because Sears has had his mower for five weeks. Do they ever intend to return it? It’s hard to know for sure, because they won’t answer the phone. [More]
Screw The Heat; Sears Wants To Sell You Christmas Crap Now
By 7.19.10
While we were surprised last week that Macy’s is already hyping up Santa’s impending arrival, they’ve got nothing on Sears, which has already gotten up full Christmas-themed displays, just in time for Labor Day. [More]
