Complaint Review: Jenn Aire - Division Of Maytag - Cleveland Tennessee

I purchased my JennAir side by side refridgerator in July of 2000 for a hefty $1750 from Sears but was told it was the top of the line in refridgerators. And that was why I was spending an addtional a minimum $350 over the price of other refrigs.

In April 2004, Thursday before Easter weekend, the refridgerator stopped working although the freezer continued too. I searched their website(of little use in diagnosis) and found the number to an authorized repairman Miles Appliance out of Lake Dallas, Tx. They suggested that I defrost the box and restart which I did and it worked again for about a week.

A repairman did show up on Tues morning ready to fix our unit but because it was working again - I declined his service. His office was supposed to call back to see if the defrosting worked or not and confirm the appointment. The repairman very nicely said that the problem would probably occur again in a day or two. It happened again 10 days later. So I called and ordered the service again.

I defrosted the box and it started working again. The following Tues morning a different repairman came out and pulled the defrosting (heating) unit out from behind a panel in the freezer then removed a circuit board from behind a plastic panel in the top of the refridge. He showed me the board and explained that condensation had formed on the board and fried it, so to speak. As he was pulling the new part out I said something like "it would make sense to insulate this" and he showed me the new part - encased in an insulated housing. He told me that he replaced them all the time but it was covered by Jennair but I should contact them.

I went to their website and filled out a form and submitted it asking for someone to call me please and explain to me why this wasn't a design defect and why was I paying $202.98 for their poor design.

I received a quick response (see e-mail trail below) and was told she would review my file and let me know. After a week or so, I e-mailed again, having not heard anything, and received a response that the part wasn't covered. See below for my response. The total cost of my Jennair is now close to $2000.00

Angie,

You don't think that a board that fried due to condensation is a design defect. Even though the replacement part was encased in a insulated box while the original was not. Personally, I've never experienced a refrig failure before in 30 yrs with lesser brand names than Jenn-Air. I paid a premium price for your product and now it seems I've paid a premium price for it's failure as well. The reason I didn't purchase an extended warranty was in some measure due to you brand names reputation for being a superior product and my better experiences with Kenmore and Fridgadaire.

It's a shame when a quality reputation is exploited for short term profits. Usually, it's the company's service and standing behind it's products that are the first to go. If I cost you one sale from sharing my experience with others then I think I've probably cost you at least what this part repair cost. Of course, if you're experiencing massive failures of this type - then it's still short term profit isn't it because now the Jenn Air name means didili-sqwat to me and others who experience this. I'll be sure to broadcast to as many shoppers newsgroups as possible as well.

And thanks for promptly updating me - NOT! You were just hoping I'd forget it, weren't you? Nothing personal - I know you're just the messenger of corp policy. But if I had it to do over (and I will someday) I would not purchase a Jenn Air because in my experience is it's an overpriced inferior product (and that's putting it mildly).

Mike

-------Original Message-------

From: Customer Service at Jennair.com

Date: 05/24/04 12:12:29

To: Michael

Subject: Re: Product Question

Hello Michael,

Thank you for your patience. Yes, we have reviewed you file. As with any product, we do reserve the right to change the design of the product at any time. As we have not had a number of failures with this unit, we do not feel that the failure would be a design issue. As the warranty had expired, we regret to inform you that we will be unable to offer assistance with the repair.

If you have further questions or comments, please e-mail or contact our Consumer Service Department at the toll-free number listed below.

Sincerely,

Angie

Maytag Consumer Services

(Mon.-Fri. 8:00 a.m.- 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time)

800-688-1100, or 800-688-1120, 800-688-9900

800-688-2002 (Canadian residents only)

Received Date: 5/24/04

Completion Date: 5/24/04

Original Message Follows:

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Hi Angie,

Has anyone reviewed my file? Do you need more info from me?

Regards,

Mike

-------Original Message-------

From: Customer Service at Jennair.com

Date: 05/07/04 12:40:03

To: Michael

Subject: Re: Product Question

Hello Michael,

Thank you for visiting our Maytag Home Page. We welcome the opportunity to assist you.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience and understand your frustration. We would like the opportunity to review your product file history and contact you personally for further discussing regarding your concerns. We look forward to speaking with you and appreciate your patience while your file is being reviewed.

If you have further questions or comments, please e-mail or contact our Consumer Service Department at the toll-free number listed below.

Sincerely,

Angie

Maytag Consumer Services

(Mon.-Fri. 8:00 a.m.- 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time)

800-688-1100, or 800-688-1120, 800-688-9900

800-688-2002 (Canadian residents only)

Received Date: 5/7/04

Completion Date: 5/7/04

Original Message Follows:

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CONSUMER INFORMATION

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How would you like Jenn-Air to respond?: homephone

PRODUCT QUESTION

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Hi,

I purchased my JennAir counter depth side by side refigerator in June 2000. Paid a little over $300 dollars extra but was told the JennAir was one of the best made period. I just paid a repair man 202.98 Miles Appliance Lake Dallas, TX to replace what looks to be a design defect.

My defrost stopped working. Appears that condensation collected on the e-board that regulated the heater. I noticed that the new part was encased in an insulated box - nice. But why am I paying for design defect? Would appreciate greatly someone explaining to me why?

Mike

Carrollton, Texas
U.S.A.

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