Hotpoint/Domestic and general poor service

MontyBazil

Looking for advice/help with an issue I have.
Got a new Hotpoint washing machine at end of june.
It was always a bit noisy on spin but reviews said this was normal.
By September it was noisy on a spin like a drum being spun with bricks in it.
Reported it to Hotpoint / D& G 7th September they agreed to come to check on 15th sept.
On 14th engineer phoned he said it sounded like that drum he ordered part & agreed to come on 21st which he did.
He said it wasn't the drum it was the counterweight hadn't been fitted properly so he tightened them. He said to run a cycle & He would phone to check it was okay.
Ran a cycle it sounded horrendous.  he phoned so i told him he said he would order parts.
On 28th i was told parts were not in yet.
Have phoned countless times since at least 6 separate occasions still no joy have asked to be put through to complaints dept but they say they can't help me but agreed complaints dept will phone me.within 48 hours they dont.
Last friday spoke to a call handler who promised me a new machine but heard nothing by Monday again heard nowt.
Phoned Monday again promised they would be in touch and i.would get a new machine and they would call within 24_hours.
I've still heard nothing and unleashing machine for 50 days.

MontyBazil

Meant no not unleashing.

grumbler

Call Hotpoint, tell them that you are recording the call and that you give them, say, 7 days to repair or replace the machine and are going to start court actions otherwise.

MSE guide - Small Claims Court

MontyBazil

All sorted now I hope after 2 more wasted days of phone calls.
They are sending me a new machine on monday.
Still haven't been called by complaints dept they have emailed and asked me to use chat function which I won't do.
All in all pretty poor customer service will not ever buy whirlpool products or anything from Domestic and general again.

GT60

Always put complaints in writing.
I had an issue with a spare part not being available but it didn't stop me using my 3 or  4 year old machine.
After a month or so sorry can't remember the time frame I was offered a free replacement new Hotpoint washing machine from Dom gen because they couldn't repair the machine in the set time frame. 
Needless to say I snapped their hand off.

Jeepers_Creepers

That's funny, Monty - 'chat' is actually my preferred way of communicating with companies; no earache, usually get a response very quickly, you can explain issue precisely, and it's all written down for you to save.

Anyhoo, you have a washing machine that does work, but just sounds bad? Why not keep on using it until its replacement arrives? 

ashe

MontyBazil said:

All sorted now I hope after 2 more wasted days of phone calls.
They are sending me a new machine on monday.
Still haven't been called by complaints dept they have emailed and asked me to use chat function which I won't do.
All in all pretty poor customer service will not ever buy whirlpool products or anything from Domestic and general again.

In future you want to specifically reference the Consumer Rights Act of 2015, it operates differently between the first 6 months and then the rest of the first 6 years of ownership, easier to sort out in those initial 6 months as after that they will likely want an independent engineers report. 

grumbler

ashe said:

In future you want to specifically reference the Consumer Rights Act of 2015, ...

  - only if you deal with the supplier, not the manufacturer

Panay

Having bought a hotpoint washing machine for my parents, I was very disappointed that only two and a half years later, the drum starting making loud whirring noises when on spin cycle. I've had a look online and within this forum and can see many other people reporting the same issue with their Hotpoint washing machines. The model I purchased was the WMBF844PUK, but can see from other posts this fault also affects other models as well. 

To add insult to injury, the 10 year guarantee does not include labour costs, so to call out a 'Hotpoint engineer' cost around £120! Which is way too much money for a call out and it must be a Hotpoint engineer, otherwise you must pay for any parts yourself. Those who had the work done in previous posts, many say only lasted another two years before the fault reoccurred. So it seems to me you would be wasting your money and time repairing these Hotpoint washing machines and better off buying a washing machine that includes a 5 year 'parts' and 'labour' guarantee. I will NOT be buying another Hotpoint washing machine, as their guarantees are a complete rip off and their washing machines only seem to last a few years.

I have seen 5 years 'parts' and 'labour' guarantees from the following manufacturers on their washing machines: Samsung, GRUNDIG, LG, BOSCH, HAIER, AEG and MIELE. I could not find any Hotpoint washing machines with a 'parts' and 'labour' guarantee over 1 year. Think that says all you need to know about the confidence Hotpoint has in its own washing machines. Very sad indeed.

EssexExile

Hotpoint has had it's five-year (now 10 evidently) parts only guarantee for decades, since the days when just about everyone else only had a one-year guarantee. Yes it makes sense to buy a machine with a longer guarantee if you can afford it. When my 25 year-old Hotpoint finally died I bought a Miele with a 10-year guarantee but it cost a lot of money, and if you search back through these pages you'll find that the Miele guarantee isn't without its problems.

Hotpoint is now part of Indesit which is part of Whirlpool and they quite literally don't make them like they used to.