Dependable Appliance Repair

Dependable Appliance is just what it says....DEPENDABLE!! Wonderful family owned business. Highly recommend for any appliance repair needs!

DEPENDABLE APPLIANCE IS AN UNETHICAL BUSINESS

Dependable Appliance is the only appliance repair company in the greater Alexandria, LA area authorized to repair whirlpool appliances under warranty. They use this monopoly to their benefit which is why they will only service some areas one day/week, why their receptionist rarely answers the phone during business hours, and why their technicians have no incentive to make appointment times or effectively communicate with customers.

Although their refusal to service Fort Polk customers any day other than Thursday was frustrating, my first encounter with DA was decent. On their first visit they successfully diagnosed my washing machines issue (which if you know about diagnosing digital washing machines takes 5 minutes and is billed at $120 if you pay out of pocket, though they only charge Whirlpool $65 for the same service) and one week later they brought the part and repaired the machine. I was fortunate that my wife was not working on that day and was able to wait several hours (they will only schedule visits in large 5-6 hour windows and will likely fail to make it in that window as we found out several times).

Seven months after their first visit the exact same part they replaced broke again. I worked through Whirlpool a second time to set up an appointment and then called Dependable Appliance to let them know that they should bring the exact same water valve so I could get it repaired the same day. On the day of the appointment the technician gave us a window of 12-5pm, but showed up at 6pm. In 5 minutes he used the machines easy diagnosis system to determine that it was the water valve they replaced, again, but of course he did not bring it even though I told them it would be needed (it would be very difficult to profit from billing customers for multiple hours if they had the parts on hand. They don't care that you will have to wait another week for them to come back. They are the stereotypical repairmen that want to bill hours, not satisfy customers.).

On the day they were supposed to bring the parts to fix the machine my wife and I both called several times (because as I stated, they rarely answer their phone) and finally got ahold of them. My wife explained that we were both working, but if they called 15 minutes in advance she would be able to meet the technician there. The tech never called and instead showed up at our house and left a note on the door saying we missed him. Now we get to use the laundry mat another week! I arrived home just before 5pm and immediately called them and of course, nobody answered (they also don't have an answering machine, but if you let the phone ring enough you will get an annoying fax tone).


I chose to call Whirlpool to see if they had a different company they could use to repair the machine, and that's when I found out that Dependable Appliance has a monopoly on Whirlpool warranties in the area. The whirlpool employee tried several times to contact DA, but was unable (because what business answers their phone at 10am?). After dealing with Whirlpool I was able to convince them to overnight the part so I could repair the washer myself.

A. DONT PURCHASE A WHIRLPOOL APPLIANCE. They have created an atmosphere where unethical businesses like dependable appliance have the ability to operate with a business model that gives them no incentive to provide good customer service and maximizes their ability to exploit people in frustrating situations.

B. DONT GIVE DEPENDABLE APPLIANCE YOUR BUSINESS. They are an unethical business. They cut all corners possible and exploit situations to maximize the number of hours they can bill. As mentioned above, if you are a regular customer they will also charge you almost double what they bill large corporations for warranty work (thanks!).

Apparently their owner will call me when he gets back from vacation. I won't hold my breath.

They stand behind their work. Good price and service. Would use again. Easy to give them a 5 star rating. They are very knowledgeable and are in and out with the repair.