Fridge-freezers only last 4-5 years?!

[KeyboardMash]

Our four-year old fridge-freezer has just died. The bloke who came to fix it basically said that the bit that's broken (compressor relay? I may have got that wrong) cannot be replaced and that's it - it needs replacing. His first question was "what is it - five years old?" Because apparently that's the machine's lifespan - four to five years. Just been to Currys today and the guy we spoke to about a replacement said the same thing - current ones last about four to five years.

AIBU to think this is ridiculous?! I'm sure my parents have had ones go for 10-15 years. It is beyond ridiculous - and I think shady as hell - for new machines now to last less well than they used to. And I think only a small exaggeration to say humanity is doomed if manufacturers are deliberately churning out appliances that have to be junked every five years! I am in a very bad mood but I don't think I'm the one that's being unreasonable here.

YANBU - exactly the same here with my not quite 5 year old fridge freezer.

They last ages. Mine 12 years old never missed a beat. The man was talking shite.

Mine is 16 years old (Hotpoint) Only had to buy a new freezer drawer front which bought on Amazon for about £15/

That's a bit alarming. Just had new fridge freezer delivered, old one lasted 16 years! Has a 10 year parts guarantee, so hoping it will last that long. When researching for a replacement one everything I read stated that they normally last between 10 to 15 years in the UK. Maybe it depends on the model?

Which man? Because they both said the exact same thing.

Your repair guy couldn’t fix it so made a daft sweeping excuse

Wow, I have one that’s nearly 8 years old. What brands are those, because I would avoid next time I need a fridge!! Hate this built-in obsolescence. It shouldn’t be legal.

The repair man.

You can take anything anyone in Currys says with a pinch of salt but fair play he was managing your expectations.

Washing machines/dishwashers and tumble dryers take a battering but all a fridge freezer does is run a compressor and have its doors opened all the time!

A lot of newer stuff is designed to fail earlier so they can sell more machines. It's better to make machines that die in 5 years and sell each person 4 of them than make one that lasts 20 years.

Blame capitalism's need for growth at all costs.

both people you spoke with are hardly objective on this issue OP!!

😆

Mine's almost 20!

Yup my tumble dryer barely lasted 2 years - the replacement part was almost as much as buying a new one

Wasn't there this question raised around Brexit? The standards we get shipped in are now lower than EU so things like white goods were highlighted as something where we might get inferior products. There was a rush to get the last stock of the EU regulated appliances with people who knew about it.

what brand?

im on to my 16th year with my miele and still as good as day 1

Our integrated fridge freezer is 10 years old and still going strong. We also have a free standing one that is older than that in the garage and that still works fine too.

They did used to last decades. Mine was £140 new so I don't expect it will last long, plus it's in the garage. It's six now though so not doing too bad.

My Samsung fridge freezer is 17 (came with a 10 year warranty too) and still working perfectly.....

No, that wasn't it. He said it was likely [the part] that was gone, that on some machines you can replace them but on some you can't because of how they're constructed. He said they often go after four to five years, looked up the make/model, and said it can't be replaced on ours. He was quite knowledgeable - it wasn't like he tinkered about, got stuck, then claimed they just stop working after five years.

What brand is it? Our old Samsung lasted 10 years before it died, we’ve got another Samsung that’s 5 years old now I think, touch wood, it’s doing okay! My parents have a 17 year old Miele that they are hoping will stop working soon because they’d like a new one!

This is exactly what the Currys man said!! Since we left the EU they "re-certified" everything and....he was a lot bit waffley and inarticulate, but basically said since we left, they're all shorter lived. Ours was pre-Brexit though.

Cheap Fridges, Freezers, Washing Machines, Tumble Dryers, built to the lowest sticker price, expensive and energy inefficient, 3-5 year life,

Expensive 'premium' brands, expensive to buy, cheap and efficient to run, 15-25 year life span

Cheapest total cost over (say) 15 years.... expensive premium brands...

AIBU to think this is ridiculous?! I'm sure my parents have had ones go for 10-15 years. It is beyond ridiculous - and I think shady as hell - for new machines now to last less well than they used to. And I think only a small exaggeration to say humanity is doomed if manufacturers are deliberately churning out appliances that have to be junked every five years! I am in a very bad mood but I don't think I'm the one that's being unreasonable here.

but all your follow up posts indicate you think both people are right! 😕

It's absolute insanity.

did you get a second opinion?