Witbeck Home Appliance Mart — Attraction in West Bloomfield Township

I sent this message months ago through Witbeck’s online support form asking for a refund for a $75 measuring service but never heard anything back. It’s now a month later and I figured the only way I’ll hear back is posting this as a review:

“We wanted to reach out because we’ve been working with Domingo, a salesman at Witbeck in Bloomfield, and we’ve been incredibly frustrated by the process.

We had worked with Witbeck back in 2018 during a home renovation and purchased all of our appliances from you. We had a great experience and loved working with Vince, the salesman at the time. However, our experience this time around has been quite different.

When our microwave broke last year, we tried to find a compatible replacement, but we accidentally bought one that wasn’t compatible. So we came into your store hoping someone could help us find the right model that would fit. We came in with detailed measurements of our microwave cabinet and explained our situation to Domingo. He suggested that we pay $75 to have your team come out and measure for us in order to find the perfect fitting microwave and trim kit. We took his advice and went ahead with this service.

We initially came into your store on January 22, had your team measure on February 3, and it is now April 12. We still have not received a helpful recommendation from Domingo since then.

Over the past months, it’s been pulling teeth to get Domingo to respond to emails, and when he does get back to us, he says “I’ll get back to you tomorrow.” He said this twice and both times it took him about 15 days to get back to us only after we had followed up with him.

The first time we finally heard back, he sent us a microwave that we had to double check only to find out that it wasn’t compatible based off the measurements your own workers collected on-site. The second time we heard back, he sent us another microwave that wasn’t compatible because our outlet is in the wrong location.

It has been frustrating to feel like we are putting in more work trying to work with Domingo then if we had just searched for a microwave on our own. Ultimately, it’s led to more confusion and frustration along the way. At this point, we would like to request a refund of the $75 we paid for the measuring service, and we will look elsewhere to find a microwave that meets our needs.

Let us know if you’d like any additional information or if you’d like to see our email threads w/ Domingo.”

I sent this back in April, and now it is July 30. The level of unresponsiveness to this complaint, compounded on top of the already poor service we were receiving, puts my review at a 2 stars. While they are nice and initially enjoyable to work with in person, they failed to measure up in the end. Unfortunately we have moved on and probably won’t work with Witbeck...

We’ve used Witbeck before and had positive experiences, which made this situation all the more frustrating and disappointing.

We purchased a new washer and dryer—spending a considerable amount—because our old washer died and we needed a quick replacement. We were told delivery would take one week. When the delivery team arrived, the washer was damaged and they refused to remove the old appliances due to a gas line issue. While I understood the liability concern, the salesperson and dispatcher failed to give me any clear guidance on what needed to be done before delivery.

After that first visit, I had to hire a plumber at my own expense to make the necessary changes, which added about 33% to the overall cost of replacing these units. I also ended up having the plumber install the new dryer they left behind, since it wasn’t damaged.

A week later, the replacement washer arrived—and it was damaged too. I was offered 10% off or told I could wait another week (or longer) for a third washer, with no guarantee it would arrive undamaged. After multiple frustrating phone calls with a supervisor, they eventually agreed to 20% off. I only accepted because they couldn’t give me a clear timeline for a replacement and I couldn’t afford to miss a third day of work or live another week, or more, without a washer. At that point, I felt taken advantage of—like I was being forced to choose between two bad options I didn’t really want. I just needed the process to be over.

We do now have a working set, but the lack of communication, multiple damaged appliances, added costs, and poor handling of the situation completely soured the experience. We’ve trusted Witbeck for years and had even planned to purchase new kitchen appliances during an upcoming remodel—but after this, we won’t be shopping...

I have never written a review, and would avoid doing so with local businesses to not deter potential shoppers. That said, I have serious concerns and frustrations with my shopping & installation experience that I wish I had insight into ahead of purchasing 4 new (high-end) appliances with Witbeck.

Communication regarding installation was stalled and required frequent prompting for when the units would be available and therefore installed. In fact, when they first came to install our new units, it was only then that we learned -- from the installers- our range was on backorder and we would need to schedule another installation date. Part of the process is paying for a technician to come to your home to assess the space (electrical, plumbing, etc) to ensure smooth installation. Should you need outlets moved, you know ahead of time with clear detail what needs to be done. Great. After paying for a technician to come, and then a plumber & electrician, the day of installation still left our brand new range 7 inches away from the wall as the exhaust was not in the right place and we needed to have a plumber come out AGAIN to fix (as the Witbeck technician missed this detail). The installers left 2 exposed screws jutting out from our cabinets. Not only is this an aesthetic concern, but we have an 11 month old and the screws are at his eyeball height. The worst part -- we bought a very nice Thermador range. The oven didn't work the first time we went to use it. Witbeck's suggestion was not to replace the unit, but said "nothing we can do- call the manufacturer ". So they sold us a very expensive unit, only for it to not work and then... threw their hands up to suggest it's on us to fix it? Not the best feeling when you spend over $15k...