Robert Spurlock
4 years ago
I am not a satisfied customer. Below are excerpts from a letter I sent a few weeks ago. I still haven't heard anything back.
I recently had a negative experience with George Morlan. I purchased a water heater that proved to be faulty. The unit is still under warranty but neither your service department nor the manufacturer have honored the warranty.
I went to your SE Foster Road store on February 16, 2018. The salesman sold me on a Reliance electric heat pump water heater, stating that it would lower my electric bill and that the additional noise from the heat pump fan would be minimal.
I was immediately disappointed by how much noise it made. Not only was it so loud I could hear it throughout my house, but it made several distinct noises, including a rattling/buzzing sound, which indicated to me that there was something broken somewhere inside of it. After a few months of putting up with the noises, I was further disappointed to discover that the new water heater was not saving me any money on my monthly electric bill.
To address the electricity usage, your service department instructed me to switch the unit from “hybrid” mode to “efficient” mode. Switching the unit to “efficient” mode most likely would have addressed the energy usage issue, but it exacerbated the noise issue and created a new problem. “Efficient” mode makes the heat pump run constantly, which not only produces constant noise, but also pumps so much cold air into my basement that it cools the whole house. This might be a desirable side effect in the summer months, but in winter it is unbearable, so I have continued to run the unit in “hybrid” mode, thereby eliminating any energy savings.
To address the rattling, your staff instructed me to take a video of the noise and send it to them so that they could diagnose it before sending a repair technician. When I sent the video, the George Morlan service representative told me that a service technician would be at my house the next day between 2 and 6pm. By 5pm the technician still hadn’t arrived so I called George Morlan and a different representative told me that I was not on the schedule!
They also informed me that George Morlan does not service heat pumps and that there was nothing more she could do for me. She referred me to the manufacturer.
The manufacturer told me that transporting the water heater on its side invalidates the warranty. George Morlan loaded the water heater into my vehicle on its side, so if it is indeed true that the manufacturer’s warranty is now void, it is due to George Morlan’s negligence.
The manufacturer's technician detected that the rattling sound was coming from inside the tank, which they said they would not service. The manufacturer stated that George Morlan has a “full service contract” with them, meaning that George Morlan is supposed to be certified to repair the products it sells. They encouraged me to again attempt to work with George Morlan to resolve the situation.
I called George Morlan two more times, most recently during the week of December 17th, both times I requested to speak with a manager. I have still not heard back from a manager.
I chose to purchase my new water heater at George Morlan because of your company’s excellent reputation for customer service and standing by the products it sells, so you can imagine my surprise and feeling of desperation at being told that my new water heater cannot not be repaired nor replaced under warranty. In addition to the $728 purchase price, I have invested a great deal of personal time and energy on this faulty water heater. I would like to respectfully request that you consider my situation and work with me toward a fair resolution.
Best regards,