A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
interesting part reads:
"You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
service call."
It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
on the phone and tell me what to do!
Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
both companies and to the BBB.
--
BNSF = Build Now, Seep Forever
"lgb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>,
> [email protected] says...
> Once again I ask. What do they do when the proverbial little old lady,
> who doesn't even know how to work a screwdriver, let alone a VOM, calls
> up with a problem?
>
A good rule of thumb when calling any help desk is to act like the little
old lady. See what they will do for you before letting on that you know
anything. Never start off with your own diagnosis (not saying you did).
Same principle applies at the doctors office. If he wants your opinion he
will ask for it.
--
********
Bill Pounds
http://www.billpounds.com
"lgb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
> had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
> interesting part reads:
>
> "You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
> If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
> the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
> service call."
>
> It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
> take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
> on the phone and tell me what to do!
>
> Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
> wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
>
> I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
> plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
>
> In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
>
> I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
>
> As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
> both companies and to the BBB.
>
What manufacturer do you think would allow you to call in your own repair
tech and then reimburse you his fee? Have you ever heard of a warranty
that worked this way? I sure haven't.
--
-Mike-
[email protected]
On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 13:30:03 GMT, Lawrence Wasserman <[email protected]> wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>,
> Leon <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
>>>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
>>>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
>>>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
>>>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
>>>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
>>
>>And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
>
> So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
Well, to be fair to GE, I've got a house full of the stuff (used to be
an employee), and I'm having zero problems. I called their 800 number a
few weeks back - had a piece of clothing wrapped around and under the
impeller of the washing machine, and they spent a good 20 minutes on the
phone with me talking me through getting the impeller off and getting
the stuck stuff out. So it's a net-positive for me, based on... 8 GE
appliances of one type or another.
That said, GE outsourced manufacturing of appliances to Mexico about 8
years ago; mine are all made in Appliance Park (KY? TN?), so maybe
you're just seeing the obvious result of GE's decision to source to "low
cost countries". Maybe they'll get smart before it's too late?
Dave Hinz
On Wed, 1 Jun 2005 10:43:45 -0400, Upscale <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> "Lawrence Wasserman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> > So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
>>
>> You crash and they will give you a new one.
>
> My mistake. You crash and they will give your relatives a new one.
"No, sorry, it's specifically 'lifetime of the pilot', and
non-transferable"
On Thu, 2 Jun 2005 00:37:01 -0400, Mike Marlow <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> What manufacturer do you think would allow you to call in your own repair
> tech and then reimburse you his fee? Have you ever heard of a warranty
> that worked this way? I sure haven't.
Actually, Saab just had a problem with some of their engines, and
they're retroactively doing just that. If you already paid to have it
fixed, they'll reimburse you for it.
> "Lawrence Wasserman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> > So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
>
> You crash and they will give you a new one.
My mistake. You crash and they will give your relatives a new one.
"Dave Hinz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Wed, 1 Jun 2005 10:43:45 -0400, Upscale <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>> "Lawrence Wasserman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>> > So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
>>>
>>> You crash and they will give you a new one.
>>
>> My mistake. You crash and they will give your relatives a new one.
>
> "No, sorry, it's specifically 'lifetime of the pilot', and
> non-transferable"
>
Reminds me of that Ron White (redneck comedian) line. "He wanted to know
how far the plane could fly on one engine. That's easy. All the way to the
crash!"
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> What manufacturer do you think would allow you to call in your own repair
> tech and then reimburse you his fee? Have you ever heard of a warranty
> that worked this way? I sure haven't.
>
I agree. But in this case, their warranty explicitly stated that they
would send a repairman or authorize a service call. The would not do
either. All they would do was FedEx me the part after I did the testing
under their phone supervision.
Once again I ask. What do they do when the proverbial little old lady,
who doesn't even know how to work a screwdriver, let alone a VOM, calls
up with a problem?
I repeat - their warranty is no warranty at all!
--
BNSF = Build Now, Seep Forever
Latest on my water heater.
GE is impossible to reach. I tried three different numbers and could
never reach a human. There was a "fill in the form" email address on
their website, but we all know how most companies answer email
complaints.
So I called Home Depot. It wasn't their warranty, but they gave me a
phone number for Rheem, who actually made the heater for GE. They did
say to call back if that didn't help.
I called Rheem. Spent at least half an hour discussing the situation
with a very polite lady who kept insisting my warranty didn't say what
it did. Seems they've changed their warranty a few times since my
purchase. I kept pointing out that what my warranty said was the
pertinent info, I didn't care what the new ones said.
I finally insisted on talking to somebody else. She forwarded my call
somewhere and the may who answered, after I explained the situation,
said to send him a copy of the plumber's invoice and he'd see what they
could cover.
It seems I may (not will, may) actually get reimbursed for the parts
eventually. I'll post again when I hear from Rheem.
--
BNSF = Build Now, Seep Forever
"Lawrence Wasserman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>
> So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
You crash and they will give you a new one.
If you had sprung for the extra cost "extended warranty", you would have
been even more frustrated. Those are real nightmares. GE seems to be doing
everything they can to make sure that they don't get any repeat business.
Consistantly poor service.
"Dave Hall" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Tue, 31 May 2005 08:58:07 -0700, lgb <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
>>had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
>>interesting part reads:
>>
>>"You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
>>If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
>>the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
>>service call."
>>
>>It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
>>take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
>>on the phone and tell me what to do!
>>
>>Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
>>wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
>>
>>I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
>>plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
>>
>>In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
>>
>>I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
>>
>>As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
>>both companies and to the BBB.
>
> Isn't that essentially the same as any computer warrenty?
>
>
I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work on
our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the same
appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and all
about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on appliances
for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my house". My
house will eventually be GE free too.
Roger
"lgb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
> had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
> interesting part reads:
>
> "You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
> If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
> the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
> service call."
>
> It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
> take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
> on the phone and tell me what to do!
>
> Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
> wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
>
> I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
> plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
>
> In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
>
> I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
>
> As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
> both companies and to the BBB.
>
> --
> BNSF = Build Now, Seep Forever
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] (Lawrence Wasserman) wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>,
> Leon <[email protected]> wrote:
> >
> >"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >news:[email protected]...
> >>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
> >>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
> >>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
> >>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
> >>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
> >>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
> >
> >
> >And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
> >
> >
>
> So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
is that with or without the extended warranty?
On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 13:30:03 GMT, [email protected] (Lawrence
Wasserman) wrote:
>In article <[email protected]>,
>Leon <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
>>>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
>>>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
>>>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
>>>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
>>>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
>>
>>
>>And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
>>
>>
>
>So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
good to the last drop??
mac
Please remove splinters before emailing
"lgb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
Snip of OT rambling
>
> I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
Yeah that'l fix'm all right.
"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
On Tue, 31 May 2005 08:58:07 -0700, lgb <[email protected]> wrote:
>A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
>had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
>interesting part reads:
>
>"You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
>If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
>the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
>service call."
>
>It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
>take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
>on the phone and tell me what to do!
>
>Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
>wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
>
>I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
>plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
>
>In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
>
>I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
>
>As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
>both companies and to the BBB.
Isn't that essentially the same as any computer warrenty?
Mike Marlow wrote:
> "lgb" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
>>A few years ago I bought a GE electric water heater from Home Depot. It
>>had a one year full warranty and a six year parts warranty. The
>>interesting part reads:
>>
>>"You must call us prior to any repairs being made to the water heater.
>>If we determine that the required repair or replacement is covered under
>>the warranty then we will dispatch a service contractor or authorize a
>>service call."
>>
>>It malfunctioned and I called. Turns out the "determine" requires me to
>>take off the covers and go through testing with a meter while they stay
>>on the phone and tell me what to do!
>>
>>Now I could probably have done that, but I thought it was ridiculous. I
>>wonder what they do if a little old lady calls up with a problem?
>>
>>I asked if I could get it fixed and then have the parts used by the
>>plumber replaced. The answer was a resounding no.
>>
>>In short, their warranty is no warranty at all.
>>
>>I'll never buy another GE water heater nor any heater from Home Depot.
>>
>>As soon as I get through reading the news, copies of this will go to
>>both companies and to the BBB.
>>
>
>
> What manufacturer do you think would allow you to call in your own repair
> tech and then reimburse you his fee? Have you ever heard of a warranty
> that worked this way? I sure haven't.
>
In West Aust. Motor vehicles do not have to be returned to the dealer
for warranty work. Any QUALIFIED mechanic can carry them out and have
the bill paid by the dealer.
Regards
John
"Dave Hinz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Thu, 2 Jun 2005 00:37:01 -0400, Mike Marlow <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>>
>> What manufacturer do you think would allow you to call in your own repair
>> tech and then reimburse you his fee? Have you ever heard of a warranty
>> that worked this way? I sure haven't.
>
> Actually, Saab just had a problem with some of their engines, and
> they're retroactively doing just that. If you already paid to have it
> fixed, they'll reimburse you for it.
>
That is a campaign generated from a recall. This is not normal warranty.
If work was already done when the recall came out, you benefit from a repair
refund if it meets specific repairs described in the recall but that is not
written in the warranty. That is typical for the entire automotive industry
in the U.S..
On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 13:30:03 GMT, [email protected] (Lawrence
Wasserman) wrote:
>In article <[email protected]>,
>Leon <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
>>>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
>>>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
>>>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
>>>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
>>>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
>>
>>
>>And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
>>
>>
>
>So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
Well, they come to the user with a whole lot more hours of testing on
them than the appliances that get dropped off of a production line in some
foreign country.
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
If you're gonna be dumb, you better be tough
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
In article <[email protected]>,
Leon <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>"Roger amd Missy Behnke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>>I had a service technician from a local appliance dealer come out to work
>>on our GE microwave. Then a few months later had him come back for the
>>same appliance. then it was the fridge. Next was the drier. All GE and
>>all about 5 yr old. The tech told me that he had been working on
>>appliances for 15 years. He said " You will never find a GE product in my
>>house". My house will eventually be GE free too.
>
>
>And to think that GE is one of the 3 big jet engine manufacturers.
>
>
So what is the warranty on a big jet engine, anyway?
--
Larry Wasserman Baltimore, Maryland
[email protected]