Unfortunately, there are very few independent white goods repairers around these days. At least compared to the 70s, 80s and even 90s. But maybe you do have a local independent repair company, or sole trading white goods engineer. If so, you might be interested in looking at the pros and cons of using them compared to a large national repair company or one of the white goods manufacturers to repair your appliance.
Consumer groups like Which? periodically carry out comparison tests on the manufacturer versus independent repair option. The reports I’ve seen have always found that independent repairers commonly give a quicker and better quality service, as well as being cheaper than the washing machine’s manufacturer. This seems to be the case generally, across all types of repairs for many different products.
But it’s a little more complicated than that, as shown below. When it comes to white goods appliances, here are the pros and cons of the two choices as I see it –
Manufacturer repairs: Pros
- They should only supply and fit genuine spare parts and won’t fit inferior quality copies
- Should know what they are doing or at least have access to latest information
- Should have a proper complaints procedure if you are unhappy with the service
Independent Repairs: Pros
- Labour charges should be a lot cheaper (sometimes half the cost with independents)
- Usually much faster service
- Engineer likely to be under less time pressure and has a vested interest in your satisfaction as it is his livelihood (if a sole trader)
- Should be more flexible with appointments and may be able to work round your school pick up times etc.
Manufacturer repairs: cons
- Usually have very expensive call-out and labour charges or fixed price insurance based schemes
- Less personal service
- Can be less flexible on appointment times
- Repairmen often very pushed for time due to unrealistic workloads and pressure
- At busy times they can expect you to wait a week, or even longer, for an appointment
- I sometimes have woefully low guarantee periods for their work. I’ve seen as low as 3 months
Independent repairs: cons
- Levels of expertise can vary considerably, some could even be cowboys
- No one above them to complain to if a sole trader (apart from trading standards)
- May not have up-to-date information on the newer washing machines or for specific manufacturers with a reputation for withholding technical information on error codes etc.
- Could fit non-genuine spare parts, which may be cheaper but not last as long
- Depending on how many makes of washing machine they will look at, they may not have as many spares on the van, although many will be able to get them quickly or even pick them up locally sometimes
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