When my old washer stopped spinning things dry enough to go into the washer.... I called DVD Appliance World, since I'd had good experiences in the past. I hoped they'd be able to restore it's ability to spin things from sodden to slightly damp.
In the past, they've been great -- good products, good prices, on time delivery etc. This go round? It was a train wreck. Luckily, in the end, they fulfilled their obligations, and my (second) washer is working fine) But getting here was dreadful..
Here is the story:
Turns out that you can't repair the old washer for less than the cost of a brand new set. So I went into the shop and bought a new washer. They were to deliver my new washer on a Wednesday. I'd told them Monday that I could not be home between 1:15 and 2:45, but could be available from 7:30 am til 8:00 pm otherwise. So they called at 8:30 Wednesday morning to say they'd deliver between 11 am and 3p, and the driver would call 1/2 hour before he was to arrive. I reminded them of that no-go window when I had to take a kid to the doctor. They promised to tell the delivery guy.
At 2:00, while I was in the doctor's office, I got a call from the guy saying he was 10 (TEN) minutes away. I told him about the doc office problem, and said I couldn't make it in 10 minutes, but could be there just beyond the half hour. He said they hadn't told him, but that he'd switch and do his next delivery first and see me at 3.
Great.
Except his next delivery was 45 minutes away -- toward his home office, so they called me at 3:30 to tell me that they "could not" have him come back into town, and they they were rescheduling. (Note, they didn't check to see if I could get home before he left town, they waited until 1/2 hour past the time he said he'd be there to reschedule).
The next day, they finally arrived at 11:00 (from the window that was to ENDat 11). They did take the old dead Washer, They did bring in the new one, but didn't lift the lid (which encountered a shelf on lifting that I had to move to be able to open the washer) to ensure that once it was in place, things worked, and didn't check the detergent drawer (which turns out to have some adhesive/lubricant/something icky in it that doesn't wash out easily, but looks a lot like it'd eventually wash out into my clothes).
I called w/in half an hour of the guy leaving. I spent 48 minutes on the phone during that call trying to get them to understand the problem and come up with a solution that would let me actually wash clothes that day. At one point, someone tried to tell me they'd CHARGE ME $35.00 to come fix it!
I then spent another 40 minutes on the phone over several phone calls. Each one meant that I had start from the top and explain the problem, since each person who told me they'd figure it out, didn't.
I finally got a call in which I've been told that someone WOULD come that day to solve the problem and that they would (allegedly) give me a 1/2 hour notice before arriving. There is no time window -- they could come in an hour, or 6pm, or 7pm or .... (though she did say that it wouldn't be midnight).
I was really hoping that I'll be say that they arrived, cleaned up the mess, and that everything now works beautifully. But right now, I'm incredulous at the bad customer service that has taken over what used to be a good shop in town.
Luckily, the lad showed up at 6:30, and did take about 25 minutes to clean up that creepy substance (Whatever it was).
You may recall that I got a new washer because three old one stopped spinning things from sudden to damp.
In only a few days after getting that new washer, I found myself waiting for the repair guy to come fix the new one because it wouldn't spin from sodden to damp.
When I tired the "drain and spin" portion of the cycle, it added water....
After the fiasco of bringing my brand new Maytag washer to me, the washer turns out to have some problems, so it couldn't in fact spin up fast enough to leave my clothes merely damp (and thus able to go into the dryer) instead of soggy.
So... today went like this:
8:10 a.m. I call Dick Van Dyke to confirm the scheduled technician and reminded them that I have an appointment at 8:30, and will not be able to answer the phone or the door until 9:40, and that they should not use the house phone number.. They promised to tell the technician.
2. At 9:10, the technician called my cell and my house phone with my alleged half-hour notice (I didn't answer). At 9:20, (yep ten mintues later) the technician arrived and knocked on the door.
3. After extensive testing and conversations with the Maytag people, he reports that the shocks are bad and need to be replaced, and he says that it'll take 3-5 business days to get the parts.
Excuse me? the machine is a week old! Replace it! If the shocks are already bad, this is NOT a good machine!
4. I asked him to call in to put me on the phone with someone who could make the decision to replace this with a new, functioning machine. He said that all he could do is call "Raven" and leave a message asking her to call me back. He could not wait until I actually spoke to someone, since it could be HOURS before she called me back ... and couldn't give me her direct line. He called, left the message and left.
5. I called the regular number and talked to customer service, who transferred me to Raven's voice mail where I left a message.
6. I called sales, who transferred me to a different customer service agent, who told me she'd put me in to Raven's voice mail. I told her I'd already left Raven a message, could I please talk to her supervisor. Customer Service Agent put me on hold, talked to her supervisor, and came back telling me she could put me through to Raven's voice mail.
7. I finally persuaded her to let me talk to her supervisor (who, it turns out, is Raven's supervisor too). He told me he'd need to talk to the tech who came in, and to Maytag, and would call me back as soon as he could.
8. At 11:30, Raven called. I told her the whole story again, and again requested that they just replace the machine. She said she'd have to send a senior tech out to verify what the first tech found. (Really? we can't trust he first tech, who spent like 1/2 hour on the phone with Maytag while diagnosing the problem??) If tech2 verified the problem, THEN she could call Maytag. If they could swap out my machine, they did have one in stock that they'd have to verify is undamaged etc. (why would they have one in stock and not know if it's damaged??). In theory, I MIGHT be able to get that new one the next day.
9. I told Raven that I have a client at noon, and thus could not open my door until 1:15. She promised to tell the senior tech.
10. At 12:58, the senior tech knocked on the door (there was a SIGN on the door saying "in session until 1:10). My client graciously allowed me to let him in.
11. The senior tech took off the top of the machine, replaced it, took off the back of the machine, replaced it, and came out saying that the shocks are fine, but there's something wrong with the "outer basket" or the shaft or... They want to start by replacing that.
12. I reconfirmed my desire to get a new machine. He said he'd have to report in, and someone else had to make that decision.
13. I waited 20 minutes... then called and was connnected to Raven. She hadn't yet spoken to the tech. I told her that I'd purchased a brand new machine; if we wind up replacing major parts, I will not have a new machine, but a refurbished one. She said she'd be calling me back to let me know what we can do.
Meanwhile...I'm accumulating laundry (including sheets, since I was still able to see massage clients). My laundry room was looking scary .. I still have a wet load from Friday.
Eventually, they gave in and brought me a new machine. It too had issues with spinning things to the damp-dry stage. Eventually it all got dealt with, but I'll bet I spent 6-8 hours on the phone with them to get it done.
RESPONSE FROM Dick Van Dyke Appliance World:
I apologize for any inconvenience that we may have caused during your most recent appliance purchase.
I am happy to hear that you have a functioning washer in your home at this time. My Customer service team balances the satisfaction of our customers’ with the requirements of the manufactures. We appreciated your patience allowing us the opportunity to work with the manufacture to get you exactly what you wanted.
I was dismayed to find out that you waited for a long period of time on the phone to receive assistance. However, my staff said you wished to stay on hold and wait for my customer service supervisor. The customer service supervisor works tirelessly to resolve every issue that is received during normal business hours. Unfortunately, if you wish to speak directly with the supervisor it may require a slightly longer hold time. However, we have a team of customer advocates that would have been able to assist you more promptly.
We appreciate your patronage and hope to serve you in the future.
Respectfully,
John Shepherd
Sr. Vice President
Dick Van Dyke Inc.
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