Complaint Review: Explorer Appliance Corp.

On August 8,2003 I purchased new appliances for my kitchen from Explorer Appliance Corp. The total cost of $5,272.00 was paid in full that day. Their website stated that orders were usually shipped within two weeks. In mid-September, with no items received, I began to worry.

After several unanswered E-mails I phoned Explorer to find out where the Appliances were and when I can expect them. I spoke with Eric, the same person who took and processed my order. He said he was going to check and call me back.

On or about October 2, Eric called me at home with the good news that, "Mrs. DiPasquale, your order will be delivered on October 8th." He was sure to tell me that the delivery company was not responsible for getting the items inside and that I needed to have people on hand to help off-load the appliances.

On October 8th I spoke with the shipping company and confirmed that the driver was 45 minutes away. My team of helpers was assembled. Voluenteers from a non-profit agency were on site ready to take the used appliances away as soon as the new ones arrived.

At 12:00pm, the contents of my refrigerator were temporarily placed in a box, freezer items in another few boxes and the highly perishable items in a large cooler with ice. I estimated the new refrigerators (I ordered three to keep up with the demand of my large family) would be up and running quickly.

At 12:20pm the truck of appliances arrived. The non-profit was given the O.K. to complete the pick up and pulled away to make room for the tractor-trailer to drop off the new appliances.

We unloaded a pallet successfully and were ready for the next when the driver kindly informed us that there was nothing else in the truck. I stayed calm. Surley this was a simple mistake.

No mistake. The freight company confirmed that the order was shorted in San Diego. Five of seven items were missing including all three refrigerators, the exhaust system required to vent the stove and the trim kit for installation. They never took recipt of the missing items. I called Eric at Explorer. He said that he never told me that my REFRIGERATORS were coming. I agreed. You told me that my ORDER was coming.

Eric explained that the refrigerators were on back order and that they should arrive next month!!! I calmly explained my situation. "I have a family of five for whom I need to cook warm meals, a child just out of surgery whose penicillin needs refrigeraton and a couple hundred dollars worth of food that, without a refrigerator was going to spoil.

Totally unphased, Eric said he would leave a message for the owner "Paul" to call me. That night I informed the family of the situation. With blank faces we went out to Subway to eat sandwiches and try to digest the whole idea of having no cooking or refrigeration facilities.

Needless to say, Paul never called. The next day both Eric and Candice hung up on me when I demanded to know What kind of insurance the LLC had. They would not tell me Paul's last name or why he had not contacted me.

Days passed. Life at our house changed. We bought a second hand refrigerator from an ad in the paper.

I filed complaints with the Better Business B. in both Maryland and California as the Consumer Protection Agency of California suggested. Weeks passed. We bought a toaster oven.

I call explorer at least once every few days to hear the pathetic claims of Eric and Candice. I even asked them if there really was a Paul. Eric assured me that it was O.K. to use my gas stove with no ventilation. "Sure, it wont get that smokey inside", Eric said.

This past week Eric was a real pal. He said he was going to TRY to ship me the ventilation system very soon. What about the refrigerators you ask? Good question. Today is November 18th and its 38 degrees outside. We are so used to going outside to choose the salad dressing and cranking up the coleman stove for coffee and tea that we are considering joining the Amish community.

Thanks for opening up our eyes to how dependant our culture has become on household appliances. Its been quite an experience. Now can you please send us the stuff we paid for three months ago!

Melanie
Brunswick, Maryland
U.S.A.