I bought an Electrolux Washing Maching - Automatic, Front Loading, 5 kg capacity, Model - Viva Care 18 months back.
After, roughly 16 months of use, on May 25th 2015, the machine had a problem - the water would flow out without starting the wash cycle. I promptly called customer care, a service engineer came and inspected the washing machine.
And told me that a part called the pressure switch had to be replaced. And that it would take 4 to 7 days to replace it, depending on the availability of the spare part at the local( i.e. Chennai) center.
Till this day, i.e. July 24th 2015, the part is yet to be replaced. I am told, the part is yet to arrive from Delhi. No stock in Chennai.
In these days of same-day delivery and express delivery, Electrolux is yet to get a spare part for a washing machine(nothing complicated or fancy here) to their Chennai location from their Delhi HO.
Over the last 60 days, even though my machine has not been serviced, Electrolux has kept themselves busy - quite busy I’d say.
Every alternate day, my complaint no. would get cancelled - reason given: double complaints. And a new complaint no. would be generated. This farce has been going on for the last 60 days - with no actual development taking place regarding the complaint resolution.
Once, I tried solving the double-complaint riddle and called customer care. I was told to call the local(Chennai) service manager( or some designation to that effect). This gentleman put my call on hold, and after sometime disconnected the call. Next day, I tried calling this person - but without any success.
Finally, I realised, Electrolux was not interested in actually resolving my complaint. Rather their main interest was to keep their complaint register clean - without any overdue complaints showing in their books.( Joke is, all of these companies go around flashing their ISO 9000 quality certifications, purporting to be quality conscious)
After 2 months of no washing machine at home, no response from Electrolux and no other means of getting the washing machine repaired, I am thinking of buying another washing machine.
Painful as that decision is(imagine spending Rs.25, 000/- again for the same product in a span of 18 months.), I feel I made a terrible mistake buying this Electrolux washing machine.
Here are the conclusions that I draw from this bitter experience -
Do not go for MNC brands, they may be good/big in other countries, but here in India their customer support/service may be non-existent( as in the case of Electrolux)
Go for one of the leading brands in the segment, so that in the worst-case scenario, at least the product can be repaired quickly.
Do not spend too much on any product(not beyond a reasonable amount or on something fancy) - most of them won’t last beyond the warranty period. That’s how most of our present-day products are designed.
After the warranty period, you are supposed to spend a good amount( as part of loyalty program) on expensive servicing, if existing.
And for Heaven’s sake, do not ever consider buying anything with Electrolux brand tag. If you buy, rest assured, there will be no spares available, no customer support, ( very difficult to connect to their toll-free number, and only one number)
To Electrolux >> If any of you happen to read this, my one question - If you cannot make spare part available in the market, then why do you sell the product in the first place? Spare parts should be available for atleast the average lifespan of the product . Then how come, in my case, for a washing machine I purchased only 18th months back, the required spare part is not available?
J.S.K.Sharma
A thoroughly dissatisfied(first-time and definitely last-time) Electrolux customer
PS: I notice there is no provision for negative rating, so being extremely considerate, I give 1 star, which is I believe, a "poor" rating for the product.
And definitely not recommended to anybody. AVOID ELECTROLUX.