MY HARROWING EXPERINCE WITH LG SANCTIONED QUICKFIX APPLIANCES

I am posting this experience in hopes of sparing others weeks of abuse and emotional turmoil by an LG sanctioned service repair company, QuickFix Appliances.

On May 8^th 2016, my family and I woke up to find our LG freezer frozen and our refrigerator not working. We believed we have left the freezer open overnight. Instead of searching for a repair service, I’ve decided to go to the source and contact LG directly. Since it was Sunday, I’ve contacted LG via their website, and chose the appointment for next day.

After not receiving the promised call on Monday, I contacted LG by phone. There followed couple of days of calling back and forth between LG and their sanctioned repair service center with assurances that someone will call us later in the day. We waited by the phone; no one called. Finally, the next day, after hearing how much time I’ve spent on the phone a nice CSR told me they had a free spot and that she would send a technician named Chris to take a look at our fridge on Wednesday afternoon. The CSR told me she could not give me an estimate, because she does not know the issue with our unit. However, she did say that it will cost $180 for the services of the technician plus parts.  Additionally, for the trouble we incurred, she will wave the credit card fee, and would give us $12 off, because it was our first service request.

Chris arrived during specified time and when he asked me what the problem with our fridge was I explained that the freezer was frozen and that the fridge was not working. I also mentioned that we believed that we have accidentally left the freezer open overnight. He said he has just serviced someone with that problem without performing further diagnostics on our unit. The first step was to melt the ice, because the ice that formed in the freezer has prevented the fan from turning, and therefore it could not push cold air up into our refrigerator unit.

He said that luckily there will be no additional parts for us to purchase, but then billed me $268. Apparently, the CSR got the technician’s fee wrong, because he charges $250 per visit.

He serviced the fridge, melting the ice and wiping the water. He then added special oil to the fan. He showed my father and myself that the fan was working really well by touching the spinning rod. He assured me that the fridge was now fixed, and that the only problem we may have in the future will be to replace the fan.

He then told me that his company, QuickFix Appliances, gives $20 to charity if we write them a review. Happy that the fridge was working, and happy with his friendly service, I wrote him a glowing review.

He assured me once again that the fridge was working, and told us to wait an hour and a half before we turned it back on.

We did so.

However, we noticed that the fridge was making more noise than usual. Thinking that maybe because the fridge was not working for several days we just got use to the silence we did not say anything. However, on Thursday, we realized that the fridge was not stopping. It was working continuously, the fan shutting down only when we opened one of the doors.

That Friday, we contacted QuickFix Appliances and tried to reach Chris to inform him that in spite of his multiple insurances that our unit was in perfect order something was not right. The CSRs would not let us contact Chris directly. Because I had several obligations and could not waste more time on the phone, my mother and sister got involved.

Someone convinced my sister that Chris wrote on his report that we may need a new fan, and got her to preorder the part. I remember Chris showing my father and me that the fan was in perfect order and I do not remember him writing the need for a new fan on his statement before I signed it. However, when I looked at the receipt it was there…

My mom’s English is not that great, so she told them that the fridge was not working properly and asked them to send someone to see what was the matter. My dad contacted the CS explaining that the fan was working, because we can hear it working. He asked them to send someone to check the fridge. QuickFix Appliances refused to send anyone until the new fan arrived.

I do not know anything about machines, but even I know that if a machine that was design to have cooling off periods is working continuously it may wear out the parts in the mechanism. My dad, on the other hand, is a mechanical engineer. He knows machines. He knows that the continuous working of the fridge was not good for the mechanism within. My whole family tried to get QuickFix Appliances to send someone to diagnose the true problem with our unit.

It was two weeks later that they sent Chris again. At this time we have not had a working fridge for three weeks!!!

Chris arrived and my father explained to him the frustrating situation we were in. Chris wanted to change the fan, but the fan was working when he left, so my father could not understand why the CS would not send someone to check our fridge again. Chris asked him why he did not call him, but my dad said how he tried and that he did not have his cell phone number. Chris said that we could have found his cell number on our call display, and then gave my dad his cell.

After further discussion and the evidence of the fridge’s continuous working, Chris agreed with my father that the problem was a thermostat. A simple fix. He did not charge my dad for the visit, but left to purchase the part and to return for a future visit.

More days passed, finally my mom called Chris to ask him how much longer we would be without the fridge and how much the future visit will cost. Chris said it would likely cost an additional $400!!! My mom could not believe it. We have already paid $268 plus $105 (for the fan), and now he wants to charge us an additional $400? Chris explained how his visits were like visits to a doctor, every time he comes we must pay $250 at least.

A new fridge costs about $1300. It is at this point that my family decided to cut our losses and buy a new fridge.

Our next step was to get a refund from QuickFix appliances for the $105 that they never installed. Or family thought that would be a simple matter. The company assured us that they will return to us $84 because they take 20% restocking fee. QuickFix appliances tricked my sister into preordering a part our fridge did not need (they never sent a technician to diagnose the problem with our fridge, and when he left Chris said our fan was strong and working fine). I think they should have given us the full refund considering that they did not fix our fridge at all and that they spent three weeks disrespecting my family’s time. However, my sister did agree to the restocking fee (she was tricked after all), so we were willing to let the issue go.

Then for some reason they refused to pay even the $84.

Apparently, Chris said how my father bullied him and how he felt uncomfortable coming into our home. We offered him food and drink, and I even gave him a signed copy of my picture book when he told my dad he had kids on his first visit. If he felt uncomfortable on the second visit, it may be because of the actions of his company, when he realized the harrowing experience my family has been going through dealing with this company.

I was present at all times, and in no way did my father bully the technician. My father talks loudly (he was a professor once) and when the technician did not have a solution he did suggest the logical assumption that something is wrong with the thermostat, not the fan. Chris agreed, as is evident by his second receipt. If he felt my father was abusive why did he give him his personal cell number?

Today, a CSR contacted my father and provoked him by telling him the company has no intention of paying for a refund. My father talked loudly on the phone, and they said he was abusive. Not for a second did my father use any abusive language, in spite of frustrating and disgusting provocation by the CSR.

In conclusion, I am appalled by the behavior of a service repair company sent to our family by LG. My whole family is so disgusted that we made sure the new refrigerator/freezer unit was not made by LG. After the harrowing experience we had, we checked the Google reviews, and have discovered that QuickFix Appliances are the greatest service scam thrown at unsuspecting customers who count on LG’s respectable name. The worst is that after the first visit we gave them a glowing review, until we realized that the problem was never fixed at all.

If you are reading this, please see all the reviews on Google and Yelp, and keep away from this company.  Do not allow yourself to be abused and tricked as we were.