In article ,
Andy Hall wrote:
On Mon, 15 Aug 2005 18:48:36 +0100, "Hardworker"
I have looked at Miele as a serious contender but at approx 2.5-3 times the
price of a other dish washer comets have them in stock £829.95 I am
wondering if their really worth the extra?
Cheaper Mieles are available - we got one a couple of years back for about
500 quid with a 5 year warranty. We were so impressed with it we bought a
washing machine from them as well.
There are a number of good features throughout the range, but those
that I think are most useful a
- Very quiet indeed in operation
Agreed
- Cutlery tray in the top rather than a basket, provides more space
and cleaner cutlery because each item is separately placed.
Yep - this is excellent. A big improvement on our old machine
Also is there any recommended placed to purchase. I (don't throw things
now) like comets or curry's as I can always turn up at the shop if there's a
problem. That is why I am a bit wary of internet sellers.
I don't think that it makes any difference. Legally, the retailer
has responsibility if there is a problem. The manufacturer's
warranty is a convenience that allows them to pass execution of that
responsibility to the manufacturer.
There's no real value any longer in bricks and mortar shops because
they don't typically have the product you want in the showroom and you
have to often buy unseen anyway. They are certainly not interested
in dealing with your service problem in a retail store.
Exception to this seems to be John Lewis. Had very good service from them.
They are (according to Miele) the biggest resellers of Miele kit in the
country but you have to watch out - some of the models they sell are
JL exclusive. We have a fridge, the dishwasher and the washing machine
that I mention from JL and all three were in stock. Prices vary from very
competitive to not close depending on model.
I am completely satisfied with Miele's service operation.
This is the only thing that has let them down in my experience so far.
A few weeks ago out washing machine stopped mid cycle showing "---" on
the screen and flashing a led. Manual suggested restarted the cycle which
we did and it works. As this was the 3rd time this had happened I rang
Miele to ask for advice. They said they would send out an engineer to
have a look.
Engineer turned up as promised and within a couple of mins claimed that
there was nothing he could do as it hadn't logged any fault codes. He also
said that as there was no fault he would have to charge us 90 quid. We
pointed out that it was *their* decision to send an engineer and that they
hadn't warned of a charge. He then looked on his computer and noted that
they hadn't marked it as "Price advised" so rang the office to get the
charge waived. This they did but claimed that this would be left on record
and made my wife feel rather guily and as if we have now used up our "free
warranty call out".
We have written to them and are awaiting a responce (2.5 weeks so far).
I've been involved in the past in the service aspect of a business in
a different sector where people are pretty demanding and am completely
intolerant of anything less than top flight service. I really can't
fault Miele in any way on service.
As I say, the system was impresive and worked well. But we currently have
a washing machine that has failed 3 times and that seems to be untracable.
As it hasn't logged a fault they seem uninterested in helping. I realise
that this sort of thing is difficult (near impossible!) to diagnose but
their attitude disappointed me some what. I'll see what their reply to
our letter is before I comment further - they still have a chance to
redeem themselves...
I must admit though, even despite this incident I would be tempted by
Miele again in the future.
Also, worth a look at
http://www.miele.co.uk/specials.asp?page=0&id=1
to see what offers are running. You can usually find 5 or even 10 year
warranties on their dishwashers and washing machines (we have one of
each).
HTH,
Darren