Complaint Review: Universal TV & VCR Repair - Waterford Michigan

( Please see all the replys from Universal TV in Italicize print: )

I purchased a 50 Hitachi  LCD 720p HDTV on 11/22/05 from the ABC Warehouse store in Waterford, Michigan which cost $2,300. plus tax and warranty. In addition to the TV, I purchased another $6,000 worth of household appliances and purchased their 5 year extended 'Warranty Plus' on everything at that time.

The TV began having intermittent problems of powering off & on in January 2008. ABC Warranty Co. called Universal TV Repair to pick it up for service, which they did on 2-11-08. They replaced the Light Engine and returned the TV to me on 2-13-08. ( We did our best to get this TV repaired in Two days. ) After plugging the TV in and turning it on, it powered off again and would not power back on. I called Universal TV and they picked up the TV for a 2nd time on 2-14-08. ( We didnt make this customer wait, went back the next day, I feel that is good service and we dont like to see this happen. )On 2-22-08, Universal TV replaced both the Ballast and Lamp. When that didn't fix the problem, they emailed Hitachi for advice.

According to Universal TV, they weren't able to connect with Hitachi for advice until 3-7-08, ( We emailed Hitachi for help on this very intermittent TV and it took them time to get back to us, as we all know big company lot of red tape. )   at which time Hitachi suggested that the Light Engine replaced on 2-12-08 may have been defective and ordered a 2nd one. At this time, Universal TV's repair bill to ABC Warranty Co. totaled $1,445.54!

By 3-17-08, 5 weeks from the TV's initial service pickup, I had run out of patience. Universal TV was saying that they still hadn't received the 2nd Light Engine (ordered on 3/7). In the meantime, they had swapped some parts with another 50" LCD 720P HDTV in the shop and my TV began working! When they switched those parts back to their original TV's, mine still continued to work. Universal said they didn't know what to make of it, but felt a "connection must have been jarred back into place or something". (Huh?!?!)  (We do not like to sit around waiting on parts to come in, we were doing everything we could to find the intermittent problem with this TV to help our customer.)

After 2 more weeks of my phone calls to Universal TV, during which time they insisted they ran my TV without incident, my TV was finally delivered back to me on 3-31-08, after 7 weeks of service, and deemed "repaired". ( Not acting up )  Much to my surprise, after the TV was plugged in & ran for 10 minutes, it again powered off & on & off & on then finally off for good. I couldn't believe it!! It's the exact same problem.....nothing had changed!! They said they ran it for 2 weeks straight without incident! So, back on the phone to Universal TV I went, where an irate owner (Keith) admonished me for insinuating they did a poor job repairing my TV. Sorry, but it was picked up & delivered twice and still remains broken.....what am I supposed to think?! (Sometimes its not the TV technician or your Auto mechanic, it is the product you purchase and we get stuck with it. ) 

Finally, I figured I needed to get ABC Warranty Co. involved since it was they who were paying for this poor service. Big mistake!! They obviously employ the rudest customer service agents on the planet! When I asked for details on the warranty, they refused to provide them. I wanted to know what the policy was for time-out-of-service and to know "how much was too much" when it came to dollars spent on a TV such as mine, and finally what their policy was for replacement on units deemed "unfixable".

Again, they refused to answer my questions and kept trying to placate me by saying I needed to be patient. I placed more than a half dozen calls to different Customer Service Agents and one so-called supervisor called Eve, all of whom refused to give me details, saying "it is up to ABC Warranty's discression to decide how long to wait and how much to spend".

On 4-4-08, I received a call from "Pat" at ABC Warranty Co. who barked that they will not replace my TV because Keith at Universal TV says he's not willing to declare the TV "unfixable"   ( The only way I can say a TV is un-repairable is if the part is not available, it has physical or water damage. )  and now wants to replace the Digital Module and, if that doesn't work, resolder all of the connections and get the Light Engine changed out again.

In other words (in my opinion), he basically wants to keep this cash-cow in his shop for as long as he can milk ABC Warranty for repair costs. ( We get paid one time to fix this TV, thats right all the labor time, all the back and forth picking the TV up from Waterford to Oxford, ordering parts,  all the phone calls was done at a flat rate, and yes we have to give warranty, I do not get one Penney more in labor. )  we are And ABC Warranty Co. is refusing to replace the TV (likely) because they've dumped so much money into it already that they're not willing to walk away from it & pay out for a new unit. Pat firmly told me that they have the right to work on the TV "indefinately" and to invest "as much money as they choose" into it. When I again asked her for a copy of the warranty contract listing these terms, she again refused to provide them.

So, I have a $2,300 TV that doesn't work. When I asked ABC to send it to another repair shop, they refused saying they have too much invested in Universal TV on this unit (I wonder....does ABC perhaps have a financial interest in Universal TV or visa versa?!)

( If you paid a service company to repair something I think you would want that same company to fix it under warranty, you would not want to pay a second service company to do it. )

They're saying either I agree to have ABC enter a 3rd repair order & allow Universal to pick up my TV again (to be held indefinately until Universal either fixes it or admits defeat) or they will assume I am refusing service and thus voiding my warranty!

2 months....I want to sue....I want to picket.....I want to scream.....

Cindy
Oxford, Michigan
U.S.A.

( Please see all the replys from Universal TV in Italicize print: )

I purchased a 50 Hitachi  LCD 720p HDTV on 11/22/05 from the ABC Warehouse store in Waterford, Michigan which cost $2,300. plus tax and warranty. In addition to the TV, I purchased another $6,000 worth of household appliances and purchased their 5 year extended 'Warranty Plus' on everything at that time.

The TV began having intermittent problems of powering off & on in January 2008. ABC Warranty Co. called Universal TV Repair to pick it up for service, which they did on 2-11-08. They replaced the Light Engine and returned the TV to me on 2-13-08. ( We did our best to get this TV repaired in Two days. ) After plugging the TV in and turning it on, it powered off again and would not power back on. I called Universal TV and they picked up the TV for a 2nd time on 2-14-08. ( We didnt make this customer wait, went back the next day, I feel that is good service and we dont like to see this happen. )On 2-22-08, Universal TV replaced both the Ballast and Lamp. When that didn't fix the problem, they emailed Hitachi for advice.

According to Universal TV, they weren't able to connect with Hitachi for advice until 3-7-08, ( We emailed Hitachi for help on this very intermittent TV and it took them time to get back to us, as we all know big company lot of red tape. )   at which time Hitachi suggested that the Light Engine replaced on 2-12-08 may have been defective and ordered a 2nd one. At this time, Universal TV's repair bill to ABC Warranty Co. totaled $1,445.54!

By 3-17-08, 5 weeks from the TV's initial service pickup, I had run out of patience. Universal TV was saying that they still hadn't received the 2nd Light Engine (ordered on 3/7). In the meantime, they had swapped some parts with another 50" LCD 720P HDTV in the shop and my TV began working! When they switched those parts back to their original TV's, mine still continued to work. Universal said they didn't know what to make of it, but felt a "connection must have been jarred back into place or something". (Huh?!?!)  (We do not like to sit around waiting on parts to come in, we were doing everything we could to find the intermittent problem with this TV to help our customer.)

After 2 more weeks of my phone calls to Universal TV, during which time they insisted they ran my TV without incident, my TV was finally delivered back to me on 3-31-08, after 7 weeks of service, and deemed "repaired". ( Not acting up )  Much to my surprise, after the TV was plugged in & ran for 10 minutes, it again powered off & on & off & on then finally off for good. I couldn't believe it!! It's the exact same problem.....nothing had changed!! They said they ran it for 2 weeks straight without incident! So, back on the phone to Universal TV I went, where an irate owner (Keith) admonished me for insinuating they did a poor job repairing my TV. Sorry, but it was picked up & delivered twice and still remains broken.....what am I supposed to think?! (Sometimes its not the TV technician or your Auto mechanic, it is the product you purchase and we get stuck with it. ) 

Finally, I figured I needed to get ABC Warranty Co. involved since it was they who were paying for this poor service. Big mistake!! They obviously employ the rudest customer service agents on the planet! When I asked for details on the warranty, they refused to provide them. I wanted to know what the policy was for time-out-of-service and to know "how much was too much" when it came to dollars spent on a TV such as mine, and finally what their policy was for replacement on units deemed "unfixable".

Again, they refused to answer my questions and kept trying to placate me by saying I needed to be patient. I placed more than a half dozen calls to different Customer Service Agents and one so-called supervisor called Eve, all of whom refused to give me details, saying "it is up to ABC Warranty's discression to decide how long to wait and how much to spend".

On 4-4-08, I received a call from "Pat" at ABC Warranty Co. who barked that they will not replace my TV because Keith at Universal TV says he's not willing to declare the TV "unfixable"   ( The only way I can say a TV is un-repairable is if the part is not available, it has physical or water damage. )  and now wants to replace the Digital Module and, if that doesn't work, resolder all of the connections and get the Light Engine changed out again.

In other words (in my opinion), he basically wants to keep this cash-cow in his shop for as long as he can milk ABC Warranty for repair costs. ( We get paid one time to fix this TV, thats right all the labor time, all the back and forth picking the TV up from Waterford to Oxford, ordering parts,  all the phone calls was done at a flat rate, and yes we have to give warranty, I do not get one Penney more in labor. )  we are And ABC Warranty Co. is refusing to replace the TV (likely) because they've dumped so much money into it already that they're not willing to walk away from it & pay out for a new unit. Pat firmly told me that they have the right to work on the TV "indefinately" and to invest "as much money as they choose" into it. When I again asked her for a copy of the warranty contract listing these terms, she again refused to provide them.

So, I have a $2,300 TV that doesn't work. When I asked ABC to send it to another repair shop, they refused saying they have too much invested in Universal TV on this unit (I wonder....does ABC perhaps have a financial interest in Universal TV or visa versa?!)

( If you paid a service company to repair something I think you would want that same company to fix it under warranty, you would not want to pay a second service company to do it. )

They're saying either I agree to have ABC enter a 3rd repair order & allow Universal to pick up my TV again (to be held indefinately until Universal either fixes it or admits defeat) or they will assume I am refusing service and thus voiding my warranty!

2 months....I want to sue....I want to picket.....I want to scream.....

Cindy
Oxford, Michigan
U.S.A.

I have had negative experience with Universal TV in the past too.  They supposedly fix the tv and then just when the repair warranty is to expire, the same issue happens.  Its ridiculous and they are rude.  I will never use their service again.