My 1 week old Godrej 7-lever night latch failed in it's primary function - The lock didn't open when opened with the accompanying key. Since this happened late at night, Godrej offices were closed to send a technician. So, my entire family drove down to our Mom's place inconviniencing ourselves and them for that night. The next day, contacted Godrej, who then sent a technician. The explanation given by the service technician, after charging me a whopping Rs. 300, is that one of the 7 levers didn't fall in place. He said that I might not have locked it properly. But... Excuse Me? When you close the door, lock it with the key and remove the key from the lock, it's supposed to be locked. If I didn't lock it properly, then I shouldn't be able to get the key out of the lock. But that wasn't the case.
When I complained to Godrej and their Chennai regional Sales head, he had me contact the local dealer/distributor in Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai. After conversing with the rude distributor, I managed to have him come and check it out, but the distributor's answer was that the lock worked perfectly and it won't happen again. It's a classic case of dealer not wanting to deal with the headache of returning the lock back to the company and getting a refund.
But guess my luck, the lock mal-functioned again, after several assurances from distributor and regional sales head that the defective lock was "OK". The second time it happened on a cold rainy night, the whole family was all wet and soaked up trying to unlock the damn door. I then drove down to sleep at my Mom's house again. But I did call the regional head to let him know about my experience, but he didn't pick up the phone - 9pm might have been late to pick up a call. Definitely understandable. I sent an SMS explaining the problem, hoping someone would call me the next day, but no response. Being bummed by their customer service, I definitely didn't want to call any irresponsible employees or dealers to fix my lock, I called a local carpenter who knew how to push the 7th lever in and then unlock it.
From that day on, I never used that Godrej lock and swore to not buy any other Godrej products ever again in my life! Not just for the poor quality of products, but for covering up the defect for a mere 600 rupees lock. Profits are important for a business, but it's not right to sell a bad product and refuse service.
Thankfully, for me, there are several other choices for locks and other products that Godrej manufactures. Next time you are in the market, think twice before buying Godrej and don't think it won't happen to you.
0 comments