NEVER, EVER TAKE A SEARS MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT -Please pass this along to anyone and everyone whose ever purchased a service agreement from Sears. WHAT A RIP OFF!!! If you have a story, add it! Susan of Marlboro NJ (08/23/06) On August 2, 2006 I contacted Sears Appliance Repair to service my Kenmore Elite Refrigerator. I have a maintenance service plan for this appliance. I explained that the refrigerator was malfunctioning and ice would build up inside the refrigerator and then melt causing me to have to place a bowl under the shoot that leads to the freezer in the inside back of the refrigerator to catch the water. Several times I had to mop up a significant amount of water that accumulated under the crisper drawers. I also explained that I was leaving for vacation in 6 days and was concerned about flooding my kitchen since I would be gone for 1 week. I was told to empty the top shelf and someone would come no sooner then August 12th. I questioned the timing right away. They assured me it was not a problem and not to worry about it. Two days later I found myself emptying the bowl of water accumulating inside the refrigerator a few times a day. I called back, explained my situation and was told again that their was no available service in my area until August 12th. The service rep asked me if I would troubleshoot over the phone to possibly alleviate the problem. I said I would. Frustration was building because the service rep had inadequate knowledge of the product and did not perform well. After a few minutes I realized that she was discussing a side by side when my refrigerator was a top mount. After all she had my information right in front of her! She kept on insisting that I remove the drip pan at the bottom of the crisper drawers when there was none. I again asked for an earlier service and was told that was not an option. After talking to the manager, he suggested I give all of my food to my relatives and neighbors and shut the refrigerator until I get home from my trip. I have about $500 worth of food and frozen meats, what an imposition and inconvenience for my friends and myself. No one could fit my things in their refrigerator. Again showing my frustration and disappointment in my service, he told me I could always cancel my maintenance agreement if I was not happy and go somewhere else. How rude! I am extremely disappointed because my product does not work properly, the service was not performed correctly and I feel the service plan was misrepresented. What good is having it if you cannot get service in a timely matter? You have wasted my time and my money. I was forced to use an outside repair service besides having to throw away much of what was inside my refrigerator. William of San Diego CO (08/07/06) In May of 2006 I received notice that the Protection Agreement for my refrigerator I bought and they installed on 07/08/2001 would expire in July. I sent in a check for $232.87 for a three year renewal on 05/22/06. I received the new agreement in June. Later that month I received a telephone call from SEARS asking that I renew the agreement. I told the unidentified questioner that it had been paid and that I had received the renewal agreement. He asked that I read the renewal certificate number to him which I did. He apoligized and I heard someone yelling at him in the background. Today I received an URGENT: Your Sears Protection Agreement has Expired letter through the mail. When I called about it, after waiting 3 minutes for an operator, the woman told me that the agreement WAS extended and that they had sent out second notices on these accounts - implying that I was the one at fault for not sending it in sooner. I think that SEARS has (1) the most incompetent customer service reps in the business or (2) is deliberately trying to get me to pay them twice for the same services. Either way they are unlikely to ever get my business again. Marge of Williamstown NJ (08/04/06) I called on Aug 7, scheduled a repair call on my Maytag dryer that I purchased at Sears for between 8 am and 5 pm Aug 11. At 10:44 am on Aug 11 I received a call that they did not have a serviceman in the area and would have to reschedule - for Aug 17. He said  I don't know what to tell you, there is no serviceman available in your area. What kind of service is that? Really makes me want to deal with Sears again!   Daisy of Birmingham AL (07/30/06) My service agreements states that I have 5 year warranty parts/labor today I called sears for service and was declined because they said that the store made a mistake on my policy I was told that I could not bring my TV in for service nor can they come out to fix it also customer service refused to give me a case number and tI was told that I had to spend $300 for another agreement since the system will not allow them to correct the mistake that the sale person made now I am stuck with a 32 inch JVC TV which is in warranty and sears refuses to fix it at my home and the service department told me it was to large for me to bring it in for service , I do not know what to do. Why is sears doing this to me. Neal of North Pole AK (04/25/06) Another case of no service on their service policy. Called in 2 weeks ago and arranged service on my snowblower. No show on date of service. Rescheduled but snow will be gone by then so they will not be able to test. This happens over and over on Sears service contracts that I maintain. I will never buy another contract or extend any. I will never purchase anything from Sears in the future that has a contract available! I lost a day of work awaiting their repair person. I will make it up so there is no money loss, just sleep as I had to get up at 8 AM to await their rep, after having got off work at 3 am Alexander of Pacific Palisades CA (04/18/06) We own a Maytag Neptune top-loader washing machine, one of the most expensive washers sold in Sears. At the time of purchase, Sears also talked us into buying the extended repair warranty. The washer keeps breaking incessantly. Every time we place a repair call to Sears Service, it is about a two-week wait for the repair person to show up, then another two weeks to order parts. The repair person leaves the washer in exactly the same condition -- BROKEN. At this point, this has been going on for two months plus. Sears service appointments are also scheduled in 4 hour intervals, which means that someone has to be at home all that time. With a family of three young children, it is an impossibility living without a washer. Financial consequences are over $1,000 for a washer that does not work, $300 plus for extended service warranty, plus laundromat costs, which at this point are $400 plus. Ruth  of Lakewood CA (03/02/06) Sears Repair Service worked on our refrigerator on January 25, 2006. Repair done in our house and we did talk to customer service after about the repair bill. I was not present at time of service, but after talking to my husband and how labor is charged, believe it to be 'unreasonable for the service performed'. I do not dispute the part charge of $ 58.43 (with tax) or $55 fee for minimum charge, but the $168.00 labor which after $ 55 is deducted is $ 113.00. The repairman only took 10 minutes to replace the part and said the charge is based on our unit.   My husband also stated that the repairman already took off the part and was replacing it before he said, 'Oh I better write up the estimate' and also took the estimate with him when he left ,so all we had was a receipt. I believe that Sear''s Home Central Management needs to adjust this charge accordingly. I do not believe something that took such a small amount of time should be charged at such a high rate. The customer is trapped since the appliance is not working and warranty has run out and believe that where the product was purchased is the right place to call for repair also. I was told that since I no longer had the extended warranty that I more or less agree to accept charges. I do not.. Scott of South Jordan UT (02/23/06) On September 22, 2004, I purchased a Dyson Animal Vaccum Cleaner from the above mentioned store. My wife and I wanted to also purchase a warranty. We asked the sales clerk how much the two year and the five year warranties were. We were told that they were having a promotional sale on the 5 year warranty, and that it would only cost one cent. On Thursday, February 23, 2006, I took the vaccum in to have it serviced. The store did not even have the purchase in their system, so I took my copy of the receipt and the warranty in with me. The service manager would not honor the warranty. He said that since it was not in the computer, he could not honor it. He went to get the store manager. The store manager said that there was a mistake, and that the cost of the 5 year warranty when we bought the vaccum, should have been $249. To get my vaccum serviced I needed to purchase that warranty. I feel that if there was a mistake, it was the store's mistake, and not mine. I should not have to pay half of the cost of the vaccum a year and a half later to get my warranty honored. Plus the fact, that paying that $249 would only get the warranty until Sept. 2009 (the date the original warranty would have expired). Irene of Chepachet RI (02/23/06) In fall of 2001 I purchased a Calypso washer from Sears. Within the first year I received a letter from Sears stating the washers were being recalled due to injuries incurring when removing clothes. It was replaced with a second Calypso, which, within the first year began malfunctioning by not draining properly and various error codes displayed. Two separate services calls were made and after the second one the washer was replaced with a third. This third washer is also exhibiting the very same problems as the previous one of not draining and error codes. In Sept. '04 a repairman came out and 'repaired' it, and most recently another repairman came 2/20 to 'repair' it, and the very next morning I went to do a load of laundry and the machine began displaying error codes during the wash cycle. Numerous calls were placed to speak to a person but only after contacting a local television station's consumer advocate did I receive a call from a Sears employee, who gave me the telephone number of Sear's One Source Dept, which I was told handles complaints and problems that are unresolved through conventional means. I spoke with a woman and explained my history, she arranged for a technician to come to my house the next day. The technician deemed both computer heads were defective and advised me the Calypso had been pulled from the stores and a class action lawsuit had been filed regarding the numerous complaints on them. I was advised to contact One Source after the service call and discuss with them the need for a replacement washer and to refuse another Calypso as a replacement.. When I telephoned One Source I was advised they did not have any record of my having 3 different Calypso's and they would not replace the washer. I was also told I would need yet another technician to come out and because the machine was not under warranty I would be responsible for the cost of repairs. Carl of Muskogee OK (02/23/06) We purchased a CRAFTSMAN 48' cut 20hp Kohler hydrostat riding mower from SEARS store on 11/21/2001. The carburetor failed 3 times in one year and they declared it a lemon. They convinced us to upgrade mowers with the purchase price of the old mower applied to the new mower plus buying the 3-year extended At-Home Warranty. The new mower, a CRAFTSMAN 48' cut 25hp Kohler hydrostat riding mower was purchased on 10/31/2003 and picked up on 11/5/2003. We paid $2,458.32 for the mower and the extended warranty costs. When mowing season started in late spring the main deck drive belt was breaking and having carburation problems. The main drive belt from the engine to the deck and the carburetor problems have been a constant complaint with numerous and unmitigated inconvenience and stress. We bought this mower and the extended warranty to minimize and eliminate inconvenience and stress. At one point, I called AB Electrolux, Sears' supplier of the unit. They called Sears' techs and decided the AB Electrolux engineer knew of some apparent engineering or design flaw. So, Sears sent 2 techs out who spent all day taking our whole mower apart and putting everything back on a new frame less a couple of lockwashers I found left in my driveway and a later discovery of a broken crankcase ventilation grommet, which allowed unfiltered air into the engine causing further wear on the internal engine parts. Sears even changed the complete deck on the unit once. The main drive belt has been changed more than 6 times. (The spaces between frame and deck parts and the running belt are minimal in more than one place and still are after the deck and frame changeout.) The main drive belt continues to be a problem and we keep a spare around to minimize our down time. The carburetor has been changed out on the engine 3 times. It would always flood out under a load or on a little uneven rough ground. One tech finally discovered the choke setting was incorrect. This seems to have solved that problem, but at the expense of compromising the life of the engine. Raw gas pouring through the engine has surely worn the cylinders, pistons and rings beyond the mowers' 100 +/- hours of operation. The oil turns dark soon after changing and is contaminated mandating the prudence of being changed along with the oil filter every 12 hrs rather than what is recommended in the maintenance book. We are nearing another season and we dread the start of this season expecting it to be the same unmitigated inconvenience and stress with the mower belt and compromised engine. Our 3-Year Extended At-Home Warranty expires 11/5/2006. We have exhausted all possible phone calling to the store, (The store manager hung-up the phone on us on 11/5/03.), and corporate #s asking for a full refund. We have no intentions of using this or any other mower like it made by AB Electrolux and marketed under various names by various retailers.   It is our intention to file a suit in small claims for recovery of full purchase price, 3-year extentded warranty price included, and punitive damages. Elizabeth of Hemet CA (02/21/06) Our family purchased both a Kenmore HE3 washer and dryer around March of 2003. Within the first three months we began experiencing problems with the latch on the washer. The latch mechanism was replaced. Approximately five months later we had the same problem again. Additionally, around 18 months we began to notice that the floor area was damp around the washer. We tried to find where the moisture was coming from and could not locate the problem. The problem persisted and became worse. At one point we resorted to using a wet dry vac to clean up the water that was leaking out of the washer. When we called the repair center they offered no solution. We were able to pintpoint the problem...the gasket that would seal the front load door from leaking had tears in it that were unoticable until we took the front of the washer off looking for the leak. When we called Sears about the problem we were informed that it would not be covered under our warranty because it was not a manufacturer defect. We would be required to pay 55.00 for the service call in addition to any parts and labor! Another part that broke was a small sensor mechanism that senses when the door is open or shut. This caused the door to either not close or it would lock and we would have difficulty getting the laundry out and it would be left sitting damp for an extended period of time. This problem occurred after about 15 months. We finally purchased a different washer because we did not want to keep getting the run around about the warranty or to sustain more damage to our home (2 story house laundry room upstairs.) The dryer is another story. We noticed the dryer was taking longer each time we used it the last few weeks to dry. Last week (Feb. 12, 2006), the dryer was loaded with clothing and turned on. I was downstairs and noticed an unsual odor, it smelled as if wiring or plastic was on fire. I found the source of the odor to be the dryer. I had the children get out of the house, and I unplugged the dryer from the wall. The dryer was very hot, I didn't see any flames coming out or any billowing smoke. Only noticed that the dryer was very hot and smelled. We have since ceased to use the dryer, and purchased a new one. Today, 2-21-06, we had a repairman come out and look at the HE3 while he was delivering the new dryer. He discovered that the HE3 dryer had caught on fire, and that was the cause of the excessive heat and the odor. I was pretty frustrated, as we had planned on getting the old one fixed and leaving it in the garage for playclothes, etc., but the repairs are astronomical. The initial estimate without taking the machine to the shop is $700! We are very disappointed with our experiences with both machines. We purchased top of the line costly appliances with the notion that we were buying name brand dependable merchandise. Marcia of Sunrise FL (02/20/06) On 6/4/05 I signed a contract with a Sears salesperson for a new 3 ton A/C unit. On 6/14/05 A/C unit was installed by AMS Air. By 6/17/05 the A/C unit stopped working. The project coordinator, John Costlow, was contacted and informed of same. He suggested that the unit be turned off for a while in order to allow the copper tube which is connected to the condenser to thaw--since it was frozen solid--. I was then instructed to restart the unit and leave it running in the on mode vs. auto. I also made the 'discovery' that the heat does not work either. I tried numerous times to have this problem resolved with John Costlow from 6/17/05 to present. This 'brand new' A/C unit failed inspection on 7/28/05 with the City of Sunrise. The inspector was appalled at what Sears permitted, the inspector also tried to contact John Costlow and stated that none of his calls/messages were returned. The City of Sunrise has pulled out of inspecting Sears A/C units and I was informed that this is nothing new re: customer complaints against Sears. I continued to place endless phone calls in which messages were left and ignored repeatedly by John Costlow and AMS Air. I have also expressed my dissatisfaction to the complaint ctr @ 1(800)222-5030 and was recently assigned a caseworker, Christine Crowder 1(888)673-7881 ext 3029, in order to 'handle my problem'. I was informed that it would be easier to have the unit repaired vs. a refund. Following a 1/30/06 visit from Marco Jr of AMS Air it was determined that a new heater was needed. I feel that I was sold a defective A/C unit and Sears is forcing me to keep it and settle for less. I do not want parts installed/replaced for a defective A/C unit that I feel was given to me that way.The representatives of Sears that I have been calling has repeatedly given me a run around.  Timothy & Janet of Pahrump NV (02/17/06) We bought a Kenmore side by side refrigerator in October of 2004. We were in Oregon from July thru September, so the two of us used the frigerator less than 12 months when our pin bracket ice dispenser went out. The first repair man said it was such a common problem that Sears had developed a kit for the repair. The repair man who came when we received the part also said it was a common problem and may have been a recall item. We now have it fixed, but it cost us $176.58.