7 On Your Side gets fridge refund for New Jersey couple frozen out of buyout
TOTOWA, New Jersey (WABC) -- A Passaic County couple has been stuck and steaming, dealing with a pricey refrigerator that won't keep cold.
It has been repaired almost half a dozen times in the last year, but then they say they got frozen out of a buyout.
When a car is just bad from the start and can't be repaired they call it a lemon and there are even lemon laws to protect consumers when their investment goes sour.
The couple in Totowa was frustrated after three fridges in nine months went on the fritz and the last one was a lemon, but they couldn't squeeze a dime out of the manufacturer.
Pete and Marty Rizutto said its been there since April 5.
It's a 400-pound pest, the malfunctioning French door fridge has been parked in the Rizuttos garage since before Easter.
"It never gets cold, no. The compressor doesn't work, it sounds like the electricity goes on," he said. "Five times they've been here, five times they haven't been able to fix it."
It's actually the third appliance making no ice, no dice, the two before were broken or damaged.
At a toasty 82 degrees, it's as warm as the Italian Riviera, spoiling the Rizuttos frozen foods over and over, but they feel it's the service from the manufacturers that's most rotten.
"They come they try to fix it. They spend an hour, two hours, and they say we can't fix it, we have to order another part," Marty said.
Since the fridge is under warranty, the company insisted on sending a repairman to keep fixing it. After five times it is deemed irreparable, so they're offered a buyout, but then that offer was taken of the table.
"I get an email from another person and they said, 'I'm sorry we can't give you a buyout.' I'm like, I already bought another fridge!" Pete said.
The couple had wrapped up the old fridge and forked out over $2,500 for a replacement when they got a letter from the fridge-maker.
"Apologize for the inconvenience for the malfunctioning fridge you received on three separate occasions," the letter read in part.
"Just give me $2,800 and take this one and we will done. The fact they've been stringing us along instead of making it right, I don't want to make anything, we want to be done with the aggravation!" he said.
That is when they contacted 7 On Your Side. We contacted the manufacturer and asked why it defrosted their initial cold hard cash offer.
"They start offering $2,000 for the fridge and $250 for the food," Pete said.
Now they can chill, with a full refund for the fridge and trashed food, $2,350, just in time for a fresh summer feast and with their family and a working fridge -- finally.
"You are a powerhouse, I don't know how you get these things done," Marty said.
"Thank you, Nina and 7 On Our Side. We really appreciate it!" Pete said.
The company told us:
"We always want our consumers to have a positive experience with our products and services and apologize for the Rizzutos difficulties."
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