Best Buy refused to replace a broken appliance — until this happened

Q: I bought a microwave from Best Buy, and it doesn’t work. Technicians have replaced 10 parts over four visits, but they can’t fix it.

Now the unit has started smoking, and a technician has admitted that they may never be able to repair it. Best Buy refuses to replace the microwave, saying it doesn’t meet their “monetary limit.” What can I do?

— Amber Lise, Glen Ellyn, Ill.  

A: Best Buy should have replaced your microwave quickly after it failed to repair it. It looks like you paid extra for Best Buy’s protection warranty, which covers you up to the regular retail price at the time of purchase. And that was the problem — with all the technician visits, it seems Best Buy had already exceeded the price of the microwave.

Federal law protects you from products that don’t work as advertised. Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, if a company can’t repair a defective product after a reasonable number of attempts, it must offer either a replacement or refund. You’re also covered by Illinois’ Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, which prohibits companies from misleading customers about warranties.

But mostly, you’re covered by common sense. You can’t sell someone a microwave that doesn’t work and then give up on repairing it because it’s too expensive. That’s just wrong.

Best Buy’s claim about a “monetary limit” for exchanges is understandable from the company’s perspective, but not from yours. You had a microwave that was smoking. That’s a terrible habit.

Best Buy should have replaced the unit immediately after the third repair attempt, especially given the safety risk. Instead, it wasted your time and it might have endangered your household.

To prevent this, always document every interaction (emails, repair logs) and know your warranty rights. You had a brief exchange with the company by email, but were doing most of the communication by phone. Remember, there’s no record of a phone conversation, which makes it more difficult to resolve a consumer problem.

If a company stalls, escalate to executives immediately. I publish contact details for Best Buy’s leadership team on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org.

I’m happy to say this case didn’t require my intervention. I shared the executive contacts with you, and after you reached out to Best Buy’s Chief Resolution Officer, the company finally approved the exchange. While I’m glad Best Buy resolved your case, it shouldn’t require executive intervention to honor a warranty.

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris@elliott.org or get help by contacting him on his site.