Complaint Rating:

Company information:
Sears
United States
www.sears.com

I purchased my Sears Kenmore Elite Side by Side Refrigerator in 2002 model number 52609100. This side by side refrigerator has had continuous maintenance problems. Don't buy one even if it is a newer model. The elite side by side is should be considered a lemon.

Beginning when the refrigerator was only 2 years old the freezer just stopped freezing. As I opened the door and noticed water in the bottom from all the melted ice I began to realize everything was melting. I called and purchased a warranty but it took Sears 5 days to send someone out to repair the refrigerator. The repair person was well aware of the problem and fixed in by replacing a part and in and out of my house in under 10 minutes.

That was only the beginning. Next the ice maker just stopped making ice another service call. The handle of the front of the door fell off. Another service call. The lights quit working and would not work even by replacing the bulbs... another service call. Ice maker quit working yet again. As I began researching different websites I learned that many of the these problems especially the first problem where the freezer stops working is common. It appears not only in my 2002 model but also in more recent models as late as 2006.

Sears will not replace the refrigerator under the warranty program unless you have more than 4 service issues in 12 months. So your stuck with an unreliable refrigerator. Most of us just take it for granted that our refrigerator is going to be working every day. My last Sears Kenmore refrigerator was over 15 years old with never not one single repair issue. This new refrigerator is definitely a problem.

The only salvation for this situation is to continue to purchase the Sears home maintenance warranty package so that they continue to fix these problems. Seems to me they should recall the parts with problems and fix it for free. Making me purchase their service package to continuously fix their lemon is not just not right.

It is terribly inconvenient. I would not recommend anyone purchasing a Kenmore refrigerator of any make or model after this experience.