Help Me Hank: Help Me Hank! Warm Refrigerator

When Deirdre Fistori got her brand new refrigerator, she thought: cool!

Deirdre Fistori
"I wanted something stainless steel and I liked the freezer on the bottom."

She loaded it with her family's perishables: milk and eggs and butter and juice. And filled the freezer with ice cream and ice.

Then the next morning, the ice was water and the milk was yuck.

Not cold. Not cool.

Deirdre Fistori
"I thought immediately that we had put it on the wrong setting."

So she cranked it up to the coldest setting, but still, no ice.

Deirdre called the store, but got a chilly response.

Then she called the manufacturer and...

Deirdre Fistori
"They chose not to help."

So uncool. Deirdre had to trek to her neighbor’s home to store her family's frozen food.

Her new fridge, empty, because it’s not cold. Her new freezer, full of stuff that shouldn't be there.

Deirdre Fistori
"Currently I use my freezer as my refrigerator."

Weeks went by and Deirdre, getting the cold shoulder from the store, was getting more steamed about her dilemma.

Deirdre Fistori
"Four weeks. I thought, I've been nice for awhile, but not anymore."

She turned to an appliance that did work: her computer.

Deirdre Fistori
"I went online and got in touch with Help Me Hank."

A refrigerator that’s not cold? So not cool. And according to Massachusetts law, if a purchase doesn't do what it should, like refrigerators refrigerate, customers get repair, replacement or refund, and they get to choose.

So we called the store and reminded them of the rules.

And look, how cool is this? Actually, the Fistoris' brand new fridge is just cool enough. The freezer keeps popsicles perfect and tater tots tasty.

And inside the shiny big door, all the fancy stuff a mom could want and no more degrees of difficulty.

Deirdre Fistori
"The temperature's perfect. Nice cold milk."

For more info about the rules on defective products, check the links below.

(Copyright (c) 2005 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)