Warners’ Stellian Appliance

I bought a fridge from WS 11 mos. ago. It has broken 3 times over the course of 11 mos. I have gone through hell dealing with customer service and an in-​store salesman. Eventually my fridge was replaced as a lemon, but the battling with customer service and the rudeness of the in-​store salesman were enough to stop me from ever shopping there again. It’s unfortunate as I had hoped to establish a relationship with them because I was in the market to replace 2 other appliances as well, but I never want to go through the nightmare with customer service or the rudeness of the salespeople again.

Buying appliances to replace crappy-​made appliances sucks. This is no fault of Warners’ Stellian. However, when we walked out of the store, we felt like we took an unnecessary gamble just by buying a brand-​new appliance. We usually go with the high-​end models with all the bells and whistles, but this time we said «Hey, they all break in 10 years so let’s just get the basic version.»
It came with a 1 year warranty. So we were informed of the extended warranty options offered through Warners’ Stellian. Our specialist quoted that ¹⁄₃ of their customers experience a problem with their appliance within a few years of buying them. (Do you REALLY want to say this to your customers? What reputable family-​owned business would claim this about their products?) So essentially we’re rolling the dice: Screwed if we buy the extended warranty and the appliance runs perfectly for 70 years; screwed if we don’t buy the extended warranty and it breaks at 13 months.
It’s like selling me a car and saying, «Well, the airbags may not deploy, so we recommend this additional helmet with your purchase.»
I have a nifty new marketing plan for you:
Pick products to sell that you can comfortably say to your clients that «You’ll love this product and will have many years of satisfaction from it.» Stop trying to match the big boys prices, and maybe even guarantee your product for an additional year over the warranty at no additional charge? Wouldn’t it make sense to send your customers out the door with a confident smile, instead of thinking they took another gamble on a crappy appliance?
Oh, and one last thing… It’s almost like we were supposed to feel sorry for them after buying the appliance because our specialist said we essentially bought our product at cost. I said «Well I sure hope you don’t go out of business because of us!»

After two months of trying to get WS to fix the malfunctioning fridge they delivered, here’s what it took to get a (partial) refund.
First, I was told by Erin Anderson, Customer Service Manager at WS, that they would issue a refund minus a restocking fee of several hundred dollars. I said that was ridiculous as they delivered a product that was not fully functional; I was returning it because it didn’t work, not because I changed my mind.
Second, I was told by Erin that they would give me a refund but only after they pick up the fridge; I say of course, I will stay at home for them to pick it up. Once they have the fridge — surprise! — I’m told they will issue a refund, minus the $ 249 extended warranty I purchased. Seriously, they tried to keep the money I paid for a warranty on a malfunctioning fridge they delivered and never repaired. Thus, I need to waste more time, energy, and phone calls fighting that attempt to withhold my money (if they try this with you, call the Attorney General’s office and the BBB).
Third, in Warners Stellian’s last ditch attempt to not issue a full refund, I’m told they will issue the refund minus $ 10 for recycling the box the fridge came in. That’s right, they want to keep the charge for recycling the box that the malfunctioning fridge was delivered in. The product I had to return because it was not fully functional; they are charging me for its box!!! Never mind that my receipt says the charge was $ 9, not $ 10. Nevermind that I took off two half days of work to get the fridge delivered and to wait for a repairman who couldn’t repair it. Nevermind that I had to make over a dozen phone calls, most of the time leaving messages because no one answers the «Customer Service» line. After all that, Warners Stellian wants to stick me with a $ 10 charge for recycling the box of a product I no longer have because it was delivered malfunctioning. These people are really something else. The woman on the phone assured me that they just «can’t» refund that $ 10. Of course that’s utter BS, but I’m tired after months of fighting with a company to fix a $ 1500 fridge I purchased. Warners Stellian’s attempt to rip off customers is unparalleled in my experience: they will attempt to rob you at every opportunity (that’s what this is), giving the most implausible reasons, when they should simply say, «Sorry for the inconvenience, here’s a complete refund.»
Warners Stellian, devote the energy you expend in ripping off customers to providing decent customer service. Then you might become a company worth people’s custom. All I can do is warn others: avoid this company unless you want to experience terrible Customer Service and extremely dubious business practices.

HOrrible Horrible service. They outsource much of their installation work and do not return phone calls. My so called installer called to set up installation for 9;00−9:30 am, and then never showed up.
My sales guy was nice when I purchased the dishwasher, but never returned my phone calls regarding purchasing some high end quartz counter tops, or regarding my poor delivery/​installation experience. This business does not appear to be customer service focused. I purchased an expensive dishwasher and was planning to spend quite a bit more on high end counter tops. I really expected more.
Will I get a callback soon from them to reschedule my delivery and install by an experienced installer? Will I get a call back from my salesguy? More likely, I will be calling back to cancel/​return my purchase and take all my business elsewhere.
Who wants my business?
UPDATE ⁷⁄₂₉: Call back from WArner Stellian — They are going to send their «best guy» this time. Their «Best Guy» still hasn’t called to confirm an installation delivery time/​date yet.
UPDATE ⁸⁄₃: Delivery/​Installer #2 Andy from «All Things Handy». Rude and unprofessional. Never returned phone calls. Both Warner Stellian and I called him a couple times to confirm delivery installation. He finally called late yesterday and agreed to deliver/​install Tuesday morning between 8:30 and 9:30. He agreed to call 15 minutes before arriving, as I work a couple blocks away. He called when he arrived, and I told him I would be there in about 15 minutes. I arrived in 15 minutes, and walked up to his van. He looked at me, got in his van and drove off. When I called he said he left because he waited the allotted time. He said «You are going to have to have somebody else to do your installation!»

I love getting my appliances here. Elizabeth is the best salesperson. She will search online to match anyone’s price and super enjoyable to work with.

Weak delivery system — The cable guy did better
I really liked working with Mike Farkas and WS is much better than Sears or similar in terms of selection and sales process. Since that was so great, I was surprised to find out that I had to keep the whole day open for the delivery. I found «approximately» when my item would be delivered at 7:05 am that day from a roto-​caller. So basically I had to take the entire day off and not schedule anything. I just expect better than that from a premium company. I left a message for the store manager but this was not returned so far. The actual delivery guys were so nice, even though they were so late. I can live with a 4-​hour window but a 12-​hour window? Even Comcast can do better than that.

I find Unilocal reviews very helpful, but I’ve never written one myself. I hope this is not rejected for that reason.
I’m writing because my experience with Warners’ Stellian is so different from the others reviewers’ I thought I’d provide balance. I have no association with them other than satisfied customer.
After a completely frustrating experience with Sears online, trying to buy a front-​loading washer to replace one that gave out, we tried Warners’ Stelllian. We congratulated ourselves later for our choice.
The salesperson we worked with couldn’t have been more helpful as well as courteous and friendly. There were many choices, and she didn’t push us to buy a fancier model than we wanted. At another store, we were pressured to buy a matching dryer, even though our dryer was fine and we didn’t care if they matched visually since they live in a basement utility room. She showed us the dryer but dropped it right away (the pressure, not the dryer.) We got our washer at an excellent price, and the delivery was perfect: timed right, careful installation, removed the old washer, didn’t even bump the walls on the way to the basement!
As for service: I haven’t needed it until now, three years in, but I know they refer to repair services that specialize in the brand you have. They don’t have their own service department for problems that occur after their guarantee, so complaints about service should be made to that company.
I’ve referred friends and family to Warners’ Stellian, and we’ll go back as soon as we need another new appliance.

Horrible service. The salesman acted like he was going out of his way to assist us. We left, they lost a $ 3000 sale. I really don’t think they would care anyway.

We bought a dishwasher from this location in August of 2013. It has broken four times, due to the same issue. They sub out the repairs for this brand to another company, and they have been fine. Warners’ Stellian has refused to replace the dishwasher and insists that the repair company must come a minimum of six times before they will replace it. Six. Each appointment takes three hours. It is a minimum of two weeks between appointments, so our dishwasher has been broken for two out of the six months we’ve owned it. I will never go back to Warners’ Stellian, this has been a horrid experience.

Love em and leave ‘em. My parents have bought all their appliances from Warner Stellian since 1956. They just bought a high end Kitchen Aid dishwasher that hasn’t worked since Day1. They specifically bought it a couple of weeks ago to accommodate guests for the holidays — they did not want the old washer to conk out.
The installation was scheduled for a week out, the soonest they could make it. Once installed, after trying to run several loads under various conditions, two days later the washer was still filled with the same dirty dishes. The soap dispenser does not open properly, leaving a glob of soap on the bottom of the washer. OK, we are up to the Fri before Christmas. My parents call to have someone come out and are told they need to wait for Mon AM to have the service dept call them. Sales has nothing to do with Service. The Service dept calls and the soonest they can come out is New Year’s Eve.
I call corporate offices and speak to a customer service supervisor. Sorry, nothing we can do. I offer to have someone come and fix it and send them the bill since they’re shorthanded. Nope. We are stuck with a brick for Christmas, and my parents in their late 80’s will be washing dishes by hand (I have a broken foot). Thanks Warner Stellian for rewarding 57 years of loyalty with nada!

Please think twice about purchasing anything from them. I did — a large amount — they are happy to sell, but when it comes to repair GOOD LUCK. The absolute worse company I have ever dealt with. It has now been 3 months to try to get them to repair an ice maker on a 2 year old Viking Refrigerator ($ 7000.00 unit) They did come out to look at it — that only took 3 phones calls to get them there. Not only could they not fix it — had to order parts — but broke another part on the ice machince. Repair person admitted it, but with the contact, untruths in the past I am sure that they will deny it — The Warner WAY … TAKE ALL THE MONEY YOU CAN GET FROM A CUSTOMER… AND THING JUST SCREW WITH?
WHAT A HORRIBLE COMPANY