Russell Hobs and Makro, a terrible experience

My mom, who is in her 80’s, purchased a Russell Hobs kettle from Makro a year and a few months ago. Within a couple of weeks, the kettle stopped working, as it was not making contact with the base. It was returned under warranty and repaired. At the time of purchase, my mom was convinced by Makro staff to buy this brand, albeit that she could have bought a kettle at a third of the price at Checkers, as it came with a 2 year warranty and it was a “quality” brand….

When I returned the kettle on her behalf (she can no longer drive) to Makro Capegate, with the tillslip showing it was well within the 2 year period, I was told that the warranty will not be honored because my 80 plus mom did not register it on the internet. Now I am pretty technically minded, but I fail to see how the act of registering it on the internet could make the kettle last longer, or not fail. My mom was not aware of this requirement, so when I asked a Makro staff member to show me where it says this, they showed me on the box, in BIG FAT letters “2 Year Guarantee” and then in fineprint “If registered on the internet”. I told Makro my mom did not know this and was not technically savvy, but they responded rudely in a take it or leave fashion. If your company’s attitude to the elderly (or others for that matter) is so bad that you are not prepared to honour warranties for arbitrary reasons, your company does not deserve any support from anyone. If your products fail so regularly that you would make a loss if you honour this warranty, you have a big problem.

As a client, I like to feel appreciated. I like to be a client for life. I do not like to be **********. And I do not like for my mother to be **********.