Buy a damaged product and be sorry!
Written: Oct 01 '09 (Updated Dec 06 '09)
| Ease of Ordering: |
 |
|
| Customer Service: |
|
|
| Selection: |
 |
|
| On-Time Delivery: |
 |
|
|
| Full Review |
I bought an icemaker from this company, for a family member. The icemaker was a NewAir/Windchaser SNO 3-in-1 ( AI 300S ); the icemaker arrived in two days ( good ), with decent packaging for shipment ( good ), but it leaked a lot of water, apparently from a side grill, when I poured it in ( very bad ).
My e-mail to NewAir/Windchaser was unanswered, and they didn't answer phonecalls, so I got in contact with Air And Water to have them send out a replacement machine, which they agreed to, along with a return authorization and mailing label for the defective machine.
Before these requests, but after the first machine was ordered, I looked at Air And Water's return policies; it turned out that they have a 15% restocking fee for items returned for refund, no exceptions. It wasn't my call to order from the company so I wasn't aware of this policy until it was too late.
The new machine arrived in two days ( again good ), with a return label for the first one ( good ); the replacement machine also leaked from the side grill, along with a bonus dripping leak from the drain hole, despite having a drain plug in place. I decided to give up and just return the second machine for refund, taking the bite of the restocking fee. The RMA was set up the next business day and I had the machine picked up by the delivery company a few days later. About a week and a half after it was shipped back the refund was given, minus the restocking fee.
( A separate review of the lousy ice machine, with opinion of the manufacturer was made a few weeks ago )
So, what is the text for Air And Water's restocking policy? Here it is, right from the site:
"All returns are subject to a 15% restocking fee. To avoid a restocking fee, you can exchange for another item of equal or greater value. Occasionally, an item may not arrive in good working condition and we are always happy to provide an exchange in these instances. However, if you would prefer not to accept an exchange in this situation, the transaction will be handled as a standard return and will be subject to the same terms."
Again, I didn't notice this until too late. Not blaming them. What I do take issue with is that there are no exceptions to this. If you received a damaged product, don't want it, you pay a fee if you want a refund. The company accepts no blame for a faulty product. Is it a scam? I dunno. Is it a customer friendly policy? Absolutely not.
Is it possible that my two machines were damaged during shipment? Maybe, but it's hard to imagine that jostling caused the bonus leak on the second machine, causing a rubber plug to fail. This basically tells me that the company doesn't bother to test their products before shipping them out. Their website even uses the phrase "Satisfaction guaranteed"; I scoff at this claim.
Update Dec 2009
I charged the icemaker to the family credit card, which I don't have the responsibility of paying. It turns out the company refunded the price, with no restocking fee. What wasn't refunded was the shipping and handling and sales tax. In light of this I may re-rate the company.
Recommended:
No
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? NewAir AI300S
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
randallw
|
|
Location: CA
Reviews written: 148
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Yes! :-) They pay out
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.