Late last month I purchased a brand new Maytag 3 rack dishwasher. It was installed and on day 1, water leaked ount onto the floor around the motor. A maytag repairman came out and tightened some bolts. The dishwasher still leaked.
On visit 2, the repairman replaced the gasket around the motor. He mentioned that Maytag hadn’t trained them on how to fix this model of dishwasher yet, and how they had a meeting that morning to talk about how many of these dishwashers had the leak problem. We ran the dishwasher and it still leaked.
On visit 3, the repairman replaced the motor and the gasket. The dishwasher still leaked.
I called Maytag and asked if they could give me another Maytag dishwasher to replace this one (they could give me the same model as long as it didn’t leak) just so I wouldn’t be inconvenienced anymore.
According to them, the local Maytag repairperson needs to a technician at corporate, and the technician decides if the dishwasher is unrepairable.
So my question is, am I at the mercy of Maytag’s decisions? If I schedule visit 4 and it’s still leaking, do I have any legal basis for having Maytag give me a new dishwasher? Does it make a difference that this isn’t an isolated incident? If visit 4 fixes the dishwasher, do I have any basis for asking Maytag for compensating me for my inconcenience? If it makes a difference I live in Illinois. Thanks
I’m not going to look, but I doubt there’s a statute in Illinois or any other state regarding unrepairable appliances. Your best bet is the basic warranty of merchantability, which is common law. You’re unlikely to win compensation for inconvenience unless (1) you suffered other damage, such as a ruined floor or (2) Maytag offers it to you.
Of course, Maytag knows the law too, and will probably offer you a new dishwasher if they haven’t fixed it by this time, and have been having problems with this model. If they don’t, consult a lawyer in Illinois. (IANALY)
Stupid question: Will the store allow you to return it for another model? Try rectifying your problems with them first.
If you don’t get any headway, call Maytag directly. A couple years ago they had absolutely horrible issues with their Neptune front loading washers. They had just awful problems, from being a mold growing factory due to water that couldn’t/wouldn’t drain to just plain breaking down. They dealt with many of the owners of those appliances directly to resolve issues, and still will to this day (people who have problems with their early Neptune washers). Its worth a shot.
As a side, Maytag is a shadow of their former self. They used to be at the top of the US appliance manufacter heap, but now they are at best mediocre. When I outfitted my new house with appliances, I avoided Maytag like the plague. Their kitchen appliances especially have been suspect these past few years… their top loading washers still seem to be quite good though.