Andersen Consumer Reviews - Page 5

SAVANNAH, GEORGIA -- Anderson patio doors fall apart. Didn't last 15 years. Horrible company. Horrible product. Star away from all of them.

DAYTON, OHIO -- This is my third financial advisor in 23 years and this is the one I have been looking for. This is a friendly, knowledgeable, contentious, young man who will advise you about your finances as if you were his own Mother. If you want someone you can trust give him a try, you will not be disappointed.

DES MOINES, IOWA -- I bought an Andersen Storm Series, 3000 self-storing door in June 2008, at Home Depot… installed easy and looked good. However in short time and the window frame plastic has fallen apart, warped and cracked in less than two years. Then the screen handle metal lock literally fell on the floor one day last year and I was so shocked to have then discovered the only thing that was holding it on all this time was some piece of double sided tape, seriously that is not even logical let alone secure!!! What were they thinking?

So I called customer representative to finally complain and they said they realized the issue and now have designed the lock, that now actually screws into the door frame (what a novel idea!). And I was then sold on the idea I could fix this issue by buying a redesigned lock replacement to fix that issue for a mere 27 dollars, and the window frame piece for 18. So for 45 bucks with tax the new "lock assembly" arrived and I was now shocked again, the replacement lock is now also cheap plastic, not even a metal lock.

I am very unhappy. I spend a lousy 45 bucks for cheap inexpensive plastic pieces to fix their metal taped on lock and warped plastic glass frame. Also the screen comes out of the track on the sides of the door and lets bugs in, it too is warped on the bottom and is unsightly over just two years time. Not a door with any parts that are made to last.

I also asked for the manager, when it was clear I was only getting a sales job by the customer rep, I complained to the manager that this was taped on lock is design flaw and was I was told that it as not meant to be a “security door” and was given the "we are so sorry for your inconvenience" routine over and told the new lock I could pay them for would fix the problem. They seemed unfazed no matter what I complaint I shared, but they were not going to help do anything to fix it or offer anything but to offer me the deal to buy their solution for 45 bucks.

Of course they never mentioned the lock solution to fix the problem was also just a cheaply made plastic piece (not metal) for the 27 dollars… Is a metal lock that actually attaches to the door too much to ask for a 27 dollar replacement I had to pay for to replace the tape? I even mentioned I was unhappy enough with their “solution” that I would write about my bad experience with them and their door, to let everyone know about these issues and that did not faze them at all! Buyers beware.

I almost always check reviews online before making any major purchase, however, this time I didn't and now wish I had. I purchased an Andersen storm door from Home Depot and had them install it. The install went great, the problem arose when I went to swap the glass for the screen about a week after it was installed. Anderson sent the wrong screen, it had a bar through the center, mine was to be a full length screen, and it didn't even fit IN the door (This was a special order door so it came directly from Anderson boxed, it was packaged wrong).

I called HD right away and they said they would order the correct one and would take 7-10 to receive. 16 days later I called to check the status and was told it was never ordered and they had zero notes in my file about it! I was told again they would order one, received a call 2 days later from HD saying if they ordered it I would have to pay $60 for REPLACEMENT! I said it was Andersen's error and they didn't care, that was the policy!

I was told to call Andersen directly and they would ship one directly to my house free of charge. I did just that and was told if I wanted it shipped to my house I had to pay $37 for shipping! They would send it to HD for FREE, but not to me, and if I wanted I could just pick it up there. Was also told it would take THREE to FOUR WEEKS to receive! I called HD back and they FINALLY stepped up to the plate and called Andersen for me but unfortunately got the same answer.

I told her I didn't care that it wasn't shipped to my house but I had no way of getting it home from the store as it's too big to fit in my car so she said she would have an installer drop it off. This was yesterday (6-16-10) so I still have to see if this will work out in the end anyway. It's now summer and would LOVE to have a screen door in, that's why I bought it in the first place, and now I have to wait yet another month to enjoy it! I purchased and had this installed in APRIL, it will be JULY before I can actually use it as a screen door!

Haven't had an issue with the quality of the door, however haven't used it that much. I would suggest if you are looking for a door, skip over Anderson AND Home Depot (especially if you are looking for customer service after the sale, god forbid an error was made or the wrong product was sent to you).

BAYPORT, MINNESOTA -- In 1998 I had five sets of Andersen french wood gliding patio doors installed in my home by an Andersen dealer. There are two four panel two door sets and three two panel one door sets. At this point 75% of the individual panels are delaminating and failing. The cause of this failure in lamination is because that Andersen manufactured these doors with a faulty glue. This was known by Andersen shortly thereafter.

Instead of issuing a recall or trying to correct the problem Andersen chose to ignore the defect in manufacturing and let their manufacturer's warranty expire. Upon contacting customer service, I was told they would sell me new doors at a discount but I would have to pay for installation. Anyone considering an Andersen product should review the numerous complaints that are available on the internet.

ANDERSON, SOUTH CAROLINA -- I went to AnMed for a procedure in August, 2006. Being uninsured I had no clue what was about to happen. I received a bill for $38,725.85 for a stay of less than 24 hrs. The stent that was used cost the hospital around $3,000 (to the best of my knowledge) and they charged me $16,919.00. Not a bad profit margin. After doing some investigation on my own and with the help of hospitalvictims.com, I discovered that medicare would have paid approx. $7,336.00 and private insurance would have paid approx. $9,170.00. We went back and forth with the CFO trying to negotiate this down. This went on for a couple of months.

On November 22, the CFO wrote me a letter stating if I paid in full (sounds like extortion to me) by December 31, 2006 they would discount the bill by 30% (insurance carriers got about a 75% discount). This means it's still about $15,000 too high. In a previous letter that he wrote to Congressman Barrett on November 16, 2006 who wrote to the CFO on my behalf, the CFO (in his politically correct letter) said that I had 60 days (which would have made it January 16, 2007). With that information, I sent AnMed a good faith check in the amount of $11,463.44. I indicated that this was the undisputed portion of my bill. I assumed I could continue to negotiate the balance.

My previous offers of $15,000.00 and $18,000.00 were rejected. My payment of $11,463.44 reflected the reimbursement private insurance would have paid PLUS an extra 25%. Two weeks later, they had not deposited the check. On December 15, 2006 they filed a civil action against me and then returned my check. What happened to December 31st and January 16th. I guess they just couldn't wait to sink their teeth into me. Apparently they are not going to budge, and neither am I. In fact, my physician called the hospital CEO who indicated they were holding their position and when my physician stated that AnMed was going to be a lot of bad publicity, the CEO didn't care!

Talk about arrogant! Just a word of caution... if you are uninsured and need hospital care, INSIST on getting the prices first. Excluding an emergency situation, instead of doing the things you need to do to get well, you'll be stressing over the aggressive collection efforts of hospitals! There are many class action lawsuits across the country that allege that hospitals are actively practicing price discrimination and AnMed is one of those class actions. If you look at the lawsuits AnMed has filed against patients (some as little as $300), I wonder how they have time to do what they're supposed to do... deliver health care, not subpoenas!

BAYPORT, DELAWARE -- I purchased an Andersen PermaShield 200-Series Sliding Glass Patio door, and it won't close completely unless it is latched. Andersen acknowledged the problem, which they call 'bounce-back', but assured me that the problem would go away within 1-3 months if I kept the door closed and latched. It's been three months now, and the door STILL won't close properly!

Had I known that the door wouldn't close completely for 3 months or more after it was installed, I would NEVER have purchased it! And whatever energy efficiency rating Andersen claims for this door is BOGUS, because a door that doesn't close completely when you walk outside has an energy efficiency rating of ZERO!

WALDORF, MARYLAND -- I purchased an Andersen 3000 Series storm door in June of 2007 and by the summer of 2011 the door would no longer properly latch. The problem was a small spring located behind the latch. When the door handle is depressed the spring is compressed causing the latch to retract into the frame, allowing you to open the door. When you let go of the handle the spring tension causes the latch to extend back out and the handles to rise back to their “normal” position. Over time the spring has lost its compression resistance and the latch will no longer fully extend to properly catch and seat inside the strike plate.

This should be an easy fix, simply replace the cheap spring behind the latch. But Andersen does not sell replacement springs and has instead told me over the phone that I need to purchase the entire door handle assembly which costs $58.99 online. They offered me a 20% discount but still, the entire door only costs $199.00. Why would I want to pay 25% of the cost of a new door for a spring which shouldn't cost more than a couple dollars? What a ripoff. I won't be buying Andersen products in the future.

The door works well when the top glass frame is in the closed position. It has a V-gasket that runs horizontally between the upper and lower glass frames. This keeps the wind and snow outside. OK for winter, but now it is spring. When the top window is pulled down, to expose the screen, a 1/4 inch space is exposed between the V-gasket and the glass across the full width of the door allowing flies, mosquitoes, bugs, spiders to enter my home.

I called Andersen. Their answer was that a 1/8 to 1/4 inch gap is acceptable to them, and there was nothing they would do. With an attitude like that, how do they expect to keep their once loyal customers. Here is a thought -Andersen have your design dept. fix the inherent design problem, and supply current owners with a redesigned V-gasket. -- ANDERSEN ARE YOU LISTENING...

EMCO, a subsidiary of Andersen Doors, makes Forever storm doors with limited lifetime warranty sold at Home Depot stores. The parts that take the most wear like the latching mechanism are only covered for one year. This is normal with some companies since the part is subject to abuse, very thin and made primarily of cast white metal.

When it broke after just over a year, I contacted them to obtain a replacement. I was not against paying for the broken part, but they will not sell it individually. You have to buy a complete hardware kit that costs a third of the original cost of the door. You get not only the latching mechanism, but all brass hardware, handles, and the door closer. Most of this you will end up throwing away because it isn't needed. Neither EMCO (Andersen) nor Home Depot were having the customer pay twice the necessary cost just to throw a substantial number of parts away.