GE and Whirpool get it right

Over the past few months we’ve purchased a GE refrigerator and a Whirlpool Duet washer and dryer. Both were substantial investments for us but with our growing family we felt they were worth the money. I didn’t expect to have a problem with any of these new items but the first evening I plugged in the dryer, Kim noticed that it wouldn’t shut when any of the fancy “moisture sensing” modes were selected. I pulled out the manual to look over the warranty details and quickly located the URL where I could schedule an onsite service appointment with a Whirlpool certified repair shop. A few days later a repairman arrived and quickly assessed the problem. He ordered the part and returned a week later to complete the repair.

This past week I noticed our ice maker was continually making a louder than normal humming sound. Again, I pulled out the manual in search of a phone number. Although the manual listed a 24/7 number I decided to use the URL to schedule service online. With both GE and Whirlpool, they asked for my model and serial numbers along with the date of purchase and installation. It took less than 5 minutes at each site to enter this information and schedule an appointment.

I compare these two good experiences with the nightmarish runaround I had trying to get my first DVD player (Panasonic) repaired. I recall waiting on hold for a long time only to be told that I’d have to take my DVD player to a Panasonic repair shop located so far out of the way that I ended up taking time off work to get the thing fixed. I finally gave up and put it up for sale and have definitely soured on the Panasonic brand.

I don’t like when things break. But if the company makes it easy to get the item fixed I’m much more understanding. Providing a toll free 24/7 number to reach a human is a huge start. Being able to schedule service online is even better.