Hughes Direct and Miele - not a great experience

My old washing machine died on Monday. So I need a new one. I decided to buy a Miele WT2670 washer-dryer. OK, it's a thousand quid, but if it lasts 20 years it's worth it.

A look on Tuesday at comparison websites revealed Marks and Spencers were offering it cheapest; but when I went a second time to their site the item had vanished! Inside 24 hours, no less! I suppose imported items will all go up, since Gordon Brown has been printing money. Also they only had a 2 week delivery.

Next in line was Hughes Direct. Their price was the next best. Their customer service is a bit strange. I rang them, and asked to buy this very expensive item and was told to use the website. Well, I did. Then I rang customer service, and they arranged to deliver it Thursday. They couldn't say when, but a call before 9:45 would tell me what time.

Thursday came, and the call came: "before 12 noon". In fact this meant "about 12 noon". It arrived, and since I'd paid for installation, they did that too. Boy was it heavy! They also removed the old machine for £10 - good value compared to the council £26 charge. I was fairly impressed with the delivery chaps, who did an excellent job. But... the machine was dirty on top, really dirty. How can that be, if it is new?

Time to catch up on the washing. But a load or two later... what's this? Water coming out from under the machine? How come?

Water continued to seep slowly but definitely out, even if it wasn't running, even with the input line turned off. Not much; but indicative of a problem. There was a sour smell, as of stagnant water as well. How can that be, if this is a new machine? I inspected the back of the machine; all dry. I inspected the filter at the front in a little panel; all dry.

I try the dryer. It doesn't seem to do much. I wash some socks, and then dry them for an hour. They are not dry at the end of it. That's ridiculous! They'd dry faster over a radiator.

This machine is not working correctly. I don't want to have to repair a brand new machine, but I don't quite know what to do. Maybe I can get an exchange? I email Hughes Direct (although the website makes this hard). No reply.

I clean up all the water, make sure everything is tight, put down towels on the kitchen floor and go to bed. In the morning... more water. Not much, but there is this smell...

Friday I had to go away, but when I get back, the smell greets me as I enter. It's late afternoon but I ring Hughes Direct. I get a rather determined young man who tells me that I have to have someone inspect it to see if it is damaged. I demur, and he says it again. And again. I politely refer him to the Distance Selling Regulations, and ask if it has to get all legal. He goes off to talk to his managers. He comes back and tells me that I can just have it returned, but in that case I have to pay for the carriage to and fro. I give in and agree to have a little man come round to see if there is water.

Presumably this is all really about their company insurance; they can claim on their insurance if it is damaged. But they don't tell me so; and a customer who just spent £1,000 is made to feel very upset and concerned that they are attempting to force him to accept a repair.

I think Hughes Direct must be a fairly small outfit. It is a mistake to order an expensive item from a small supplier. They will only have the one; and maybe this one has already been around the block?

UPDATE: The machine has an LCD display which you use to monitor progress and change settings. This has just gone dark too! Clearly I have a complete lemon here. Even Miele must produce the odd bad machine. It's going to go back, and I will have my money back, whatever it takes. It will be interesting to see just how difficult Hughes Direct try to make this, or whether they are reasonable and I just got someone on a bad day.

But next time, I will pay the extra and order from John Lewis. Apparently they make no difficulties about returns. If you have a duff washing machine, the last thing you need is someone else being difficult. I am sick of the quibbling.

UPDATE: Over the weekend the display LCD started to recover. It had set itself somehow to German. By Monday it was back to 'normal' brightness. This suggests a battery or something.

I did another dryer run on Saturday. I dried some socks for 2 hours; and it still didn't get them dry. But I noticed that water came out while I did so. I suspect that the condenser "dryer" is responsible for the leak.

On Monday I sat around for half the morning, and a man arrived "to look at my washing machine." I told him that I was rejecting the machine under the Sale of Goods Act and under the Distance Selling Regulations and wanted it removed. I told him about the problems. He asked if it leaked overnight; I said it did. He then made a long call to his boss, saying (without asking me) that I wanted an exchange and that it must be the installation plumbing. Then he told me someone would call me and left. He didn't even pull the machine out to see if the plumbing was leaking!

I didn't feel like waiting for a call (which has not come). I rang Hughes, and told them that I had bought it last week and wanted a return and my money back. After three calls I was told that they would collect on Wednesday and I would get a refund to the card after that. Let's hope, hope, that this is the end of the matter.

Because, after all, I still need a washing machine!

UPDATE: 28th October. I waited around this morning, and got a call at 9:45 telling me they would pick up between 1pm and 4pm. So of course I had to be in by 1pm, and wait. And wait. And wait. At 3:45pm I ring in -- and am told they're running a bit late. At 4:15pm I get a call from the driver, who says he'll be with me "by 5pm" in tones that make it plain this is a moveable time. I've sat here all afternoon, yet they must have known they wouldn't get to me for hours and hours. It's now getting dark, and removing it will be difficult and awkward in the dark. I am so wishing I never, ever bought from Hughes Direct!
UPDATE: They finally appeared at 5:05pm. I must have been the last job of the day. So... why did they make me wait from 1pm? But I was nice to the boys who came to collect it. Not their fault (probably).
Only one more step; to extract from their hands the £1,024 which I paid them a week ago for the experience.

UPDATE: They did refund my money. All of it, and no hassle and argument. Evidently I got a dodgy staff member when I enquired. So ... better than it might have been.

Then I went off and bought a washing machine from John Lewis -- another Miele, but NOT a washer-dryer. And this one was fine. It didn't leak, it didn't smell.

I have no doubt whatever that the Hughes item had been sitting in a warehouse for months, getting dirty. Thank heavens I returned it.