Some local consumers are having trouble getting their recalled Samsung washing machines fixed. But that's not the only issue in the area after 2.8 million of the top-loading washers were recalled for risk of exploding. One Jupiter man says he's facing $20,000 in damage after a technician showed up to fix his machine.
Gordy Woelper says a DISH Network technician, paid for and sent to his home by Samsung, flooded his entire condo.
"We had water everywhere in this condo in a matter of minutes," Woelper said.
He claims the technician didn't reconnect the water line correctly. He says now, all of his flooring and baseboards have to be torn out and redone. Woelper already hired a restoration company to come in and fan out the condo for several days, but that's just the beginning of the work needed. It won't fix the floors.
"I'm just looking for somebody to do the right thing here," Woelper said, "That's for DISH to fix this, and certainly not for me to have to pay out of my own pocket to fix damage that one of their technicians caused."
Woelper said for three weeks he tried to get Samsung or DISH Network to take responsibility and pay for the repairs, without much help. Newchannel 5 reporter Jacqulyn Powell put out emails and calls to both companies on Monday morning, and shortly after, the homeowner received a response.
Woelper says DISH Network called him and said he could submit a claim to their insurance carrier. There's no guarantee that the company's policy will take care of the damage, but Woelper says it's a start.
"It's interesting the reaction time based on the fact that there's going to be a story and some bad press for them," he said, "Because this could have been taken care of much more quickly than it has."
