In Nov 2023, I spent over $700 on Amazon for Dyson V-12 Detect Slim cordless vacuum to replace my older model. I wanted to upgrade to this model because of the “Fluffy Optic” cleaner head that came in addition to the more standard “Motor Bar” cleaner head. The Optic head worked for a few minutes on first use and then quite. In January 2024 I contacted Dyson support and went through a very lengthy process involving a remote technician accessing phone to walk me through troubleshooting processes. They determined that the head was defective and set up a replacement shipment.
On March 27th, I contacted support and chatted with someone named Vikas who could find no record of a warranty order associated with my account of product serial number. Based on notes in my possession, I was able to convince them that I had already been through the troubleshooting exercise. He was able to approve a warranty replacement for the second time BUT informed me that the Fluffy Optic head was currently out of stock but would be available “within the next two weeks”. I was placed on a “notify-me” list which would supposedly email me once the part was in stock. I took screenshots of the text conversation as I went along to have a record of this. Frustrated, I was at least confident that I would soon have the part.
By late May 2024, I still had not received a notification or the part so I contacted support again using the chat feature so I could document the conversation. I spent over an hour again going through the same process as before. He said the part was “still not available” and there was no estimate on when they would be. However, he was somehow confident that their “dedicated team was working really very hard to bring it back in stock”. I asked them to open a box with a new V-12 and pull the fluffy head and send it to me because they are obviously still being sold to new customers. He said they could not do that, it is against their policy.
I pushed for a supervisor who sang the same song. “No, we cannot take a cleaner head out of a boxed vacuum set.” “No, we have no idea when the part will be back in stock”. When faced with how ridiculous the situation was, he suggested that I send my entire vacuum back to Dyson via UPS and they would send me a replacement. How stupid is it to suggest that a consumer go 3-4 weeks at minimum without a vacuum while waiting for them to make good on a warranty replacement? I explained that my vacuum worked just fine with the standard head. Why return a working vacuum for replacement when all I need is one accessory? Why should the consumer (who's already been put through hell) have to endure even greater inconvenience because a defective part? I had no choice but to wait them out on the restocking of the Fluffy Optic head. I saved the transcript of the conversation and it is a pathetic display of customer service.
Today is November 11, 2024, a full year since my original purchase and I still do not have what I paid for. I decided to bypass the support chat and called in to talk to someone. The short version is that I had the exact experience as I did 6 months ago. Low level support person verified the part is still not available. I asked for a supervisor. The initial agent has me on hold then comes back on with the suggestion that I send back the entire vacuum… Ughhh! I insisted on speaking with a supervisor. This guy was the worst yet. Condescending and unable to understand the issues. He offered to send me a standard head as a solution. I told him I already have a working standard head. When he pressed for me to return the whole vacuum, I complained that this was a ridiculous option. I cannot go without a vacuum for God-only-knows how long it would take for their buffoons to send me a replacement. His response was, “but you already don’t have a working vacuum so what’s the difference?” Idiot! I actually had to spell it out again, to a “supervisor”, that their product came with two heads and only one of them is defective. That is why it is unreasonable to ask me to send my working vacuum back and roll the dice on a replacement happening this century.
My greatest frustration is the insistence that the fluffy optic head is “not available” so they cannot send me one. I asked “Is the V-12 still being actively sold with the Fluffy Optic head?” The answer is “yes”. Then it is NOT TRUE that the head “is unavailable”. It is available for customers purchasing a new vacuum but unavailable ONLY to a customer like me who need one as a warranty replacement. I still don’t know if the guy gets it.
The bottom line is that DYSON is so compartmentalized and fixated on process that they are unable to do the right thing in order to deal with an extreme situation like mine. All they have to do, is have the manufacturing group that boxes up a full kit grab a Fluffy Optic head out of their stock and send it to the warranty replacement group. How is it possible to go 8 months without restocking a common component like this. How is it possible for Dyson support to have zero idea on when a back-ordered part will become available?
They are clueless and dysfunctional. How can a company with such revolutionary products be so bad at the basics? At this point, my only choices are to continue to wait (perhaps forever) and hope they restock this item for warranty purposes OR I send in my vacuum for a full replacement and by some cheap thing to use for however long it takes for them to send it to me OR I let them screw me by living without the primary feature that I wanted and paid a premium for.
In any case, I am left to jump on forums like this to share my tortuous experience as a warning to others. I have no expectation that anyone at Dyson cares enough to intervene. Worst customer service experience of my life and I am a 68-year old businessman. I’ve dealt with a lot of idiots.
Following is the transcript of just one of my frustrating adventures with them.
