PHOENIX — A Valley senior who spent $900 on a wheelchair lift that broke twice within a month received a full refund after ABC15's Let ABC15 Know team got involved.
87-year-old Charlie has had several back surgeries and isn't healing well. He uses a motorized wheelchair to get around, but it’s too heavy for his wife, Harriet, to load into their car.
The couple decided to purchase a folding wheelchair lift for $900 based on a recommendation from the medical equipment staff.
"The medical equipment people suggested a folding lift," Charlie said.
The couple used the lift for two weeks before it broke. They say the company sent them a replacement lift, but that one also broke just two weeks after using it.
"We got it replaced, and we used that lift for about two weeks, and it broke. Same thing broke in the same place as the other one," Charlie explained.
Charlie says he didn’t want to deal with any more broken lifts. So, he requested a refund instead of another replacement.
“This is when the runaround started,” Charlie recalled.
He says the medical equipment company told him that he would have to get his refund from the manufacturer of the wheelchair lift. Then, he says the manufacturer claimed the product was no longer under warranty.
"I got really suspicious there. I said, 'Something that costs $1,000 only is warrantied for a 30-day period?' And so, I continued to call, and I continued to get people that could not help," Charlie said.
Frustrated with the situation, Charlie decided to contact Let ABC15 Know.
"Let me cool down, and I'll calm myself down to see what I can do about getting some help. And then I just said, ‘one… one last shot.’ So, that's when I called ABC," Charlie explained.
The Let ABC15 Know Team’s Better Business Bureau volunteer Darlene, took on the case. She contacted both companies involved. Within two days, the medical equipment company and the wheelchair lift manufacturer agreed to provide Charlie with a $450 refund. Problem Solved!
"I didn't expect to get anything, and here I got everything that I had asked her about," Charlie said.
With the refund money, Charlie and Harriet were able to purchase a new wheelchair lift that works properly.
"We can go out to dinner, go for friends' houses, and it just… it makes our life so much better to be able to go places and not be stuck in the house," Harriet said.
Harriet expressed gratitude for the assistance they received from the Let ABC15 Know team.
"I was so happy to think that you know… this system that they have, it does work, and you do help the people. And it just makes me really proud to know that there's people out here who care and who listen to you," Harriet said.
If you are tired of getting the runaround from a business, our Let ABC15 Know team is here to help you, too! Email consumer@abc15.com or call 1-855-323-1515.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
