Unsatisfied Customer Miele Fridge Freezer (Please comment)

[northernmary]

Hello guys,

I took delivery of the miele fridge freezer KD 8862 SD on the 21st December 2007 when I bought from John Lewis When it arrived the freezer door was damaged and it was marked at the top of the right hand corner. I agreed with the retailer that £60 I would get back for the mark at the top of the fridge freezer and they would replace the freezer door as I could not be with out a fridge freezer over Christmas. So John Lewis contacted miele direct to order the replacement door. On the 24th December 2007 I received a phone call from the spares department saying that the freezer door has to be ordered from Germany and it’s the Christmas period that I understand that the door would be coming in to stock on the first week of January 2008 and an engineer would fit the door. I called miele again on the 23rd January 2008 to question where my door was and they couldn’t not find me on the system and customer services rep would have to look in to it and he would call me back at the end of business on the 23rd I never received a phone call back. I called back on the 24th to speak to the same customer services rep and once again left my contact details. Finally got hold of him today 25th January 2008 and he was stating that there was no details of me on their systems and there was no replacement door ordered. By this time I have hit the roof, I told him when it comes to replacing my appliances that the next lot would be indersit and id run them in to the ground (of course id never buy them ive been spoilt by miele I was just so mad by this point) I phoned john Lewis and told them all the same stuff above and told them they can come and pick the fridge freezer and if they did not then I would be returning it to the Norwich store tmro morning to be placed In the middle of there electrical department as the customer service that I have received was un acceptable and waiting for a part for over a month is totally unacceptable. The gentleman who I first dealt with through john Lewis got on the phone to miele and was relaying information backwards and forwards. By this time I’ve had enough and I told him im well with in my rights to have the fridge freezer replaced, as it’s been longer than a month for a replacement door. By this time miele have been saying that they haven’t been in contact with me and they have no acknowledgement of the order and that the freezer door would take 2 weeks to arrive from miele in Germany how stupid is that miele in England don’t stock them and have to order them from Germany. By this time I was being made out that I was a liar and I have a £600 fridge freezer what was damaged and I was no better off. John Lewis has replaced the fridge freezer as they were with me and admitted it out of order and the service ive received was very poor and them self’s would be following this up. The new fridge freezer is due for delivery on the 1st Feb 2008 and trust me this one better be perfect. I have lodged a complaint with miele had I have made my feelings known and I have told them I want acknowledgement of the complaint and that I will not rest till I have gone to the top of miele and created Mary Hell… I feel really let down by the company that bases it self on high quality appliances and high customer service. I cannot fault the assistance I have received from John Lewis well the customer service from miele well that’s another matter

One really distressed miele customer

Northernmary xxx

 

[panthera]

James,

I think you are very much within your rights to be furious. That is not what Miele stands for, it is not the way they treat their customers in Germany.
Nor is it consistent with my (admittedly limited)experience when in the UK.

That said, it has been my experience that when things go wrong, it is always best to have things in writing. I can not count the times I believed a problem to be resolved, hung up the phone and then, two days later had to start all over again. Sadly, modern businesses are no longer structured to take care of the customer unless their - wholly justifiable - claims are legally binding.

Start documenting and if things don't get resolved to your absolute satisfaction, I will be more than happy to help you write a note in German to Miele.

Let us know - oh, by the way, isn't one of the UK members a dealer who sells Miele? I seem to recall someone saying something to that effect a few months back in another thread. Someone in the UK ought to know. Maybe he or she can help!

 

[spankomatic]

Take it back! Just take it back for a refund and purchase something else. It's a lot less hassel. It would be easier to take it back for a refund. Then purchase a new one just like it then to go through the hassel of getting the door replaced. Once they replace the door your probably not gonna be done there. There is always some problem like the door does not fit,won't seal,makes a noise. Just take it back! Demand a full refund.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Unbeliavable! That's almost a horror story! I contacted Miele here in Bologna a few times and they were more than helpful and quick in everything. That really must have been a disruption in their services! Anyway I think the same as Jim (spankomatic) get a totally new fridge, you could get another Miele but get a totally new machine.

 

[northernmary]

The new fridge freezer is due for delivery on the 1st Feb 2008 and there takeing the old one away. trust me im not going to let this one lie im going to follow it all the way to the top and if needs be then ill write a letter to miele in germany with help of panthera (thank you) of course

Northernmary xxx

 

[brisnat81]

Miele Australia

Is just as bad.

I've had problems with my condensor dryer since day 1. Everything that comes out of it smelt like burnt rubber and when the humidity was high, it could take almost 3 hours to dry a load. (Temp 25degC, Humidity 90%)

I've spoken to Miele in Brisbane numerous times about warped elastic (on low temp), the smell and the drying times, and each time the Barbie on the phone cant help and the promises to return my calls come to nothing.

In the end a contact at Miele in Sydney suggested that I remove the condensor unit and front panel and since then the smell has gone, elastic no longer screws up into a little ball and I can dry a full load of clothes in about 90 minutes. The dryer now works as it should. It just has a ruddy great hole in the front when the cover over the condensor used to be.

I have a W2515 that now lives with Michaels mother. This machine was and is perfect in almost every way. There was no vibration on our wooden floors, it was quiet and it just worked. We gave it to Michaels mother and got a TOL W2888 for ourselves. The first one we had vibrated that badly, that the windows on all 3 levels of the house would rattle. After numerous service calls and being told that it was our fault because it was on a wooden floor. The State manager finally came out and agreed to exchange the machine for a 7.5% restocking fee.

We Exchanged the machine for another one, and after much tweaking the vibration is now acceptable, the machine is noisey however, through suspension thuds and cabinet rattles and where the W2515 could wash a Doona and always spin, the W2888 decides not to due to the pressure on the door (Which would abate if only it would try) and I've now twice taken a sopping wet Doona to the Laundromat to Spin it dry.

The Brisbane office was helpful with my Dishwasher that was choking on solid objects, with the help of my Sydney contact they figured out that there was a $4 addon that would stop solid matter jamming the pump, however this was after I'd paid for 2 service calls to remove the pump and unclog.

The best service, that I've had from Miele has been when I've gone straight to Germany. I wanted a Manual for my 30yo W423. I spoke to Brisbane and they tried to tell me it didnt exist. I spoke to Sydney and they told me they would do it, but nothing ever arrived. I blindly navigated my way through the Miele.de site to the Contact Us page, typed my request in English and 7 days later at a cost of 18 euros postage I had a user manual arrive in the post at no cost to myself.

I still believe that the products are fundamentally well engineered and with our moderate usage should last 10 - 15 years. The Dishwasher is amazing now it has its additional plastic part, and our Miele Vaccum is one of the best modern vacs that we've ever had. The W2515 is still chugging along perfectly and it is that machine that assures my mind that when Miele get it right, its perfect.

So yes any product can have problems, but when I have a $3500 washing machine, or a $2000 dishwasher, or a $3000 dryer (bought at 50% off) it should work without any problems and if there are, they should be resolved without any argument, remembering that the customer is supposed to be always right.

 

[northernmary]

i have the following miele appliances.

Miele Premier 500 Washing Machine
Miele Condencer Dryer T4262C
Miele Dishwasher G975 SC PLUS
Miele Cat & Dog T2000 Vacuum Cleaner
Miele fridge freezer (frost Free) KFN-8862SD

All the other appliances work like a dream and ive never had any problems with them what so ever! Until it comes to the fridge freezer, there quick enough to take our money off of us and run and then they think we will accept poor after sales well this will not be the case this time im afraid! Im still livid "Immer Besser" forever better ill let you decide

 

[seamusuk]

My Miele parts dept expierence...

Hey Guys

I own a Revolution 500 Vacuum(electric hose and powerhead for those that didnt know lol). I was interested in a non powered hose/tube set to go with it so I phone Mieles trade parts dept who tell me the cleaner wont work without the electric hose- it does albeit only on full power.

It works without the hose- its my cleaner I said

it wont work they said.....

I gave up - im probably gonna try an find a pattern one !

Seamus

 

[robm]

Curry's are pretty awful too

Hi James

I know how frustrating these things can be, so I symphathise with you. I bought a Kenwood dishwasher (not to be recommended) from Currys and the label on the front of the machine was so badly stuck it left a nasty stain when I removed it. Because I had bought the machine as a display model they didn't want to know. I went to the top in the end and managed to get a refund.

I hate the way with these companies they somehow make you feel guilty for their cock ups!

Apparently the John Lewis group have the best customer service around. But Miele I'm very surprised about!

Good luck with everything

Rob

 

[danemodsandy]

The Retail Slant:

Speaking as someone who spent a lot of years in retail back when it was a profession, not a catch-all for people who flunked out of burger school, there's a reason for the poor experiences some people are having with Miele.

I preached this for years, and I'm still preaching it today- if you're going to sell luxury merchandise, you'd better have a luxury attitude. You must maintain the mindset that you are going to bend over backwards to give the customer an above-average experience, because if you don't, there's really no reason for him to buy from you at all.

I worked for a kitchenwares store that had a cooking school, and I worked very hard to give good service and to maintain a high housekeeping standard. I would tell employees, "If things are no cleaner or more attractive here than they are in most people's houses, there's absolutely no reason for them to spend $150 with us on a new saute pan. They've got dirty pans at home."

Same on special orders. We did 'em, we followed through on 'em, and we got a lot of business that the big department stores couldn't get.

Unfortunately, when luxury brands become popular, they often get put in the hands of retaillers who treat the merchandise- and the customer- at a lowest-common-denominator standard. When that happens, what was once luxurious becomes ordinary, and people move on to the next thing. The example is Jenn-Air, once a very desirable brand with connotations of extreme luxury. Now it's just another brand, due to ending up in the hands of a big corporation, being seen in discount retaillers, and having "brand extensions" done that are nothing more than slapping the now-meaningless Jenn-Air name on all kinds of appliances that have nothing to do with downdraft ranges.

You have to keep your standards up if you're going to maintain the prestige of a luxury brand. And that means you have to give luxury service. If the customer has to go through the same hassles he would encounter at a big-box store, then next time he's going to go to the big-box store, he's going to save a lot of money, and then you've lost him forever.

I wish more companies would understand this; there's many a former luxury brand I have lost respect for due to lack of customer service. I hope the retaillers who are now mis-handling Miele under the misconception that people will overlook poor service to get the product don't kill the brand off.

 

[oldhouseman]

Customer Service

is a thing of the past unfortunately. I had a very similar experience buying a stove from Lowe's. The burners would work but the oven did not. They would not take it back either. They gave me an 800 number and I had to call for an appointment for a repair. Nobody showed up on the appointed day and when I called they said they didn't have a record of setting an appointment with me. Then to top it off they told me I had to pay for the repair becuse more than 30 days had passed. I went back to the shop and had a talk with the manager. He knew I was renovating a 200 year old house and wanted my business. He reluctantly agreed to exchange the stove. The next week I saw the stove on the "scratch and dent" section. The clerk remember me and I asked how they could sell the stove when it didn't work. He pointed out the sign that all sales were final and it would be a problem of whoever bought it to deal with it. They were selling a defective unit and knew it!

Lowe's blows and I will never spend another penny with them. I drive a bit further out of my way to do business with a much smaller mom and pop shop for building materials, etc..