ComplaintsforSears Hometown Store

• Initial Complaint

  06/21/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I purchased a refrigerator off the floor of Sears home town store. After a little over a month of this being used in my home the refrigerator stops cooling. I call *** and he directs me to call Sears repair and that its covered under a 1 year warranty. He assures me that this fridge is not a LEMON and that he's only had this happen one other time to the same Kenmore refrigerator. He's explanation is that a piece of Styrofoam was lodged in the vent that transfers cold air from the freezer to the refrigerator. I call back after not getting very far with Sears repair service and ask them to return the refrigerator. I way told by his only other employee ****** or ******* that she has the exact same refrigerator and she has the same problem. She explains to me that you just use a hair dryer to defrost the freezer and allow the fans to blow properly. I was then told that this was past the 30 day return policy and there's nothing they can do for me. Now they will not answer the phone or return my phone calls.

  Business response

  06/28/2022

  In response to complaint #******** regarding the gentleman who had a refrigerator failure, we are very sorry that we cannot return this item due to it being beyond the 30-day return policy.  We were first alerted to the issue 5 days past the allowable return date. The customer was receptive to the normal course of action which involves a service appointment. This would be 100% covered under warranty for any parts, labor, and diagnostic fees. He called the service company, and we then received a call from him complaining that the earliest appointment was not acceptable since it was nearly a week out. He called repeatedly, stating he would just bring it back to us whether or not we would take it. We made an attempt with corporate to see if we could make an exception to the policy, but were denied. The customer was informed, but continued to refuse the answer and called continuously. 

  
  

  To complicate the matter, the service company A&E *************** missed his appointment and had to reschedule. Understandably, the gentleman was irate. He insisted on a return. Our hands are tied, and cannot simply take back this used fridge. We became unresponsive to him after we informed him several times that there could not be an exception made, and the demand could not be met. We are extremely short-staffed, and generally all phone calls go to our answering service. We return the calls within 24 hours - but typically within an hour or two. At this point we stopped returning his calls because there was nothing else to debate or argue over.

  
  

  Appliances, much like a new car, cannot simply be returned upon a mechanical failure no matter how upset a person is. No "lemon laws" or "lemon terms" apply in this instance. But this certainly would not apply even if there were a lemon clause because that only kicks in after the third mechanical failure. The refrigerator at issue is considered one of the most reliable models; and in rare instances where there is a failure, repair is generally simple and able to be done on the spot. The manufacturer is Whirlpool and the fridge is made in ********** which means parts are readily available and techs are usually familiar with the proper repair process. 

  
  

  Our return policy is the most generous of the major appliance retailers. They require that large appliances are "unused", and if out of the box must be in perfect condition. Re-stocking fees of 20% are very common with our competitors. We have never charged a restocking fee. Additionally, we accept returns under many circumstances that would not be allowed with other large appliance retailers. This gentleman's persistent demand to return this fridge was outside of the stated policy of Sears Hometown Stores which we do not have the authority to circumvent.

  
  

  This BBB complaint is incorrectly being waged against our store, when it should be written against A&E ***************. We are an independent dealer, and have nothing to do with the service company's cancellation and rescheduling of his appointment. We are unfairly being targeted. The member reminded us multiple times that he is a firefighter; however, again, this does not ***** us the ability to take back his refrigerator. I would request that the BBB directs his complaint of the repair not being prompt enough to the service company.  We are sorry to only have bad news for this gentleman, but continuing to call and complain is not appropriate. 

  
  

  Thank you,

  Sears Hometown Store

  **************, **

  ************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩