I have a damaged kitchen floor caused by the attempted delivery of a chest freezer. After 8 weeks of complying with every time-consuming request, such as providing photos of the damage, getting an estimate, and allowing a manager into my home to see the damage with his own eyes, my claim has been turned down.
I purchased a chest freezer from hhgregg's Canton, Ohio location in late April, along with the only delivery service that they offered, called DS1 Deluxe Delivery at an additional fee of $69.99.
The delivery was horribly botched. When the two men arrived, the leader kept complaining that he didn't have time and was in a hurry. He was upset to learn that I did not want the freezer left in my garage, which was a straight shot on level ground from the back of his truck.
However, at hhgregg a few days before, the sales lady had told me that it was not smart to put one of the newer chest freezers in an unheated garage, because the newer models could not withstand the extremes of temperature that the old ones could with freon. She suggested installing the freezer in the basement, and I decided to take her advice.
At the time of my purchase, no one told me that the delivery service was not being provided by hhgregg personnel. However, the delivery service was outsourced to a Cleveland area delivery company called 3P Delivery, formerly Affinity.
No one denies that the delivery service caused this damage to my home, however hhgregg has passed the buck to the delivery company, and the delivery company has passed it to their insurance carrier, and the NTA Inc. Adjuster has denied the claim.
A key point is that a manager for the delivery company assured me by phone that they agreed to assume responsibility for the damage and would take care of it, even though their delivery man had bullied me into signing away liability.
Yes, they have a delivery man who is so bad at his job that he refuses to attempt a delivery unless the customer signs off on liability for damage that he might cause. He refused to deliver the freezer without it.
I am only 5'-4" tall, and this man towered over me. He raised his voice, stood close, and demanded over and over again that I sign a statement&or no delivery. I signed, but it was under duress.
In addition to being pressured by this man, I was trying to save some of my food from spoiling. Also, I had been forced to prepay for the freezer and delivery. They had my money.
Earlier, I'd cleared space for the freezer, also making sure there was a clear path for the delivery men. The basement was not empty, but the year before I'd had a new furnace installed in the same part of my basement, and no one had any difficulty maneuvering, and no one complained about access, either.
This delivery man continued to complain. The freezer (13 cu ft) was too heavy. He didn't want to lift it above his waist. He had one assistant, but he did not use blankets or straps, standard safety equipment. I did not see a dolly, either. The men carried the freezer into my house bare-handed.
At one point I asked them about blankets to protect my floor and straps to help them lift. They told me that they did not have them on the truck, and that I should get out of their way because they were experts and they knew what they were doing.
The men had rested the freezer on my kitchen floor on only one corner while they tried to figure out how to get it through the doorway to the basement. When they lifted the freezer from this position, they did not lift straight up. They twisted the freezer, using the corner as a pivot point, and tore my floor. I have about a 3 inch section of damage.
I believe that no damage would have occurred if they had been using safety equipment.
It turned out the freezer's smallest dimension was too large to fit through the doorway without removing the hinges to take off the top. The assistant began to remove one of the hinges, but at this point I was afraid of additional damage that might occur going down the carpeted stairs into my finished basement. I suggested that I might be willing to consider a smaller freezer.
The lead delivery man&who didn't have time for this delivery right from the start&agreed immediately. He shoved the delivery order in front of me again and insisted that I initial something. I said no, but he said that he needed to have this signed as part of his job, and he was intimidating. I initialed and started to cross off parts of the statement, but he tore the paper out of my hands before I could finish.
I decided not to order a smaller freezer, until and unless they took care of the damage they'd caused to my floor.
I started with hhgregg, but was told it wasn't their service. When I called the delivery company, I asked if the no-liability statement would make any difference. The manager said no. He said they would honor my claim in spite of the statement.
They have not honored my claim. They have passed it to their insurance company so the adjuster could play "bad guy" and deny it.
In addition, a manager from the delivery company told me their contract with hhgregg prevents them from using safety equipment for hhgregg deliveries. I have not been able to obtain a copy of the contract.
When the insurance adjustor (NTA Inc of Omaha, NE) found out the delivery made by 3PD (formerly Affinity) had been contracted by hhgregg, she ended the conversation abruptly. However, the written denial was based on the no-liability statement I'd signed under duress. They decline to make any voluntary payment for damage caused by the May 2nd incident.
Everyone but the NTA insurance adjuster treated me with courtesy, even though they gave me the runaround. Their tactics resulted in over 8 weeks of delays and additional duress.
This leaves me with two options: let them get away with it, or attempt to force them to do the right thing.
RH
Mogadore, Ohio
U.S.A.
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