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James of Austintown, OH May 9, 2009
I bought a 40 gallon PowerVent water tank from Home Depot on 4/16/2008. The installation from home depot was flawless, and the tank worked well up until one month ago. One specific morning, I went to shower before work and there was no hot water. I went to see the tank and "error lighting" was evident, noting "ignition failure". I simply turned the unit off then back on, and it ignited. Three days later, the same issue happened. This occurred approximately every 3-4 nights for s month in which i would have to manually ignite the heater (one year old). On 5/6/09, the pilot would not light at all. I called GE immediately. I was told to get the gas company to inspect the heater for the gas pressure. This was dont that day. I returned their call, but only to get some smart mouth on the other line telling me I needed to fax over the original receipt and other "pertinent" info in order for them to CONSIDER helping me out. Keep in mind I have two children, both under two, that I need to feed and bathe. I faxed the info as requested promptly, in which I was told that I would get a call back. The call never came. I called an independent contractor who "wouldn't touch" the unti because "GE is the absolute worst to deal with" and the tank "is a piece of [expletive]". He stated it was definetely the regulator box on the front.
I called GE back. They absolutley refused to send anyone to see it because I was two WEEKS past the one year full warranty, but not past the six year tank and parts warranty. I explained that I understand their need to draw a line somewhere and asked for direction. They told me that they needed to contact a local "certified GE repair center" which they did not. I called again (now at four calls) in which I asked to speak with a manager. They called me back in 90 minutes, and tried to explain that my options were a) to get another contractor or plumber to look at the unit before they send another tank/parts, or b) to call the local cedrtified GE repairman. They then explained that the closest is 31 miles away from me and they will not come to my home to look at/fix the unit. It was then inferred that basically I was SOL, with a ONE YEAR OLD 700 TANK. I was then HUNG UP ON when I expressed my displeasure (I did NOT use profanity or name calling). When I called back, I spoke with a manager who was disgustingly rude and condescending. She basically told me to get the contractor from 31 miles away (who they said would not come) or get new parts (whcih they would not send until I paid another contractor or plumber to look at).
Never in my life have I been treated so unprofessionally or more dispicable. It is now 4 days out, and I'm gonna have to pay for a new water tank just so my kids get baths, clean clothes, and food. Jame of Woodstock, GA April 1, 2009
Purchase a new GE 50 gallon natural gas water heater. Since instlation on 3-10-2009 water pressure has been greatly reduced. Showers have about 40% less pressure and the washing maching, which is furthest from the heater, has lost about 70% of pressure on the hot water side. GE phone techs (kids) state the unit was improperly installed and was not GE's problem.
Due to the lower pressure, and less hot water, it is noticable when showering, more hot water is called for to maintain a desireable tempture. With three young children, only two may shower before bed. With the old heater, all three could shower, one after the other. Much time is lost when washing clothes as the lower pressure take three times as long to fill the tub due to low water pressure. when you have six loads to wash, your day is pretty much shot as you are enslaved to the washers new slower pace of getting the job done.
Eduardo of Flint, MI March 2, 2009
I purchased a GE 40 gallon natural gas water heater with a 9 year warranty in March 2001.I have never had a problem with it until January of 2009. The tank started to leak, so I called the 800 number to GE. The technician instructed me to check this and that. He then informed me that the water on my floor must be caused by condensation(I've never had a problem with condensation before).I am not a plumber,so I accepted his reasoning. Two weeks later the leak got worse.
I called GE agin and told them that the tank was indeed leaking. O.K. water heater is still under warranty, just pull it out, take back to home depot, get replacement water heater and re-install, right? Nope. Apparently the federal government in July 2003 ordered all water heaters to be manufactured with a safety feature that cuts all gas to pilot light and burner in case of flammable vapors being in close proximaty to water heater. O.K. GE must comply with the government mandate, water heater price goes up due to added safety features.I am thinking that I will have to pay approximately 50.00-75.00 for this upgraded water heater.
I contacted the local Home Depot where I originally purchased the water heater in 2001, current price of a 40 gallon tall natural gas water heater is 478.00. My original purchase price was 219.00. GE is forcing me to pay the difference which is 259.00, 40.00 more than I originally paid for the water heater. I bickered a little, trying to state my claim that I should only have to pay the difference in price of 219.00 and whatever the water heater was priced at in July of 2003 when the government mandate went into effect.
I don't believe I should have to pay the the price of inflation when my warranty states that GE will replace my water heater upon falure of tank, not give me a credit of original price towards towards purchase of another GE water heater. I am willing to pay the added cost due to the government mandate, but I don't believe I should have to pay the added 5 1/2 years worth of inflation. I will no longer Purchase anything from Home Depot, or anything with the GE brand name.
I am being forced to pay a strong arm tax in order for the warranty to cover my water heater.Besides the 259.00 out of my pocket, I also have damage to my basement due to me not having the extra money to replace water heater until after approximately three weeks time has elapsed.
Lindee of St. Louis Park, MN February 20, 2009
I purchased a GE gas water heater @ six years ago. It has a 9 year warranty on it. One day the pilot light went out and I could not get it to stay lit so I called a gas service company to come and look at it. They said the water heat needed to be replaced, as it was leaking water, which was causing the pilot lighter to go out. I called GE and was told I had to do a bunch of tests on it before they would authorize a replacement. I obviously could not do this so I had to call the gas service company to come to my house a second time and satisfy all of GE's requirements. I was told that they were able to get it lit but didn't think it would stay lit once I used any large amount of hot water. (I live alone and use hot water but not so much that it would over tax the unit.)
A week and a half later, I ran the dishwasher and the pilot light went out again. I called GE and told them that the unit was defective. They told me it was not and I just needed to do what the service company did to get it back on again. I told them this was ridiculous, as I'm not a gas expert and it was only going to keep going out, as the service expert said it would do. i told them it was leaking and needed to be replaced. They told it I needed to have the venting checked. I told them all of this had been checked by the service company and there was nothing wrong with the venting. I told them I was not going to pay for another service call, as I could have bought a new unit with the money I had paid them to tell GE I have a defective unit!
The GE Rep refused to do anything more for me. I asked to speak with a supervisor and was rudely told that one would call me back. That was 5 hours ago and I'm guessing I'm not going to hear back from anyone at GE. In the meantime, I'm unable to live in my house, as I have no hot water to take a shower or wash clothes or dishes, etc... My guess is this is GE's practice. They give you the run around and refuse to replace their products when defective. They assume people need hot water at some point, and will just give up and go away. From other consumer comments, I can see that I'm not the only one with the same problem with my water heater and that GE treats it's customers horribly!
Oh yes, one more thing-I bought a new GE water softner when I bought the water heater and that has never worked! I had service repair people look at it and was stold this was a defective unit as well. Since I didn't have my receipt, I never tried to return it. I just live without soft water. This can be done but having no hot water is another story. If I had the time and money, I would sue GE for breach of warranty breach. However at this point, I need to focus on buying and getting a new water heater installed ASAP and having a defective one removed. I can hardly wait to see what that's going to cost me, on top of what I've already paid in service charges!
I've been unable to live in my house, as I have no hot water, and have had to pay a service company twice, not to mention what I am going to have to pay for a new water heater to be installed and the old one to be removed. It will definitely not be a GE product!
Lilia of South Gate, CA February 14, 2009
I purchased a GE waterheater from Home Depot on January 9, 2009. After only a month the heater stopped working. I complained to GE but to no avail. This was the second GE waterheater that failed on me in three years. Utterly frustrated with GE, I phoned Home Depot to see if I could return the heater. I spoke with a manager who assured me that I could bring the heater back and get a refund. The following day, relying on the Home Depot manager's word that I would get a refund, I purchased a replacement heater and a plumber came to install the new heater and help me return the malfunctioning GE waterheater back to Home Depot.
When I got to Home Depot the manage with whom I spoke the morning before was not there and the evening manager flatly refused to accept the return and also refused to contact the manger who had promised to accept my return. The evening manager rudely refused to allow me to finish stating my case and simply walked away from me in the store summarily dismissing me. Just the morning before I had been so horribly frustrated and dissapointed by GE's dismal customer service and when I spoke to the morning manager I expressed my gratitude for his understanding and fair mindeness. I told him how refreshing it was to speak with a company representative who cared about its customers in light of the horrid experience with GE. What a difference a day makes. What a miserable way to make a buck.
I purchased a worthless waterheater from GE at an expense of 500 plus installation. Now, relying on a Home Depot manager's word I purchased a second water heater at an expense of 500 plus installation.
Lilia of South Gate, CA February 14, 2009
I purchased a GE waterheater three years ago and it failed. While it was still under warranty it began to leak and the pilot would not remain lit. I phoned a plumber who came to the conclusion it should be replaced. GE declined to replace choosing instead to call it a maintenance issue. I purchased a new GE waterheate on January 9, 2009. On Februay 10th the pilot went out and I was unable to relight it.
I phoned the Gas Company and they sent out a technician but he was unable to relight it. I contacted GE and afte a series of questions the person with whom I spoke first decided it was a venting problem and then decided that water must have gotten into it. The heater is in an alcove/close in the back of the house but it is an enclosed structure with a door. I had mentioned to the person I spoke with that there were venting holes approx. one inch in diamete across the bottom and top of the door in response to her comment about a venting problem.
During the conversation I mentioned it had been raining in Southern CA and she then determined that rain must have gotten in so GE would not do anything about the matter. She actually made the statement: We are not honoring warranties in CA because of the rain. I was baffled. I asked spoke with another person at GE who then said that nothing could be done because of flooding. There was not flood!
The waterheater alcove is on a raised foundation. It rained over the enclosed, roofed, alcove with a door. That is it. They would not even send someone out to make the determination of what in fact the problem might be. They just arbitrarily decided it was a rain or flood issue and told me to call my homeowners insurance company. Donald of Olathe, KS January 28, 2009
We purchased a GE 40 gallon hot water tank from Home Depot in May 08. It has a 1 year warrenty from GE. After 7 months you can no longer even wash dishes without running out of hot water. After calling GE I was told we have a plumbing issue and there was nothing else they would do. I have bought my last GE product. We build this house and never had a problem with plumbing before.
Carletta of Dickson, TN November 18, 2008
Purchased GE gas hot water heater Apr '08 and it has never worked. I've probably talked to every technical person they employ with no results. I've paid for a water heater that hasn't worked from day one and added plumbing bills to that cost with no satsifactory answers from GE. I'm at my wits end, I've consulted an attorney but the cost of suing would be higher than purchasing a new water heater. Buyer beware when purchasing appliances with the GE logo.
Thomas of Roseland, NJ May 12, 2008
I have a GE water heater purchased in May of 2005. It has a 6 year warranty and it started leaking two weeks ago. The warranty hot line insisted it was condensation causing the leak ( they made me perform a silly test shutting off the water supply ) although it hadn't leaked in 3 years. Three days later the condensation put out the pilot light and I was unable to relight it. As always, I had to get a new water heater on Mothers Day and install it. This unit is manufactured for GE by Rheem.
I had to purchase a new water heater and install it. It cost 350.00 to replace the unit plus my time and inconvenience.
Lucia D'angelo of Malvern, PA April 23, 2008
I am the current owner of four GE appliances in my home. I have your water heater, refrigerator and two dishwashers. I am old enough to remember the time when the name General Electric was synonymous with a quality product. I bought first from home depot an electric water heater with a generous warranty. It was precisely because of the warranty that I did buy this water heater. After approximately one year it gave out (our old one lasted 20 years). I called and was assured that this was under warranty. Someone came out to look at it and said we need to replace it. All we needed to do was bring in the old one and get a new one. My husband is in his mid 70s. There was no way we could strap it to our car and haul it in. We got a new water heater and had to pay the service person 250.00 for installation and to remove the old one, which was just dollars short of what we paid for it in the first place. So obviously the warranty is only valuable if you happen to be a strong, strapping plumber. We then needed a new refrigerator. Our old one lasted about 18 years.
I was away and my husband went back to Home Depot and bought one for approximately 1,000.00. I never liked it. It never seemed to run right, however after only 3 1/2 years, I found that milk I had bought the day before had curdled and my butter was soft. The freezer section had thawed out food in it. I immediately called GE, certain that it probably was the compressor and happily the compressor had a warranty for five years. A service man came the next day, replaced a computer board that controlled the self defrost mechanism and told us not to plug it back in for 24 hours. IT WAS NOT THE COMPRESSOR. That 20-minute visit and repair cost us almost 300.00. When I complained that this was one-third the price we paid for it, he suggested I buy a service contract for about that same amount.
My husband and I are retired. WE cannot afford to pay 1000.00 for a refrigerator and then another 600.00 to keep it running. That weekend, after shopping for the week, we went away for four days certain that the refrigerator was working well. When we got back, about 100.00 worth of groceries was rotting away in my hot refrigerator. I called Service immediately. Apparently the first person did not notice that the sensor was the real problem and this new man replaced that. This morning I woke up to a freezer with ice in it despite the new self-defrosting computer chip. Probably I can keep calling until someone admits it probably is the compressor and replace it rather than trying to get out of the warranty. I find these practices intolerable. These expensive items should last for over 3 years and if they aren't made to last, then the consumer should be told so we can find a product that is decently made.
My story is not over. Eight months ago I bought two new dishwashers (one had lasted 30 years, the other just under 18). One dishwasher became increasingly difficult to close the door on until I couldn't get it to run at all. The other one had too much water left in the tub at the end of each cycle. Fortunately, I was still under Warranty and to your credit again, someone came right out. He readjusted some things claiming they weren't put in right, blaming it on the installers. I did not have to pay, but he did inform me that if they weren't under warranty, I would have paid 120.00 EACH machine just for him to do about 5 minutes worth of readjusting.
Needless to say, I will never buy another GE product. Maybe this is not a big loss to the company, but I am not going to leave it there. I think we consumers are lemmings. I intend to send a copy of this letter to my congressmen, to ARRP and maybe start a class action suit against the unfair hidden costs of owning an appliance from GE such as Warranties that cover nothing, outrageous service contract prices and most of all the inferior nature of all products. I think I should be paid for the extra monies I have had to put out because I chose to believe you made a good product, not to mention the loss of my groceries and my time and inconvenience. I consider the advertising fraudulent--make a substandard product and don't stand behind it. I just read where the CEO makes 20 million a year in bonuses. He does not deserve it! The best thing I can say is that the service department responds rapidly, but then why not, they are making a bundle out of every product you sale.
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