Sears review: service 20

I am very disappointed with Sears and their maintenance policies. On Monday, September 15th I called to request maintenance support for an inoperative Kenmore refrigerator, Model [protected], purchased on July 11, 2008. I was informed a technician would call on Tuesday evening to confirm whether they would arrive in the morning or in the afternoon and thus limit the time we would need to stand by to accommodate them. Not having heard from them last evening, I called to check on the problem. I was informed that the service department would not be calling upon our home for a total of nine days, on September 24, 2008.

Nine days to call for a technician! I could replace the equipment with better response. I have no idea why it should take such a long time. Nor can I imagine how Sears could not clarify that their service was so inefficient and that I should prepare to keep things cool with ice and portable ice chests.

Here's a copy of a letter I sent to Sears, to which I'm sure I will never receive a response. Just wanted to warn others after my experience.

I’m writing in regards to refrigerator purchases I recently made at a Sears outlet store. When the original refrigerator I bought was delivered, it began running and never stopped, nor did it ever get cool. I tried several times over the next two days before I got a hold of an actual person to speak with, only to be told that I would have to call back the following day because they were closing soon. A repairman couldn’t be sent until the next day and by then, all of my food had to be thrown away. A new compressor was placed on emergency order and the repairman was supposed to return in another two days. The night before the repair was scheduled-anywhere between 8am and 5pm-I got a call cancelling the appointment, because although the part was on emergency order, it was still stuck in the factory. They promised they would call back the next day to reschedule for a time as soon as possible. Two days and no phone call later, I went back to the store to see what they could do for me.
At the store, I was told they could sell me another one if I wanted, but I couldn’t get my money back for the old one until it was back in the store. They also couldn’t pick the old one up at the same time they delivered the new one, because that had to be scheduled separately. I was getting desperate at this point, so I made the mistake of buying another one and cancelling the part for the first one. I was told they don’t deliver on weekends, so unless I want to take it with me, it would be 2 or 3 more days.
I received confirmation from 3 different people and the automated system that the delivery would be made after 6:30 pm so that I would not have to take off work. I got a call at 11:30am asking if I was going to be home in the next hour, because it needed to dropped off by 5:00pm. He had someone call me to reschedule for the following day, but I couldn’t be given a time until the automated system called. It never called. I went back to the store and the store manager called a regional manager to deal with the situation. Neither of us has ever received a call back from him.
A few days later, the manager and I spent three hours on the phone with eight different people just to set up the pick-up and refund of my old fridge. They couldn’t set up the delivery of the new refrigerator yet however, because they couldn’t locate it. Apparently, it got lost in the shuffle between the store, which is about 4 miles from my house, and the warehouse, about 20 miles away, where it first had to be taken in order to be brought to my house.
The next day, the refrigerator was tracked down and delivery was set up for Sunday, although I was previously told no deliveries are made on weekends. I got the confirmation call and an hour after my window passed, I called to see where my delivery was. I was told that the team was just running a little late and would be there any minute. They never showed up.
I called first thing the next morning, expecting an apology and an offer to bring it over that day. They offered to reschedule in another 2 days and couldn’t even give me an explanation as to why it wasn’t brought the night before. After more phone calls, I finally got someone from the local distribution center to arrange delivery of the new one and pick-up of the old one all at the same time for the next day. That was 2 weeks ago and I still haven’t received a refund for the original refrigerator that was returned.
I am extremely unhappy about this situation. Between throwing out about $50 worth of food and $40 worth of medication that needed to be kept cold, missed work, 2-$65 delivery fees, eating out for almost 3 weeks, and interest on my credit card, I have spent almost twice what the original refrigerator cost me. While I didn’t purchase the protection plan, I would expect some reimbursement considering the product I bought was brand new and defective from the beginning. Although the store staff was very helpful, I certainly expected better service from the company itself. I have since heard numerous and similar complaints about Sears and I thought you needed to be aware of these situations. I can tell you that I will most certainly never shop with Sears again and will make sure none of my friends and family will either.

I caution everyone DO NOT call Sears for any type of service call. It is just $69 for them to drive to your house/business. I had them repair my dishwasher which consisted of, no joke, 3 minutes of work and replacing a brass nut about the size of the end of your finger. The total bill was over $100! I also was not given a quote for the service prior to the repair, which I was told by customer service that the technician would give me a quote before any work was done.

If the repair was so minor, why not fix it yourself?
Don't know how? Don't have the training to know what to look for? Well then, I guess it was worth $100 after all.

We called sears for service of out frige we were talked into a $250.00 service contract and they would be out the next day before 1-5 i had to leave work to be home for service at 4:45 I got a call that they wouldn't be there for service and gave no reason. My husband called them and aske when they would be out and they said in one week WHAT are they nuts .we told them that we wanted to be credited for the $250.00 contract we will be watch to make sure they credit us . we called afortable repair service and they guy said he woul be here for *:00 in the morning and we said the earlier the better he called 7:45 came and repaired it in 30 min and charge less than sears and was very professinal and we would recommed him to any one . never buy another sear they did to us with our stove too 5 generations of kenmore will be NOMORE

1. Keep in mind the service contract keeps you covered for a year as well. So any new or reoccurring problem would be taken care of for you as well.
2. It's not professional for sears to call off for no reason, however, keep in mind they are a HUGE company that deals with MILLIONS of repairs every month. It's not uncommon that your service may be delayed. If you chose to request service from a large company like that you should know the consequences. If you are smart, you would have known this.
3. Why did you not say how much the local repairman charged you? Was it because he was only a few dollars less than sears? Speak up, I can't hear you...

I went in for tires and an alignment and besides that it took 5hrs and one phone call that my vehical was ready when it wasnt, It was 15min until thier closing time and they tell me it is ready so I pay for everything and I go out well I have no brakes. When I went in I had brakes. These people were also aware that I had 3 kids with me an 11mth old, 3yr old, and a 10yr old. I go back in to the store tell them I have no brakes, they tell me they cant fix it because they didnt have anything to fix it with and in order for them to fix it I would hafto leave it over there and It would take 4or 5hrs and it would cost around 500.00 dollars to fix it. Did I mention that I live 45min away? They knew all of this they didnt try to offer anything I mean at that point having my babies in the car I would have accepted a ride to advanced auto right down the street to buy a brake line so it could be fixed I think they are verry unorganized and verry unprofessional and I doubt verry seriously that I will ever go back to that store for anything automotive again.

I placed a service call to Sears on Monday July 6 to repair my 2 year old $1, 100 Kenmore washer. They gave me a scheduled time of Wednesday July 8 between 8am - 12. I have called them repeatedly because it is now 12:50 & the technician has still not shown up. This is unacceptable! This also happened to me when I used the sears carpet cleaning services, they called the day the cleaning was scheduled & said the technician could not make it so he came the next day & he was late & did a HORRIBLE job. I have taken the day off of work without pay to be home for both of these services. I am a single mom & need to pick up my children in the afternoon. So at this point I am out a days pay from work & a washer machine.

I will guarantee that I will NEVER purchase another item or any type of service form Sears. I have also & will continue to pass this information to family & friends so they are not put in this service nightmare!

I experienced similar service regarding a call to repair my washer HE4T $1, 100 side loader that hopped across the floor upon spinning with towels in it. The time of service was scheduled for 1-5pm. I called them twice to ask when the tech was going to show up, the first time around 3:30pm and the second around 4:30pm. They claimed they could not contact the tech by phone but could send him a computer message that he would check after finishing the job he was currently on. I pushed the rep on this by saying "You mean to tell me you have no way of contacting your service technicians?" Then I was then told that they could call his supervisor who could call him. Finally I was told he would arrive around 5:30pm but he showed up around 6:00pm. By that time I had company coming for dinner and my evening was stressed because of the late showup. Additionally, I was told by the service tech that these side loaders are infamous for "hopping" and that we should have it "tuned up" annually. He replaced the shock absorbers and gave me some advice on how to load it. So, not only is the product "defectively" designed but their service stunk! And, I forgot to mention, when calling to ask about the arrival of the tech, I was transferred at least twice. One of the reps said they didn't have me in the system even though I had called the number I was told to call when I originally booked the appointment. Fortunately I had a confirmation number for the service order but still was referred to two other customer service departments. I had a warranty contract that I was told was serviced by a 3rd party but then later was told it was by Sears directly. Who knows! All I knew was was a hassle it was. The only good thing was the service by the tech when he showed up. Fortunately I don't have to go to work outside of the home so I didn't lose money or get docked for time off. But, in addition to showing up after appointment hours it was inconvenience having a tech show up at the dinner hour.

Never go to Sears automotive again. This is something that a lot of them practice. You take your car in for one thing and they try and find 5 others that is wrong. If possible get a 2ND opinion before you approve any work.

On Sunday, Sept. 20 my wife and I entered the Sears on Rt. 202 in Delaware attached to Concord Mall with the intent to purchase a new Samsung washer & dryer, which we did. We had already done the research so we literally walked in, pointed and said we'll take those two and paid in cash. Our delivery date was set to be Monday, Sept. 28. They told me to expect a call the night before the delivery to confirm a two-hour window in which I needed to be home to receive the appliances.

On Friday, Sept 25 I got the automated call asking me to call a number to confirm the delivery, which I did - all set for Monday, Sept. 28. I then got the same call, again, on Saturday asking me to once again confirm the delivery and finally a THIRD call on Sunday for the same reason. Three calls making sure that I was going to be home to receive the washer & dryer. I was instructed to be home on Monday, Sept. 28 between the hours of noon and 2pm to receive the goods.

Monday rolls around and I head home from work at noon, wanting to make sure that I would be home if the guys were ahead of schedule. At about 1:30pm the doorbell rings, at the far end of the window, but on time none the less. I show one of the men where we're putting the units and then we head back to the truck, but there is already a problem. The other guy can only locate the washer on the truck, the dryer isn't there. After some calls it's determined that the dryer was never loaded, its still at the warehouse. The man also tells me not to worry, I'll get a call to reschedule the dryer. So they bring in the washer, I tip them each $20 for the work and they're on their way. That's the last I hear from anyone at Sears for the day.

I tried to call the same number I had already called three times to confirm delivery, but I get placed on hold for 45 minutes and then the system hangs up on me. It's late so I didn't call back that evening. The next day I called the same number starting at 8:30am, I listen to the hold music for an hour before I get tired of it. I then head home to talk to a contractor at my house and once again try to call the number, I sit on hold again for an hour and 20 minutes - never once talking to a person.

After that hour and 30 minutes I decide that it's actually quicker for me to get in the car and DRIVE back to the Sears where I purchased the units than sit on hold any longer.

I arrive in the store with my little blue book of receipts in hand and head to the appliances department. Once there I immediately notice no less than four sales associates congregating near a row of refrigerators and head straight for them saying, "I need some help." Suddenly, its none of their departments and they all scatter. I stood at the counter in the appliances department for another 15 minutes, beckoning any sales associate I could find to come help me - it was always "not their department." I'll bet if I wanted to buy something I would have had more than enough help.

Finally, 15 minutes later, a woman came over to talk to me and I detailed the issue about the missing washer. She started to help me and about 2-minutes into researching the problem the phone rang, she took the call and proceeded to assist the person on the phone while I stared at her for another 10 minutes. After the call she was able to get the warehouse on the phone who informed me that "due to a misspelling the dryer was left off the truck." So the delivery is once again rescheduled, on that Thursday the dryer, which was supposed to come on Monday, finally arrived at the house. Funny thing was, when we went to hook it up we couldn't because they delivered it with the wrong electrical cord. So, yea, again, we had to take another trip back to Sears to exchange it for the correct cord.

When my wife did the exchange she found out what the misspelling was that kept our dryer off the truck. Even though I clearly answered all the questions asked of me, you know, after "how will you be paying for this?" the sales guy not only ordered us a 3-prong cord instead of a 4-prong, he actually ordered us a GAS dryer. I'm not sure what tipped off the warehouse, but they corrected his [censored] mistake that delayed the delivery of my dryer for 3 days.

I called their customer service number with this exact story and after listening to me monologue for 5 minutes the woman on the other end of the phone says, "well, thats terrible, so is there anything else I can help you with?" Else? I'm curious to know what exactly I've been helped with thus far because I sure as ### can't think of anything.

Other than an apology, what exactly were you wanting them to do?

October 26th, 2009
Lisa-Cindy Yankowsky (lisa.claude@videotron.ca)
12 Bellefeuille
Mercier, Quebec
J6R 2P1

To whom it may concern,

My name is Lisa-Cindy Yankowsky and I am a regular shopper at Sears. I have a Sears card and always used my card wether it was purchasing from the store directly or ordering from the catalogue. I have always paid my bills and never had a problem with your company. During the middle of October, I called the Sears toll free number to order several items from the catalogue. Usually, Sears calls me to tell me that my order is ready but I didn't hear from them so I took it upon myself to call and see what was going on. The service lady told me that my items were ready and that Sears doesn't call to advise their clients when orders were ready anymore. So I went to my local pick-up place ( Chatel Cleaners on St. Jean-Baptiste St. in Chateauguay) and they told me I couldn't have my item unless I paid them cash. I was in shock and immediately called the number in back of my Sears card. After 20 minutes of trying to speak to a human being, I was flabergasted when the consultant told me I had not used my Sears card since 2008 and that they cancelled my account. I found that extremely bizarre and unprofessional since my last payment was in August, 2009.
I am very upset and disappointed with your establishment. I have been an activer consumer for many, many years and to be treated like this is inexcusable. Nobody ever called to advise me that my account was cancelled if so, I wouldn't have gone through the trouble of ordering a bunch of items and go to pick them up if I had known. Also, last Christmas, I made a huge order from the catalogue and all of the items I wanted were back-ordered. I told the consultant to cancel the order since I wasn't going to get them for Christmas and low and behold, someone from Sears called me after Christams to tell me the order was ready. I find that your company services are very unorganized. I know your establishment has many consumers and not having me as one may not matter but word of mouth spreads quickly and I have a big family that also shops at Sears frequently. They too are not happy about what had happened.
Sears is a wide known store with a great amount of consumers. It is wrong to treat your clientel this way especially when you have loyal customers like I. Well, had.

Thank-you for time.
Sincerely,
Lisa-Cindy Yankowsky

I WILL NEVER BUY ANYTHING FROM SEARS AGAIN...SERVICE IS HORRIBLE. I WILL PAY MORE ELSEWHERE IT IS SO NOT WORTH IT TO DEAL WITH SEARS! I HOPE THEY CRUMBLE AND GO BANKRUPT, IT WILL SERVE THEM RIGHT! We renovated our kitchen 6 years ago and in the process purchased all new appliances from Sears. Our refrigerator died on November 1, 2009. We called Sears the next morning to obtain a service call. We were given an appointment a week later, November 9th. So already one full week without a refrigerator...I am not talking a microwave or dishwasher or even a dvd player...this is a necessity! The service man was very nice, but did not have the proper parts in his van to make the repair. We had to order them. Being that it was our refrigerator and we had already lost all of the food, had eaten out more than usual, been nervous about the condition of the food in the coolers ...I asked, Can we please pay for overnight shipping to expedite this? He said, THAT could NOT be done..After discussing it for a while he made an appt for 10 days later, November 18th. As soon as I purchased 6 bags of ice, I called Sears Customer Service...I spoke with a woman from another country...who allowed me to be transferred to her Supervisor. This person said, As soon as you get your parts, call us and we will send a repair person right away...She assured me, if it was Thursday, I would get a repair on Friday (still 13 days without a refrigerator). Got the part on Thursday, called right away and got another woman from another country and she said, there were no available appts for Friday...only on the day I had scheduled. I explained, you must be misinformed...I was promised by Louie that this would be taken care of for me. I kept hearing the same apology and canned response over and over...THE SYSTEM SUCKS! I asked for someone above her that could help, I asked for dispatch, I explained and reexplained...I was put on hold numerous times and eventually disconnected...
Called another person tonight to see if I could get any further...nothing...they keep saying if someone cancels...Who is going to cancel, we are all desperate, especially if we have been waiting weeks!
I am totally baffled that this is how they operate. Plus, the 10 people I told today ALL told me horror stories about the Service, or the lack thereof, that they received from Sears...PITIFUL!

on 11/28/09 my shopping experience with sears has mean nothing but aggravation, i purchased a treadmill after being told there were three in-stock, no more than ten minutes i received a call informing me they had none in stock, i took the option to wait for one them to order one.12/9/09 received call from sears letting me know my purchase was ready for pick-up, called the salesman(Alex), to ask why it was for pick up, when i paid for delivery, at that time i found out i wasn't even in the system.after some time i was told everything was taken care of and would have my purchase delivered 12/12/09. today they brought the treadmill, had to take it back due to missing parts. i called sears, talked to the manger(brain), i was told i could wait another two weeks.(unacceptable). i informed him of all the inconvenience i have been through, and how i felt they should make this right. when asked what i would like them to do, i said i feel they should give me a treadmill that they do have in stock for the same price i paid, even if that meant going up a step. brain informed he would meet me half way on the difference, which meant i would have to pay a couple hundred dollars more. i declined and canceled my order, why should have to pay more than i can afford, when all this could have been avoided by the salesman making sure my purchase was in-stock.in case there is something you can do to make this right i have included my sales number([protected]) thank you.

Sears is the worlds stupidest company! No wonder products cost so much! I owed a Kenmore Calypso washer which I bought new in 03. It has a repair history as long as my arm. I bought an extended warranty (thank goodness) because it was recently deemed unrepairable after four services calls and being without a washer for almost a month. I received my new replacement which I picked out myself and it is working wonderfully. But I received a call yesterday from sears service to remind me of my service call the next day...I figured error on there part and called them back and told them that I had gotten a new machine and didn't need a service call. Well today I get a package from sears parts with parts for my old (now removed by sears) washing machine...so I called to let them know to send a postage paid envelope so I could send the parts back and I was told that they had to send a repair person out here to pick up the parts! ARE YOU KIDDING ME...come on they are two tiny switches that could go in a envelope why in the world are you wasting gas and someones repair person to pick these up...then to ask me if I will be home...yeah right! I am not sitting around all day for you to pick up parts that you should have not sent to me in the first place...so I told them they would be on the porch take them or leave them for me to throw away. I then made the mistake of asking to get another laundry reimbursement which is allowed every 7 days without a machine...I was transferrred to this lady who couldn't find me in the system but yet the guy before her had no problem. Come to find out they had my machine registered at my address but to the man who lived here before me who is now deceased. It was even registered under his phone number...what kind of problems would I have had if I needed it serviced...so after getting that fixed I made another mistake and ask about my warranty coverage...bingo another messed up situation. I still had two months left on my original extended warranty then I was given an additional six months because of a lost part (another story) so I was thinking that I would have the new one year warranty from manufactuer then my eight leftover months would kick in giving me a total of 20 months coverage WRONG! Sears is using my extended coverage first then when that is over I get what is left of my year warranty...so I am getting ripped off of my extended coverage is what I told her. Some gift...more like a tease. What is the word extended mean I ask her and she once again ignored me and continued on with her crap. So I will make another call tomorrow and see if I can get that straightened out but I am afraid I might find out another issue that will need my attention. I don't understand how this company stays in business...they are unorganized, rude and just plain stupid. You have to explain your situation every time you call and then you can never get a supervisor to talk to you they are always busy...yeah okay! I am very dissappointed that this is where I have to leave my complaint...is sears to scared that people will find out how stupid they are so that is why there is no complaint site linked to them. And try to find a phone number to an executive at the holding company...you would be better off asking for the direct line to the President of the United States. At least I have my new washer...and I did make a new friend the repair guy he was here so much we couldn't help but be friends. Think twice about buying from sears...customer service is a very critical item especially when your product needs service.

The worst service I have ever had from start to finish with the delivery and set up of some home excersize equipment. Delivery finally showed up hours late only to leave with my items I purchased still on the truck and not delivered...

Summary: Very poor service on warranty repair at Sears. After this and another bad experience with a different Sears appliance (refrigerator), we will not be buying any more appliances or extended warranties from Sears.

Bought Electrolux EL7020B vacuum cleaner from Sears Palmdale store 3 years ago. Also bought 5-year extended warranty at same time. At that time, there was a local (Lancaster - 10 miles) Sears service center.

Last month, on October 12, we took this vacuum to local service center, which had closed, permanently. Then took vacuum to store, where they transported it to a Fontana (63 miles) or Tustin (96 miles) service center. We were given both destinations at different times. The repairs needed were relatively minor - cord retractor working poorly, broken catch to hold wand upright.

We were promised two-week turnaround - longer than we expected but OK, we can live with 2 weeks.

It's now November 14, over a month later, and we still don't have the vacuum back. I won't bore you with the usual litany of complaints regarding broken promises and useless messages - you've heard it all before and we received the same lame excuses.

The excuses given included thinly veiled "if it was a Kenmore vacuum, they'd have all the parts and wouldn't have to order them." I'd like you consider for a moment, the last time you or your spouse took your vehicle in for service and was told that something was broken and they'd have to order a part. Dealer OR independent garage, did you have to wait a MONTH for the part to arrive? More likely, they got the part the same day or sometimes the next day.

Sears claims to have a service dedicated to the repair of merchandise they sell, and encourages customers to buy extended warranties on both Kenmore AND other name brands. It is absolutely inexcusable for Sears to then take over a MONTH to get repair parts, no matter where they come from. This kind of DIS-service should and will lose customers.

Suggestion: Support your local independent appliance dealers and repair shops, where they still exist. We're both over 60 and can tell you from experience, we've had much better service from our small locals than from Sears. Sears doesn't care about you or me, as long as we keep buying from them.

I paid for and ordered 6 month supply of contacts over 3 weeks ago. I was told they would be in in a week. Now going on 4 weeks and get the run around. My wife got glasses there a month before and the same thing. I'm not impressed. Want to here from somebody on how they plan to remedy this. [protected]

Never buyanything from Sears...The call center people at 800 4 my home are terrible. I scheduled service to fix a Sears range, took off work to meet technician only to find out we had to order a part which I had to pay for in advance. We rescheduled an appointment again with me taking off work only to find out the part had not come in. Reschedule again. This time I did my own research to find out the part had been lost by UPS and they would get back with me. Meanwhile I located the part in my town and call them back to see if they could get the part to their tech to keep my third appointment. They said NO! I said What? I picked up the part myself and will NEVER buy anything from sears again which is a shame. My generation grew up with sears and their name used to mean something. I am still waiting for the promised refund for the part I ordered and never got.