The more I research Lowes Home Improvement Stores on Google the more it becomes apparent that Lowes has complete disregard not pnly for their customers but also for their employees. Using the search term "Lowes Complaints" Google returned over 22,000 results. When I used the search term "Lowes Class Action Lawsuits" Google returned over 300,000 results.
It would appear that the Lowes Home Improvement chain has a history of not doing the right thing such as unfair labor practices, cheating their employees out of their overtime and problems with honoring warranty service on the products that they sell and the shoddy word by their installers.
Don;t take my word for it go here and see for yourself: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-us%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7GGLJ&q=Lowes+Home+Improvement+Class+ACTION+Lawsuit
This is not just happening in one store or one region but instead appears to be a common business practice of attempting to cheat both employees and consumers alike.
Lowes serves some 13 million customers each week in their 1000+ locations and throughout you will find a constant hot bed of legal problems and substantiated lawsuits.
Of course this is just the tip of the iceberg. Many of Lowes' lawsuits go unpublished and are settled quietly out of sight from the public.
Ineffective store management may be partially to blame due to indifference to correcting blatant problems. I have read everything from sexual harassment to Lowe's management refusal to put an end to some employees' commission by using phoney refund-re-bill techniques that have continued for a year after management was notified.
Can Lowes be this dirty?
In a recent EEOC lawsuit http://www.waemploymentlawblog.com/blog/2008/02/lowes-store-in.html a Longview, Washington Lowes Home Improvement store was described as a cesspool of sexual harassment that was out of control.
The more I research this company the worse they appear.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Lowes in Edwardsville doesn;t care about how their installers/service persons conduct business
I began telling you of my difficulties in dealing with Lowes Home Improvement Store while trying to get a Frigidaire refrigerator repaired while under warranty and how that escalated to my requesting a replacementm which was approved by Laura a Frigidaire representative and Lowes Home Improvement Store chooses to disregard.
Part of the problem which I have titled as "Lowes Stranger Danger" is that Lowes uses independant contractors as their installers and service people. These people may or not be qualified installers or service persons as evidenced by the amount of Lowes installer/service person complaints found under Lowes complaints on Google.
Who really knows who that person is that Lowes has sent to your home to install or repair a product. Is that person licensed or bonded? Is that person authorized to do factory repair on products covered by a manufacturer's warranty or will thir repair void your warranty? Does Lowe's Lowes do background checks to verify that their contractor is not only qualified to do the work but also that there are no criminal history with the persons that they send to your home.
I bring this up because when the Lowes service person arrived at my home and identified himself as from Lowes I noticed that he was driving a black unmarked van. At the time I did not think much about it because I knew that Lowes contrated with outside sources to do repair and installation.
What makes me bring this up now is that when Lowes told me to contact their service person to resolve this non-service issue the Lowes representative gave me their contractors name and telephone number.
Again no surprise that this person was an independant contractor I was surprised when I found out that not only was the number not a business number but it was the contractor's home number.
Further research was even more suspect in that there could be no relation shown that this service person was in anyway authorized to perform work for Frigidaire or any other appliance or has any relationship with an established appliance repair facility.
My question seem to have become a much larger issue than getting my refrigerator problems resolved. My question is now is Lowes hiring unauthorized, unlicensed, unqualified contractors of unknown background to do installation and repair work in your home?
For more information on the Lowes Installer program contact - http://www.lowes.com/lowes2/AboutLowes/careers/careers_about_loca.html
I will keep in touch
Part of the problem which I have titled as "Lowes Stranger Danger" is that Lowes uses independant contractors as their installers and service people. These people may or not be qualified installers or service persons as evidenced by the amount of Lowes installer/service person complaints found under Lowes complaints on Google.
Who really knows who that person is that Lowes has sent to your home to install or repair a product. Is that person licensed or bonded? Is that person authorized to do factory repair on products covered by a manufacturer's warranty or will thir repair void your warranty? Does Lowe's Lowes do background checks to verify that their contractor is not only qualified to do the work but also that there are no criminal history with the persons that they send to your home.
I bring this up because when the Lowes service person arrived at my home and identified himself as from Lowes I noticed that he was driving a black unmarked van. At the time I did not think much about it because I knew that Lowes contrated with outside sources to do repair and installation.
What makes me bring this up now is that when Lowes told me to contact their service person to resolve this non-service issue the Lowes representative gave me their contractors name and telephone number.
Again no surprise that this person was an independant contractor I was surprised when I found out that not only was the number not a business number but it was the contractor's home number.
Further research was even more suspect in that there could be no relation shown that this service person was in anyway authorized to perform work for Frigidaire or any other appliance or has any relationship with an established appliance repair facility.
My question seem to have become a much larger issue than getting my refrigerator problems resolved. My question is now is Lowes hiring unauthorized, unlicensed, unqualified contractors of unknown background to do installation and repair work in your home?
For more information on the Lowes Installer program contact - http://www.lowes.com/lowes2/AboutLowes/careers/careers_about_loca.html
I will keep in touch
Lowes Home Improvement Store in Edwardsville Ignores Americans With Disabilities
If Lowes doesn’t care about the 22,000 other pages of unsatisfied customers on Google they won’t mind this blog post from another unsatisfied customer.. I’m sorry.
Lowes Home Improvement Stores – 50 West Side Mall - Edwardsville. PA 18704 – (570) 285-6000
Last July I bought a Frigidaire refrigerator from the Lowes Home Improvement Store in the West Side Mall, Edwardsville, PA.
I purchased a Frigidaire because of customer loyalty to Frigidaire based on generations of family members who purchased nothing but Frigidaire appliances.
My decision to purchase my new Frigidaire from the Lowes Home Improvement Store appliance department based on price and availability.
On April 3rd of this year I called Lowes appliances in Edwardsville to report that my Frigidaire refrigerator was not properly cooling. Lowes instructed me to contact the Lowes Appliance warranty repair service to schedule repair.
April 4th – Lowes Appliances sent their repair person to assess the situation. Their repair person said that the problem was due to a defective evaporator and that it leaked the coolant causing the refrigerator to fail. He also told me that he did not have the part but that he refilled the coolant and would be back within the week to replace the part.
I waited 3 weeks for the repair man to return before calling Lowes appliances on April 23rd and I spoke to Michael, who said that Lowes had already paid the repair person for the service and it would be up to me to contact the repair person. He said that he was sorry but it was not a Lowes Appliance issue. I told him that this was now the second time that my food had spoiled and he said “I’m sorry but that is not a Lowe’s problem but they would provide compensation for the spoiled food.”
He then gave me the telephone number of their Lowes Appliance repair man to contact directly and schedule a return service call to finish the job. I called and was told to call back the next day between 11am and 7pm.
When I said that I would be out of town the next day I was told that he was out in the truck checking on the part and that he would call me back later that day.
He never called that day and he did not call or leave a message on Thursday so I called Lowes again on Thursday evening and after being told that my problem was not a Lowes problem and that I had to contact their repair person I explained that I was unable to reach him or get a satisfactory answer from him. Alicia, from Lowes appliances then asked me to hold and then came back on the line and said thet Lowes was also unable to reach him.
I was asked what his diagnoses was and I said according to their repairman it was a defective evaporator. Her solution was that she would send me the appliance part and that it would take about 5 days.
I told her that a) I was not an appliance repair person and b) that this was a new Frigidaire refrigerator and under warranty. I also informed her that I am disabled and need to be able to keep my medicine and food refrigerated. Her next suggestion was that Lowes give me a $65 discount off of a compact refrigerator rental which they would provide.
Mighty generous of them, isn’t it? I buy a refrigerator from them and it fails under warranty, their repairman comes and says that the problem is a defective evaporator. He never returns to repair the situation which is covered under warranty and Lowes will be generous and give me a discount on the rental of a compact refrigerator!
At this point I asked for a replacement of the refrigerator. Lowes countered by saying that I would have to wait until they could get in touch with the repairman that they had already admitted that they could not reach to complete the work originally and that I would have to wait until they could talk to him.
At that point I asked to speak to a supervisor who had the authority to make a decision about the replacement of the defective Frigidaire refrigerator and I was put in touch with Laura from Frigidaire.
After some conversation Laura said that she would email the manager at the Lowes Home Improvement Store at the West Side Mall in Edwardsville and authorize that they replace my refrigerator and call me the next day.
True to her word Laura called at the time we arranged and told me that she requested a replacement of the same model Frigidaire refrigerator as I had purchased but the manager at the Lowes in Edwardsville said he would not be willing to do anything until he spoke to the unreachable repairman.
Laura said “I’m sorry” and I said that I was sorry too.
I am sorry that Lowes has decided to ignore a disabled person’s request for a simple warranty refrigerator repair and that it had escalated to this point. I also told her that I was sorry that I now felt that I needed to a) contact the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and file an official complaint and b) that I would have to endure further financial hardship by filing a civil complaint whit the Edwardsville Magistrate’s Office.
Once again I explained that I am disabled and living on social security disability. I needed to keep my medicine refrigerated and that I also due to medical conditions that I needed to keep my food refrigerated.
Lowes has chosen to ignore the needs of a disabled person so now I have to find extra money to hire an attorney to protect my rights as a consumer and protect my rights as an American with disabilities.
I will keep you posted
Lowes Home Improvement Stores – 50 West Side Mall - Edwardsville. PA 18704 – (570) 285-6000
Last July I bought a Frigidaire refrigerator from the Lowes Home Improvement Store in the West Side Mall, Edwardsville, PA.
I purchased a Frigidaire because of customer loyalty to Frigidaire based on generations of family members who purchased nothing but Frigidaire appliances.
My decision to purchase my new Frigidaire from the Lowes Home Improvement Store appliance department based on price and availability.
On April 3rd of this year I called Lowes appliances in Edwardsville to report that my Frigidaire refrigerator was not properly cooling. Lowes instructed me to contact the Lowes Appliance warranty repair service to schedule repair.
April 4th – Lowes Appliances sent their repair person to assess the situation. Their repair person said that the problem was due to a defective evaporator and that it leaked the coolant causing the refrigerator to fail. He also told me that he did not have the part but that he refilled the coolant and would be back within the week to replace the part.
I waited 3 weeks for the repair man to return before calling Lowes appliances on April 23rd and I spoke to Michael, who said that Lowes had already paid the repair person for the service and it would be up to me to contact the repair person. He said that he was sorry but it was not a Lowes Appliance issue. I told him that this was now the second time that my food had spoiled and he said “I’m sorry but that is not a Lowe’s problem but they would provide compensation for the spoiled food.”
He then gave me the telephone number of their Lowes Appliance repair man to contact directly and schedule a return service call to finish the job. I called and was told to call back the next day between 11am and 7pm.
When I said that I would be out of town the next day I was told that he was out in the truck checking on the part and that he would call me back later that day.
He never called that day and he did not call or leave a message on Thursday so I called Lowes again on Thursday evening and after being told that my problem was not a Lowes problem and that I had to contact their repair person I explained that I was unable to reach him or get a satisfactory answer from him. Alicia, from Lowes appliances then asked me to hold and then came back on the line and said thet Lowes was also unable to reach him.
I was asked what his diagnoses was and I said according to their repairman it was a defective evaporator. Her solution was that she would send me the appliance part and that it would take about 5 days.
I told her that a) I was not an appliance repair person and b) that this was a new Frigidaire refrigerator and under warranty. I also informed her that I am disabled and need to be able to keep my medicine and food refrigerated. Her next suggestion was that Lowes give me a $65 discount off of a compact refrigerator rental which they would provide.
Mighty generous of them, isn’t it? I buy a refrigerator from them and it fails under warranty, their repairman comes and says that the problem is a defective evaporator. He never returns to repair the situation which is covered under warranty and Lowes will be generous and give me a discount on the rental of a compact refrigerator!
At this point I asked for a replacement of the refrigerator. Lowes countered by saying that I would have to wait until they could get in touch with the repairman that they had already admitted that they could not reach to complete the work originally and that I would have to wait until they could talk to him.
At that point I asked to speak to a supervisor who had the authority to make a decision about the replacement of the defective Frigidaire refrigerator and I was put in touch with Laura from Frigidaire.
After some conversation Laura said that she would email the manager at the Lowes Home Improvement Store at the West Side Mall in Edwardsville and authorize that they replace my refrigerator and call me the next day.
True to her word Laura called at the time we arranged and told me that she requested a replacement of the same model Frigidaire refrigerator as I had purchased but the manager at the Lowes in Edwardsville said he would not be willing to do anything until he spoke to the unreachable repairman.
Laura said “I’m sorry” and I said that I was sorry too.
I am sorry that Lowes has decided to ignore a disabled person’s request for a simple warranty refrigerator repair and that it had escalated to this point. I also told her that I was sorry that I now felt that I needed to a) contact the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and file an official complaint and b) that I would have to endure further financial hardship by filing a civil complaint whit the Edwardsville Magistrate’s Office.
Once again I explained that I am disabled and living on social security disability. I needed to keep my medicine refrigerated and that I also due to medical conditions that I needed to keep my food refrigerated.
Lowes has chosen to ignore the needs of a disabled person so now I have to find extra money to hire an attorney to protect my rights as a consumer and protect my rights as an American with disabilities.
I will keep you posted
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