Ordered new fridge - didn't work!

Showem

I'm not certain if this is the right thread for this, so please forgive me if it isn't and mods feel free to move it if necessary. I figured as it's not quite about my consumer rights, more about the product.

We ordered a new fridge-freezer from a local, not major chain, store. It's a rather expensive one, but we needed something bigger for our growing family and also something reliable and high-quality as our last was cheap to buy and cheap in quality.

They delivered it in the afternoon, set it up and plugged it in. The motor started running and made a really loud noise, so they unplugged it, put in all the shelves and tried it again. It seemed quiet and ok, so we thought it must have just been rattling from the shelves not being in.

We loaded it up with our food, both chilled and frozen and thought no more about it. But several hours later, it started making it the loud motor noise again. The next day around lunchtime, my mother-in-law went into the freezer to see what to make for dinner for the kids (we were away that day and on the weekend) and found everything had thawed. The fridge wasn't working either on closer inspection. She called the company we bought the fridge from and told them about it (and the loud noise that it kept making). To their credit, the fellow we bought it from came out immediately. He checked it wasn't anything obvious and agreed there was a problem. He left her with a small temporary fridge-freezer and said he would get onto it.

The company now has the fridge manufacturer's engineer coming out to look at on Tuesday to see if they can fix it. I personally am not happy with this. I don't want it fixed, I want a new one that isn't faulty. I certainly don't see why, for a product that was broken before we used it, we should have to wait to see if repairs are possible on it. If nothing else, it doesn't bode well for the fridge's future reliability in my eyes.

I've spoken to the company this morning and they are saying this is the way things are done and if it is broken, going direct through the manufacturer will get us a new fridge sooner. They shifted around and about when I asked about any compensation for all the food we had to throw away that was in the freezer and the stuff that didn't keep from the fridge as well.

Does anyone have advice of what to do? Thank you in advance!

ic

See here for advice: adviceguide.org.uk

Glancing over this information, it looks to me like they're doing the right thing for you (especially as you've been loaned a replacement to keep you going), and if you want a new fridge instead of a repair but they won't give you one you should be insisting on a full refund and going elsewhere.

warmhands.coldheart

If it's just a pump/motor or the likes on the internals and the Manufactureres Engineer fixes it, I can't see the problem, It'll still be covered by the same manufacturers Warrenty etc so what's the benifit of getting a "new" one.... This one is new, just has a faulty part which they are going to fix..

hardpressed

Don't know if this is relevant but aren't you supposed to let a frige/freezer stand for something like 24hrs before switching it on to let the refrigerant or something settle after it's been moved. Maybe that damaged the motor.

macman

You have no right whatsoever to a new fridge. The retailer can repair, replace or refund, the choice is theirs. I can't understand your objection to a repair, which will inavariably be checked more thoroughly than a new one! It's not the whole fridge that's faulty, just one component. If the model is unreliable, anyway, why would a new one be any better?
Any wasted food would need to be claimed for under your household insurance, but you can always ask for a payment on a goodwill basis.

cattie

hardpressed wrote: »

Don't know if this is relevant but aren't you supposed to let a frige/freezer stand for something like 24hrs before switching it on to let the refrigerant or something settle after it's been moved. Maybe that damaged the motor.

Yes you are and I was quite shocked to read in OP's post that delivery men brought and set up appliance and then plugged it in:eek:

pinkteapot

macman wrote: »

You have no right whatsoever to a new fridge. The retailer can repair, replace or refund, the choice is theirs.

The below seems to suggest that the customer has the choice, not the retailer:

http://www.oft.gov.uk/business-advice/treating-customers-fairly/sogahome/sogaexplained

Section 5 - Faulty Goods

OP - post this on the Consumer Rights board - people over there will know what your rights are in more detail.

shegirl

You leave a fridge/freezer/fridgefreezer to stand for 24 hours BEFORE you turn it on.This is whether it is new or not new and has been moved from one place to another.

That may be your problem.

I'm stunned that it was apparently the delivery guys who turned it on.

That said,given that you put food in it pretty much straight away I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't them who turned it on.Putting food in a new freezer straight away?Seriously?

macman

pinkteapot wrote: »

The below seems to suggest that the customer has the choice, not the retailer:

http://www.oft.gov.uk/business-advice/treating-customers-fairly/sogahome/sogaexplained

Section 5 - Faulty Goods

OP - post this on the Consumer Rights board - people over there will know what your rights are in more detail.

Not if you are claiming under the warranty, rather than SOGA.

Showem

I asked if we could put food into it straight away or if we should wait for a while for it to cool down. They said as it had been always standing upright, it was fine to do right away. If they had had to transport it or move it in horizontally, then the advice would have been to leave it for a few hours, then turn it on and fill it. I wasn't putting food into it as they were still setting it up. They set it up, plugged it in and told me to go for it. As much as I appreciate everyone's advice towards money ideas on the MSE forum, I'm not sure that I would believe your advice about setting up a new fridge (and the insinuation I did something wrong) compared to people who actually deliver and install them every day.

Having talked to the company and pushed a little bit for some answers, they spoke with the manufacturer and the problem is likely either it has no gas, in which case it needs to be replaced, or has a faulty fuse, which can be repaired. And that any compensation for spoilt food would be done through the manufacturer's customer service. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

I'm actually a little more calm about it now that they seem to be helping as much as they can rather than what felt like at first fobbing me off on someone else to deal with. Thanks to everyone who responded, I'll read through those links tonight.