Help Me Hank: Warranty woes

Look at Kelly's living room. She obviously knows that when it comes to decorating for her family, everything doesn't have to be matchy-matchy. Except in this room, here she chose a bedroom set that was all supposed to match perfectly.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"We bought them all at the same time."

So here's the dresser, the headboard, the nightstands, all matching.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"I'm a neat freak."

So when the armoire door broke off last December...

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"It drove me crazy."

The family TV was no longer neatly tucked away, but how hard can it be to replace a door? And Kelly had a 5-year warranty so she reported the defective part. Finally in April a package came.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"I thought this is great it's going to get done."

But look at what she got!! A door half the size of what she needed that didn't match at all. Back to the phone and 4-weeks later another arrived. It was the right size. But look, you can instantly see what else is wrong.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"I took one look at the door and said it doesn't match."

She called the company but they told her tough luck, dye problems aren't covered. After 7 months, this was the last straw.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"My parents said call ‘Help Me Hank.’"

The photo of the non-matching matching door proves the obvious, it was simply not acceptable. We examined the warranty terms to check on Kelly's rights. It does cover "breakage" and promises "replacement items will be the same or similar to the original item purchased." And it does exclude "natural characteristics that cause appearance variations."

Well, let’s see about that. It's not about knotholes or texture, this wood is stained, and it's stained the wrong color. That's not the same or similar and not Kelly's responsibility.

We called the company and they admitted the stain they used on Kelly's line of furniture had changed; there were absolutely no matching doors. The only answer was to get the whole unit replaced. That was fine with us and Kelly too. And look what arrived soon after! Close enough to perfection for neat freak Kelly.

Kelly Sylvia, home owner
"I couldn't be happier!"

So it's all about the paperwork, there could be lots of exclusions and leeway. Problems? Complain to the warranty company, but also the store, sometimes they can help. 

(Copyright (c) 2007 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)