As featured in the NZ Herald and Consumer Magazine - May 2010:
We also asked members to rate any service they received when buying their appliance. This could cover advice, help with installation, meeting obligations under the Consumer Guarantees Act, and any repairs or servicing. Ratings are on a 5-point scale from "very poor" to "very good". Overall, 58% rated the service they received "good" or "very good".
Guide to the table
· Retailer lists those for which we received more than 30 responses (number of responses is shown in brackets).
· Ratings show the percentage of respondents who rated the service they received as "good" or "very good". These relate only to purchases made since 1 January 2008.
· The vertical red line shows the average rating.
What we found
· Regional or franchise chains such as 100%, Heathcote Appliances, Autel, Magness Benrow and LV Martin rated highest – as they have in past surveys. 100% is an owner-operated franchise chain and Waikato-based Heathcote Appliances is one of its members. Autel and Magness Benrow are in Auckland; LV Martin is a Wellington favourite.
· National chains such as The Warehouse, Bond & Bond, Dick Smith and Noel Leeming fared poorly, just as they have in past surveys. The Appliance Shed, a newcomer in our survey, also did poorly.
· Only 160 ratings were for appliances bought online. Most (144) of these were for a camera. Online service wasn’t significantly better or worse than service from a bricks-and-mortar store.
