Gripes: Ashley Furniture

Back in October following the storm - we bought a set of living room furniture here in town. We made a slight splurge and chose Ashley Furniture because we were looking for something that would last us a while. It was one of those bizarre post-Katrina purchases, really. We had the FEMA assistance money for contents -- but our house was not ready for any contents at the time. We sort of felt compelled to use the money to buy contents before someone came and took it away.

Yes - so... we bought a set of living room furniture: one sofa, one loveseat, one coffee table, and two end tables. It was delivered a few days later. I asked the delivery guys not to remove the delivery foam and plastic - wrapped it a few more times in plastic tarps -- and then stored it in our unfinished dining room. There it sat until after Christmas that year when we had floors installed in our living room.

Our living room is a bit dark, to tell the truth. I don't just mean my color combinations -- I mean dark as in absence of light. Not only have we not yet replaced our table lamps -- but even if we did we would have no where to plug them in just yet. (The floor outlets in the living room have not been completely repaired.) So the best lighting we get is from the recessed ceiling fixtures... and only three of the six of them are not burned out.

I brought in a lamp from another room and plugged it into a wall outlet so I could see better while spot-cleaning the area rug... and I happened to notice two dark patches on the love seat cushions. When I checked closely - very very closely - I realized that the fabric was worn in those areas. Oddly enough -- neither patch is in an obvious place for wear such as where you would actually SIT on the cushion. Instead both are rather close to the inside edge of the cushions.

Then I ran the gamut of emotions - from despair to fatigue (that's an emotion now) to disgust.
Finally, I got mad. Less than 10 months of use (and by the way -- the loveseat is not used as frequently as the sofa... and the sofa is actually rarely used) and the loveseat is already worn??
I stomped around angrily for a while.... and then I calmed down and decided I could at least find out how much it would cost to replace the cushions or have them recovered.

I went to www.ashleyfurniture.com and I filled out their form for those having a problem with a piece of furniture. I hit submit and nothing happened. Groan. So I rewrote my inquiry and sent it to the customer service email address instead. I sent the model number and serial number for the loveseat and provided the place of purchase and date of purchase for reference. Then I explained the worn places - briefly stated that I was disappointed - and then asked if they could refer me to someone who could repair or replace the cushions.

I received a reply the next day from Valerie:

Hello Anita~ Thank you for contacting Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc. in Arcadia, WI. I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing problems with your Ashley furniture. However, if this is considered a manufacturing defect, and you purchased your furniture with a warranty, you need to contact the store where you purchased the furniture. An Ashley Furniture Marketing Specialist is available if the store requests assistance. Have a great day! Valerie Ashley Internet Communications

I sat on the reply for several days trying to figure out what didn't irk me about it. First of all - I don't recall asking where Ashley Furniture Industries is located. Secondly, I said nothing about a warranty claim at all. Nothing. All I wanted was to find out how much it would cost me to get the thing repaired. Third, she didn't answer my question. Finally - I am not experiencing problems with my furniture... We aren't going through a breakup nor do we need counseling... I simply have worn spots on my cushions.

Or maybe it was the "Have a great day!" that got me.

In any event -- after considering calling the furniture store for a few days... and then asking myself why I am going to call the store about a warranty matter while I'm fully aware that the warranty expired just so I can go through all the nasty phone calls and paperwork and in the end get a letter that tells me that I have no warranty coverage for the loveseat cushions... All the while never finding out how I could get the things repaired or replaced which is all I wanted to know in the first place -- I decided to answer 'Valerie':

Hi Valerie.

Perhaps you misunderstood my original message via the website. I am not making a warranty claim. I am aware that the furniture was purchased on October 13, 2005 -
and the warranty period has expired regarding fabric. In addition -- after reading the warranty limitations I am quite certain that this particular fabric is not covered as the warranty states: "This warranty also does not cover protective finishes, velvets, velvet types, and Orlon, since by their very nature, these fabrics are of soft texture and will crush, shade, and mark more readily than most fabrics..." The fabric of this loveseat can only logically fall into the 'velvet types' category.

As I stated in my original message -- I am simply trying to find out if there is a way to have the cushions repaired or replaced. I should have clarified that I meant at my expense. I apologize for not being clear there. I suppose I simply got a little over-excited about your website's mission statement: "We Want to be the BEST Furniture Company" and all that stuff about 'the best service in the industry'. Let's just say I wasn't expecting such a curt reply that did not actually address a single issue I brought up in my message. Have a great day, indeed!

Valerie, I have just been through the most ridiculous natural disaster in U.S. history (i.e. Hurricane Katrina). I have spent one year standing in lines and arguing with FEMA and the SBA and everyone else under the sun... Our kitchen sports a bare concrete floor accented with clumps of old thinset, we have no baseboards or window or door trim - and in most places we're missing the doors, too. I just wanted my loveseat to look nice. I don't have the energy to jump through hoops over warranty service on a loveseat I bought to replace the one that floated out the front door.... I just want to fix the cushions.

If there is any info you can provide as far as service or repair I would greatly appreciate it.

Wearily,
Anita Thomer