Complaint Review: A and E Factory Service/Sears - Huntersville North Carolina

When you think of water damage, you typically think of large amounts of water wreaking havoc.  But even a small, slow leak can cause a lot of damage and result in a huge headache.  That is what happened to us when our two year + 11 months old dishwasher failed.   We had done a kitchen remodel several years ago.  Part of that remodel was a new Sear Kenmore Elite refrigerator and matching dishwasher as well as new hardwood floors. 

There was no water gushing out of the dishwasher.  In many ways, that would have been better.  The problem we had resulted in a slow, drip that over time, caused our hardwood floors to buckle, which was our first clue that something was wrong.   Because we had a buckling issue in an adjoining room (promptly repaired by the installers) we never even suspected a water problem.   

 I noticed some dampness by the front edge of the dishwasher one Sunday morning when cleaning up near the baseboard and discovered the subfloor was wet.   It wasn’t coming from under the kitchen sink and at the time we didn’t think it was coming from the dishwasher either.  We did a quick inspection of the crawlspace and found a puddle of water under some saturated insulation. 

Suspecting a plumbing issue, we called the plumber first thing Monday morning and set an appointment for Tuesday morning).    The plumbers diagnosed the problem as a probable cracked sump assembly.   As soon as they walked out the door, I pulled out my dishwasher manual and called Sears at 1 800 4 MY HOME.  The dishwasher was out of warranty but I was curious if there had been a recall on this model for this issue.  It is unconceivable to me that an $1100, practically new dishwasher could leak. (I have since learned that others have experienced this same issue with this dishwasher.)  The representative told me that they could send a technician to repair the dishwasher and set an appointment for 4 days later on Saturday, for some time between 8 am and 5 pm.  (Customer service issue #1 - A nine hour time window!?  Even the utilities do better than that. )  The Sears technician never showed up for the appointment.  (Customer service issue #2   - Making appointments but not keeping them.) 

In case you are wondering, I had been in contact with Sears at least 5 times throughout the day.  I first called around 9:30 am because I had the sudden realization that I had never gotten a written or oral confirmation of my appointment.  (Customer Service issue #3- no confirmation.)   I was greatly relieved that when I called 1800 4 MY HOME that the automated answering service recognized my number and told me that I had an appointment and that the technician would be arriving between 8:45 and 10:45 am.  When that time window had passed I called again, heard the same message (Customer service issue #4 – playing outdated messages telling customers to expect someone during a specified time frame that has passed.)  This time I stayed on the line to speak with a person who informed me that neither my phone number nor my address was in the system.  I explained that it must be because the computer knew I had an appointment.  She later assured me that she had gotten everything squared away and that the technician should be here soon.  (Customer service issue #5 –integration issues between the various parts of the operation.)

My phone calls did not return any results and I was growing skeptical, so I tried using an online chat session to figure out if I really should expect someone to come that day.  I’m pretty sure that all phone calls and chat sessions take place at an overseas customer service office in India somewhere.  My results from the online chat sessions were really no more successful.  Each time I spoke/chatted with Sears, I was told that the tech was still coming and that they would send a communication to the technician.  In my final conversation of the day, at approximately 4:45 pm, I was told that the technician had “called in sick.”   (Customer service issue #6 – not cancelling appointments with customers when the technician calls in sick.)

At this point, I have now wasted an entire Saturday, waiting for the Sears technician and communicating with the customer service people located in some other country who apparently have neither the ability and/or wherewithal to solve any problems.    It is nearly impossible to speak to a supervisor and when you do, they are speaking from the same playbook as their subordinates except that they have the authority to issue $35 Sears gift cards for your trouble.  (Customer service issue #7 –offering $35 gift cards in these situations is condescending and ridiculous.)   Let me also point out that when they finally determined that my technician wasn’t coming due to illness, they offered to set me up with the next available appointment on February 5, which would have been a wait of nine more days.  (Customer service issue #8 – don’t make a customer wait 9 more days for an appointment after you just stole an entire day of their lives.)

First thing Monday morning, I called another appliance repair company, C & E.  This time it is a local, well respected and reviewed company.  We set an appointment for Tuesday, the following day.  Shortly after that, I receive a call from Sears wondering if anyone came to my Saturday appointment.  (Customer Service issue #9 – having to call your customers to find out if the work had been completed.)  I told him that the technician had not arrived and also informed him to cancel the February 5 appointment.  He neither sounded neither surprised nor apologetic and couldn’t hang up quick enough.  (Customer Service issue #10 – not even apologizing for the extreme inconvenience.)

Because Sears had not come as expected, I also had to cancel the appointment with the remediation company, Paul Davis.  They wanted the repairs made before coming out.  The following day, C and E arrived on schedule, diagnosed the issue, and told me that they would have an estimate to me within 24 hours.  That is how it should be done.   True to their word, I had the estimate within 24 hours.  My practically new, high end Sears dishwasher would need a new washer sump assembly and diverter motor.  With parts and labor, this would come to almost $500. 

I decided to call the 1 800 4 MY HOME number on Monday to see if I could follow up with a supervisor.  After I explained the reason for my call, I was told that I couldn’t have had an appointment for the previous Saturday because they do not schedule appointments for Saturdays.  (Customer service issue #11 – trying to make your shortcomings the fault of the customer)  Then I was told I couldn’t speak with a supervisor because there were strict guidelines about that.  I insisted, was put on hold twice, and then transferred, at which point my call was “accidentally” dropped. (Customer service issue #12 – not being able to talk to supervisors/playing games with customers)

As a result of this dishwasher issue, I have already had a total of 9 appointments and the dishwasher is not yet operable, my floors are torn up, and I will have at least several more appointments and many more phone calls to add to my calendar to “close this case.  Only Sears has had an issue with keeping their appointment.  Kemper insurance (1 appt), North Meck Plumbing (1 appt),  C & E Appliance Repair (1 appt.) Paul Davis (remediation co. – 4 appts) and Little Flooring (1 appt.) have made and kept their appointments and arrived on time.  It can be done.  Sears just doesn’t care.  And because of that, I will never again buy a Sears appliance and will do my best to spread the word via Social Media and word of mouth. 

Was this bad customer experience an isolated event?  As I mentioned earlier, we also installed the Sears Kenmore Elite refrigerator around the same time.  Within the first six months, this refrigerator required a repair.  Fortunately it was under warranty so there was no monetary cost but it was certainly a huge inconvenience.  We had to wait days for the technician to arrive and then we had to wait for the part to arrive.  We had to completely empty the refrigerator and unplug it to defrost it for the repair to be done.  The tech told me to immediately inspect the parts when they arrived and to call to schedule the repair when I had the parts.  When I opened the package, I discovered an electronic part, a “mother board” of some type, with delicate connections in a cardboard box with absolutely NO protective padding.  It was literally just a part in a box.  (Customer service issue # 13 –improperly shipping parts) So then we had to wait for another new part to arrive.  It was another bad customer service experience.   We’ve now been burned twice by Sears.  Never again.

After doing some research, I believe that Sears knows that there is an issue with this model of dishwasher and yet continues to sell them.    There should be a recall.   I am upset that both my refrigerator and dishwasher have failed, especially given their age at failure and the fact that these are sold as high end appliances.  I am particularly upset at the cavalier attitude that Sears has toward customer service. 

As to the question about my experience being an isolated incident, it is not.  I have learned that A & E Factory Service is  a subsidiary of Sears.  That is the company that was supposed to come to my house that Saturday and never arrived.   I have also learned that my experience is not unique.  Anyone can have a bad day.  If you Google A and E Repair, you will find 385 reviews with an average rating of 1.2/5 stars and that is only because you can’t give zero stars.  On consumer affairs.com A & E also has a 1 star rating with 762 reviews, 72 of them in the past year.   It is interesting to read the reviews and see the common threads.  It is the same story, over and over again, with different names, locations and excuses and outright lies.  Inexplicably, the Better Business Bureau gives them an A+ rating despite the fact that 39 out of 41 comments are negative.

Throughout, I have referred to Sears rather than A & E and that is because Sears indirectly owns this company. A & E is the company  Sears sends to do warranty and repair work.   When you look at your owner’s manual, there are no references to A & E, only Sears.   It is no wonder that Sears business has been shrinking and stores have been closing when so many people have such negative experiences.   I give Sears a 0 star rating.   If you own a Sears appliance, I sincerely hope you do not need warranty work.  If you appliance is not under warranty, DO NOT under any circumstances use Sears for your appliance repair work.    And if you are in the market for a new appliance, ask who will be doing the warranty work.  It does make a difference.    For a different perspective, read this:  h t t p s : / / s e a r s . p i s s e d c o n s u m e r . c o m / former - sears - tech - manager - 20080903133788 . html