Defective Sinks are becoming the BOLD NEW LOOK of KOHLER

Although this problem is still unresolved on October 30, 2007, it started much earler and became exasperating on October 15th, which is the last day I had a kitchen sink.

I bought a Kohler Clarity Cashmere sink I believe in late July or early August through a local company here in Kansas City (Dorfmann's Plumbing). I am putting in a new granite countertop and was getting a new sink and kohler fixtures at the same time. The sink arrived sometime in September in preparation for the granite fabricator to prepare a template for my new countertop. At that time we noticed a chip in the sink. Dorfmann's Plumbing took back the sink and had Kohler send out a new sink which had to arrive by October 15, which was the day before installation of my new countertop. Kohler apparently sent out a new sink which apparently arrived on the 15th, but this sink had blemishes -resembling the buildup of color pigment - on the surface finish. Kohler was contacted. They even sent out a regional representative to my house because she was apparently disbelieving that there was trouble with their product (she claimed she never had a problem with their products before - something along the lines of "Kohler doesn't sell seconds"..blah blah).

Of course the fabricator was called and installation of my countertop was cancelled for the 16th and reset for the 22nd as the Kohler representative promised she would locate a sink, have it inspected prior to shipment, and deliver it to Dorfmann's. The contractor arrived on Friday to finish preparing the area for installation on Monday the 22nd. When the sink arrived, this sink ALSO had similar color blemishes in two of the corners. Kohler wanted me to accept it because the blemishes weren't in a visible area if you stood directly in front of the sink. (However, if you leaned over and looked straight down on the inside corners of one of the bowls, you could easily see the blemishes.) In direct sunlight, which is where the sink sits in my kitchen, the blemishes were very obvious and bothersome to someone who hopes to have a beautiful countertop and, hopefully, blemish free sink. I was exasperated before this happened but I lost all hope for this company at this point. Of course the representative of Kohler tried to minize the problem but once again after intervention by the local plumbing company they again said they would locate a new sink and deliver it, but of course this would take time since supposedly there are no Kohler Clarity Cashmere sinks they could locate close by. The next delivery was set for the morning of October 26 (today) and thus far I have not had a call that they've (I've been told there were two sinks sent) arrived. Of course I've been without a sink at all since my countertop was ripped out on the 15th and I've basically had to eat out for every meal every day because I have no use of water in the kitchen nor the use of my dishwasher. This is too much for a person to be expected to take without seeking some sort of satisfaction. I am through dealing with the area Kohler representative. Her attempt at making the situation better consisted of her telling me she has the same sink in her home and giving me a USED bottle of Kohler Cast Iron polish for the sink (I presume she gave me her bottle and kept the new one for herself). I've had verbal apologies from Dorfmann's plumbing but they aren't the ones sending out blemished sinks. I've called Kohler to complain but all they've done is start folders on "my case" but even this has been unsatisfactory as they the reps don't even keep accurate records of previous calls (the last one said the folder didn't have that I'd already been through three sinks), she thought I'd just had one sink with a chip. I am not confident that any of my complaints has reached anyone of significance at the corporate level. I don't believe they care, and I think their practice is to make it so difficult to complain that the consumer will just walk away in disgust. I'm disgusted, but unwilling to walk away.

Yesterday, October 29th a fourth sink arrived and not only did this one have more extensive pigment blemishes (blotches or discoloration) it also had several pits or crevices on the finish. I don't know if Kohler is doing this on purpose just to make it more exasperating but it seems that way. I have not sought legal advice at this point since I just want my sink...and at this point I want something beyond that! I can't believe they can't locate a sink without blemishes.

You can tell alot about a company by how it behaves when there is a problem. You can tell the bad ones because they always try to run away from a problem. Always. I don't know what it is about trouble but it's like they don't want to be associated with problems and in the process they've made the problem even bigger! I remember having an issue with a product from Nordstrom's (not an inexpensive one) and was amazed that someone at the store clerk level told me they'd fix it, accompanied me to the customer service supervisor where they not only listened, they replaced the item on the spot and apologized. A company like Kohler has no inkling of how to treat customers. All they do is point out how good their product is...well I say prove it! I understand mistakes and am willing to give the benefit of the doubt up to a point. Three was my limit. We're on 4 going on five! And still not one word in writing from the company. Remember this..all may be okay if you order something and like it, BUT, if you have a problem Kohler is not the problem you want to be dealing with.