Complaint Review: SEARS - Internet

Several months ago our washer burnt out and needed to be replaced. We went to several places and got prices and warranty information before deciding on Sears because of the "excellent" warranty, the cheap price, and their long standing reputation.

We informed the salesman that this would be going on a second floor and asked if shaking was going to be a problem. The salesman went into a lengthy discussion about how these particular models were perfect for the second floor and were actually designed specifically for use on a second floor. The models had great reviews and we bought the washer and dryer with pedestals with a five year warranty on them both.

Now the fun starts. When they were delivered, the delivery team drug them up the stairs in our 3 month old house and got grease all over the carpet. Then, ripped the flooring in the laundry room, chipped a window seal, marked up the walls, and scratched the washer. We talked to Sears about the issue and they said we would have to talk to the delivery company about the issue, which we did, and about 60 days later we finally got a check to get everything fixed. Sears had zero interest in assisting us other than saying "We are aware of the issue and so is the management." Over-and-over again they said this but I highly doubt anyone knew or cared.

So here we are with our brand new front loading washer and dryer, we start using it and the whole house shakes. Ceiling fans are rattling, pictures are bouncing off the wall, doors are creaking, everything shakes like an earthquake. We call Sears and they said we need to make sure it is level by adjusting the legs, which I spent hours doing only to find out that you have to adjust them internally or something. So finally Sears says we should have a technician come out and take a look. We schedule an appointment and then start looking at LG's website. We call LG and they say they are meant to be on a first floor and preferably on a cement floor.

We called the sales guy and he acted like he had never heard of such a thing. So he says well have the guy come out anyways and take a look. So we do and, oh by the way, there was a 8 or 9 hours window for when they were going to come so I took the whole day off. We called and said to please make sure it wasn't around lunchtime because our daughter naps and they said they would make a note of it. They must have because the tech called at 11:30 and said he was on his way, I asked him if he could come by later and he said no he was going to cancel. He then proceeded to talk to me like he was the king of the world and I wasn't worthy to be graced by his words.

Needless to say, we had to cancel the appointment and we called the sales rep back. He says we will have to pay a 15% restock fee for the return, no doubt so he wouldn't lose his commission. So we have to pay 15% of almost $3,000 because a Sears associate lied to us about a product? The associate then said if we had a tech come out a few times we could probably get it returned without paying that because of a "defect" with the product.

After that we went to a different Sears to see what they said and they told us that they don't even do the 15% restock fee anymore and never did on items that weren't special order. They tell us to pick out the one we want and they will do the return on the other set and get us a new set. We do this and they said to expect a refund within 72 hours in the form of a credit to our card. Well, here we are 36 days later (as of 12 Aug 2009) and still no refund. I've called both Sears stores, customer service about 30 times an no one seems to be able to help, the store said they sent a check, but have no details about when t was sent, managers won't call me back...NO ONE WILL HELP!

And oh, by the way, I', unemployed now so $2900 is kind of a big deal these days.

This was Sears at Triangle Town Center and Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, NC - avoid them like the plague, in fact, avoid Sears altogether!