chaparrito
Member
So in 2011 my 26 year old GE electric range with the good old Calrod elements took it's final bow. I had replaced the oven elements twice in that time and two or three stovetop burners. Don't think I paid more than 15 dollars for any of the burners.
Decided to spend a little and get a range with some features. Picked out a stainless LG convection range with all the bells and whistles. Gorgeous thing. HD had the best price and they touted their 4 year extended service warranty for 99 bucks. I used to not be a fan of extended warranties but with everything computerized these days and not at all comfortable with the notion of delicate circuitry in proximity to high heat, I took it. Spent 2K total. Told the wife "this is the last stove I'm ever going to buy". Yes, traditionalists, I'm the cook.
Fast forward to 8 weeks ago, the last time the stove worked. In the three years I've had it its main board has burnt out twice and it's had other service calls. The idiot service contractors that HD sends out are straight out of a Three Stooges movie. Last guy who came scratched his head and said "gee, I don't work on these very often", FILLING me with confidence and optimism.
One of the features of the HD warranty is the "if we can't fix it we'll replace it or give you your money back" promise. So a couple of weeks ago HD called, left a message and said they were going to be refunding my purchase price and I'd be receiving a check for 850.80 in 7 to 10 days.
I hung up the phone and thought "cool!". Then I remembered how much I'd actually paid. Called their warranty line. The guy says can I prove how much I'd paid for the range. I said can you tell me how you arrived at the figure of 850.80? He couldn't. Said he'd need a receipt. I said I have the receipt but it's illegible due to fading. He said he would refer the issue up to a "manager" and I'd get a call back the next day.
So I went to my local HD store where I'd ordered the range and asked the nice lady in the appliance dept. if she could look up an invoice. Sure, she said. It took her about half a minute to locate the detailed invoice and then she said "is this regarding warranty service?" I said oh no, it's just for my homeowner's insurance. "Oh", she said. "Would you like me to print you a copy?"
No "manager" called me the next day so I called them and said I had an invoice. "Where is the invoice from?" The warranty guy says. Duh, I said, the store where I bought the range. He said fax it to us and we'll issue another check for the difference, your first one is already in the mail. The first check arrived Saturday, we'll see how long the other one takes.
It's hard to believe, but I can't help but wonder if they don't lowball everybody on refunds unless you're willing and prepared to jump through a bunch of hoops.
Unfortunately, the KitchenAid range I'm looking at now is priced lowest at Home Depot. Maybe I can get Lowe's to price match it. One thing's for sure, I'm getting the warranty on whatever I buy.
Decided to spend a little and get a range with some features. Picked out a stainless LG convection range with all the bells and whistles. Gorgeous thing. HD had the best price and they touted their 4 year extended service warranty for 99 bucks. I used to not be a fan of extended warranties but with everything computerized these days and not at all comfortable with the notion of delicate circuitry in proximity to high heat, I took it. Spent 2K total. Told the wife "this is the last stove I'm ever going to buy". Yes, traditionalists, I'm the cook.
Fast forward to 8 weeks ago, the last time the stove worked. In the three years I've had it its main board has burnt out twice and it's had other service calls. The idiot service contractors that HD sends out are straight out of a Three Stooges movie. Last guy who came scratched his head and said "gee, I don't work on these very often", FILLING me with confidence and optimism.
One of the features of the HD warranty is the "if we can't fix it we'll replace it or give you your money back" promise. So a couple of weeks ago HD called, left a message and said they were going to be refunding my purchase price and I'd be receiving a check for 850.80 in 7 to 10 days.
I hung up the phone and thought "cool!". Then I remembered how much I'd actually paid. Called their warranty line. The guy says can I prove how much I'd paid for the range. I said can you tell me how you arrived at the figure of 850.80? He couldn't. Said he'd need a receipt. I said I have the receipt but it's illegible due to fading. He said he would refer the issue up to a "manager" and I'd get a call back the next day.
So I went to my local HD store where I'd ordered the range and asked the nice lady in the appliance dept. if she could look up an invoice. Sure, she said. It took her about half a minute to locate the detailed invoice and then she said "is this regarding warranty service?" I said oh no, it's just for my homeowner's insurance. "Oh", she said. "Would you like me to print you a copy?"
No "manager" called me the next day so I called them and said I had an invoice. "Where is the invoice from?" The warranty guy says. Duh, I said, the store where I bought the range. He said fax it to us and we'll issue another check for the difference, your first one is already in the mail. The first check arrived Saturday, we'll see how long the other one takes.
It's hard to believe, but I can't help but wonder if they don't lowball everybody on refunds unless you're willing and prepared to jump through a bunch of hoops.
Unfortunately, the KitchenAid range I'm looking at now is priced lowest at Home Depot. Maybe I can get Lowe's to price match it. One thing's for sure, I'm getting the warranty on whatever I buy.
