Kirby Service Centre in Lincoln

I was very happy with my Kirby engineer of 16yrs until he retired, the new people that have taken over are all about pressure selling. First I was told my Kirby was no good and pressured in to a new one, 1 yr on this Kirby is apparently outdated and pushed to buy another. Once they come into your home for a service it is all about demo and sell sell sell no matter what you say to them and they won't leave for hours. The engineer tells you he won't get paid unless you let him demo and purchase. Bad service it's wrong. If I am going to get this every year I am going to get rid of my Kirby.

Avoid this company, they’re not to be trusted. The so called repairmen that come round to your house to service your machine are really just determined to sell you new very expensive parts or a completely new machine (that they happen to have with them at a “discount price”).

The staff are pushy, smug, rude, arrogant, patronising and refuse to take no for an answer. Let one of them into your house and be prepared to have them there for over two hours bullying you into buying all kinds of unnecessary extras: payment plans, accessories you don’t need or whole new machines as they tell you that yours is a right-off (despite being less than 3 years old and having cost about £2000!). They’re not going anywhere until they’ve got their commission. It’s very intimidating, frightening to be alone in a confrontation with one of them arguing with you in a very aggressive, insulting manner (I’ve had to deal with 5 of them so far, all just about as bad as each other).

The prices are ridiculously high, many times more than an ordinary vacuum cleaner, it’s certainly a powerful vacuum but very unreliable. I’ve had 2 of them in the space of about 5 years, both, according to the repair men, completely ruined due to my own fault of not looking after them properly, and I’ve now twice been told I need to buy a new one. I’ve worked professionally as a cleaner several times in very busy institutions as well as cleaning my own home for years (with other makes of vacuum) and never managed to break a vacuum cleaner before or fail to look after one properly! Why is the Kirby such a delicate machine that doesn’t seem to be able to take the light use of cleaning a 2 bedroom house and needs to be reduced to scrap and replaced with a new one every 2 years?! I’m not using it or treating it any differently to the much cheaper vacuums that have lasted over 10 years with much heavier use. When they sell you one they say they last 40 years! The company appear to prey upon vulnerable customers, see an easy target in someone like me, alone and disabled, or the elderly that they can intimidate and lie to. I bitterly regret ever buying a Kirby, though it looked like it was going to be a good investment, it’s been a total waste of money, a very expensive mistake and an unnerving ordeal to have to deal with the horrible, dishonest conmen at Lincoln Kirby Services that rip-off their customers.

I’d strongly advise anyone to not use this business and avoid going through what I have with them. Steer well clear of them and get a decent, ordinary vacuum cleaner at a fraction of the cost and none of the trouble instead.

I have had a Kirby Cleaner now for the past 18 years. Every time they come to service it, they try to sell a newer version. Two years ago, I gave in, as I was told mine was coming to an age where it could no longer be serviced as the spares were not available.

I bought the Sentria thinking I was buying a new model. Last year, having been offered a service for £20, I agreed. The guy was here for over two hours. Having done the service, he informed me that it needed a new bearing - cost £38. Or I could take out a service contract with them at £6.95 per month and it wouldn't cost me at that time. I agreed.

When he went to his van to get another bearing, I took the one he had removed from his box. He had at least a dozen in there. My husband is a maintenance engineer, and knows about bearings. This is a scam to get you to take out a contract. He proceeded to try to sell me the latest machine. I told him mine was only about a year old and was surely under warrantee.

He then told me I had bought a reconditioned machine (my invoice didn't say that), I thought I'd bought a new model. Anyway outcome was, I phoned Kirby Midlands and told them I would be contacting Watchdog or Rogue Traders to report them. I was offered a years free contract. I have since found out that they have still been taking the money each month from my husband's bank account. I phoned them nearly two weeks ago to request a refund. Could not talk to the manager. Explained the situation, and low and behold, the lady who deals with direct debits was off sick!

Guess what, no return phone call, and no refund. Don't touch them with a barge pole. I still have all the paper work and the bearing, and I will take it further.