Lowe's Is Under Fire From Shoppers Who Say They're Owed Refunds for Faulty Products
The home improvement retailer has been called out by multiple customers.
Looking to give your home a new look for the new year? You might be tempted to head to popular home improvement retailer Lowe's to stock up on supplies, and perhaps even get some inspiration for projects to take on. Before your next trip, however, you should at least be aware of some recent customer complaints. Several shoppers have spoken out against Lowe's after allegedly receiving faulty products, and now they say they're waiting on refunds that have yet to arrive. Read on to find out more about this ongoing situation.
READ THIS NEXT: 5 Warnings to Shoppers From Ex-Lowe's Employees.
Lowe's previously earned backlash for installation issues.
While Lowe's has countless satisfied customers, it's no stranger to backlash from shoppers.
Back in June, customer Karen Andrews told Fox-affiliate WFXT in Boston that she paid Lowe's around $16,000 for installation work in her new house. According to Andrews, the end result was less-than-ideal: Workers installed her bookshelves upside-down, made scratches and holes in her walls, left some cabinets unfinished or opening the wrong way, and built a glass cabinet around her sprinkler head.
"I don't think I'll ever shop in Lowe's again," she told the news outlet. "For the money I paid, I get very upset. I paid a lot of money and I didn't get what I paid for."
The Massachusetts Attorney General's Office has received more than 340 complaints about Lowe's since 2016, and more than 50 of these complaints have been related to home improvement projects in particular, WFXT reported. WFTV, the news outlet's sister station in Orlando, also revealed that 223 consumers have asked Florida's Attorney General to investigate issues with Lowe's since 2019.
Now, Lowe's is facing new complaints from shoppers.
Customers are calling out the retailer for faulty products.
Lowe's is no longer just in hot water over its installation work, however. Several customers are now coming forward about faulty products they've purchased from the home improvement retailer.
John and Carol Gee, a couple in their 70s who reside in Sparta, Michigan, recently opened up to local ABC-affiliate WZZM about the trouble they've faced after ordering a sliding door from Lowe's.
According to the news outlet, the Gees ordered the door from Lowe's on Dec. 13, 2021. The couple said that not only did it not arrive until six months later, but it also showed up broken. "The guy who came to install it checked the slider out. The slider was damaged in five different spots, so he took pictures and sent them all back to Lowe's," John told WZZM, adding that the door was then returned to the retailer and marked as damaged.
Another customer took to Twitter on Dec. 17 to speak out about damaged products they received from the retailer as well. "Do NOT buy any appliances from Lowe's," they wrote. "I spent nearly $2k for a brand new washer/dryer combo [and] it doesn't work."
Complaints on social media go back for months. On Oct. 22, a different Twitter user revealed similar problems with a refrigerator they bought from Lowe's: "I have had three fridges delivered that did not work," the customer wrote, explaining they originally paid for the product in August. "Finally got a working unit but it has a damaged door. I have a bad taste in my mouth for Lowe's."
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Some shoppers say Lowe's still owes them refunds.
Receiving faulty products is one thing, but several customers are also claiming that Lowe's owes them refunds.
The Gees told WZZM that they received another door from the retailer a couple months after they returned the original one that was damaged. But the replacement door wasn't what they ordered. "It didn't have the sliders in it, and it was the wrong size," John said.
The incorrect replacement door was also returned to Lowe's, and a third door was ordered. But when the installation tech came back to install it in fall 2022, John said Lowe's had never delivered another replacement slider door to be installed.
Since then, the couple said they have called numerous times "every week" to try to get their refund for the sliding door, worth over $4,000. To date, they said they have gotten nothing but "false promises." "This has been a nightmare that we would never imagine would happen," Carol told WZZM.
On social media, other Lowe's customers have voiced similar complaints. The Twitter user who received a non-working washer and dryer from Lowe's called the retailer's return policy "ridiculously absurd" in their tweet. "I can't get get a new one or refund," they wrote.
On Aug. 19, another customer tweeted at Lowe's Customer Service account about not receiving a refund after returning a broken lawnmower. "I have yet to see my refund on my Lowe's card," they wrote. "I have been told something different every time I call."
Lowe's says it is committed to ensuring customer satisfaction.
Best Life reached out to Lowe's about the recent complaints from customers over faulty products and missing refunds, but has not yet heard back.
A spokesperson for Lowe's told WZZM that its shoppers are of the utmost importance. "The satisfaction of our customers is our top priority," the spokesperson said. "Lowe's customer relations has been working directly with John and Carolyn Gee to address their concerns."
The Gees confirmed to the news outlet that Lowe's has made contact with them, and the company says that a refund check is on the way. But the couple said they still have doubts that they will actually get their money back, telling WZZM that they'll believe it when they see the refund check.
"We're on a fixed income. We're both retired. We don't have money to throw away, especially $4,000," Carol said. "We have health problems like anyone in their 70s, so it's added stress to our life. We're not troublemakers, we're not trying to make trouble. We just want to be treated fair."
