Sears Home Services had tried to fix a veteran’s refrigerator for a year and a half instead of replacing it. This changed after KENS called their parent company.
SAN ANTONIO — Navy Veteran Donald Berube, 73, bought an expensive oven a few years ago and wanted to get a Sears Home Services warranty for it. The company said he could put other appliances on that warranty so he also put his Maytag refrigerator on the plan.
“For peace of mind,” Berube said.
The veteran says they got the warranty in 2020 and renewed it in 2023.
Around March of 2024, the refrigerator stopped working correctly and Berube made a claim.
“The liquid was freezing in the refrigerator,” Berube.
He said the refrigerator initially wasn’t dispensing beverages correctly and the liquid was just freezing. The veteran told KENS 5 a technician came out to try and fix it but then the top half of the refrigerator would no longer get cold.
That issue started in 2024. In February of 2026, Sears Home Services was still trying to fix it.
“Conservatively, there have been at least 15 service calls,” Berube said. “It seems like this has been a training aid for Sears. They just kept ordering parts.”
The company had ordered new parts at least eight different times while attempting to fix the fridge according to the veteran’s emails. The family ended up buying another cheaper refrigerator in 2024 while they waited for the broken one to be repaired. Eventually, the family asked Sears Home Services to just replace the appliance but the company denied to do so in late 2025.
“They keep telling me that we need to try to the ‘Nth degree’ to try to fix that thing.” Berube said.
Finally, the veteran decided to call KENS 5.
“KENS is my go-to station in San Antonio,” he said.
KENS 5 then contacted Transformco, which owns Sears Home Services and explained how long the veteran had been waiting to get the appliance repaired.
A Transformco “Escalated Complaints” manager responded just a few hours later and said they would authorize a replacement or payment in this case.
Mr. Berube got a call later that day.
“Now I didn’t need a new refrigerator and I asked them if they could do a cash reimbursement.” Berube said. “He agreed to it and said he would start the process.”
Sears Home Services Senior Customer Experience Manager Eileen Jaffe later sent KENS 5 the following statement:
At Sears Home Services, we are committed to supporting our customers and ensuring their appliances are repaired or replaced as quickly as possible. We understand the Berube family experienced challenges in resolving their refrigerator issue, and we appreciate their patience throughout the process.
After reviewing the most recent service information, we worked with the customer to provide a resolution that meets their needs. We offered both a comparable replacement unit and a reimbursement option, and the customer selected reimbursement. We are expediting that payment and have provided direct contact information should they need further assistance.
Berube is thankful that Transformco took action to resolve their situation. He’s also glad he called KENS 5.
“It felt great. I’ve waited for two years and after 48 hours after calling KENS I had a resolution. It was great.”
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