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How LG Defrauded Me With a Little Help from Sears

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On May 30, 2007, I purchased a $2,500 LG-manufactured, Kenmore refrigerator from my local Sears in Reading, PA. I selected it over competing models for two reasons:
  • My wife liked it
  • It was promoted as Energy Star compliant and listed on the Energy Star website, meaning it meets the U.S. Federal Government's Energy Star standard, uses significantly less energy, costs less to operate, and produces less global warming pollution than comparable models.
On February 10, 2009, I received a letter from Sears explaining that I had been misled.  My refrigerator does not meet the Energy Star standard. In fact, according to Consumer Reports, it actually uses twice as much electricity as I was told when I purchased it.

Kenmore fridge (made by LG) at my homeLG's Public Offer


Neither Sears nor LG has offered an apology for misleading me or others. Instead, LG and Sears are offering:

  1. To replace a component in the refrigerator to "improve" its energy performance, but not enough to actually meet the Energy Star standard, which is why I originally purchased it.
  2. To send me a check for $71 to cover the additional energy costs I have incurred since I purchased the machine.  They have not explained how this was calculated.
  3. To send me additional checks over the life of the refrigerator to cover the additional costs, which they have not explained how they will calculate.

The Problem


Unfortunately, their offer is completely insufficient. It fails to address a few significant issues:

  1. LG lied to consumers
  2. Sears did not verify LG's claims and so aided and abetted the LG deception
  3. It does not address the additional global warming pollution that resulted from consumers, including me, buying this particular refrigerator for the express purpose of generating less global warming pollution than comparable models.

My Simple Request


This webpage and the accompanying blog will help track my efforts to accomplish a few very simple objectives.  Here is what I want:

  1. My money back so I can go purchase a refrigerator that makes my wife happy and actually meets the Energy Star requirements.
  2. A meaningful, scientifically valid, offer to offset the resulting greenhouse gas pollution the refrigerator (including efforts to fix it) generated since I purchased it.
  3. A meaningful apology from LG.  (Note: I do not want "we are sorry if you feel misled...")
  4. A meaningful apology from Sears. (Note: I do not want "we are sorry if you feel misled...")
  5. An explanation of how the $71 was calculated.
  6. An explanation of what the replacement component is and *proof* that it will actually improve energy performance.
  7. All other affected consumers to be given the same offer I receive.

An Additional Desire: Improve Energy Star 


In addition, I want the U.S. Government to improve the Energy Star program so that this kind of deception is less likely in the future. Independent auditors should verify a product's energy performance before a manufacturer can affix the Energy Star label.

Currently, the government allows companies to determine on their own whether their products meet the Energy Star standard for most product categories. No one other than the company has to verify that a product meets the standard before the company begins using the Energy Star label in these cases.

While Energy Star is beginning to require some products to be tested in advance, they are not yet doing so with refrigerators where it seems particularly important. Refrigerators are energy intensive. They are expensive to purchase and operate. They are designed to last 15- to 20-years. Their financial and environmental costs are significant and long-lasting.

I was looking for an Energy Star registered refrigerator because I know it will be consuming energy and generating global warming pollution for years. I wanted to reduce the energy my refrigerator used, save some money, and reduce the global warming pollution. Instead, I was defrauded.

The opportunities to improve the Energy Star program are well known. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Government Accountability Office each issued reports in 2007  recommending improvements to the Energy Star program. Both reports mirror my concerns and the concerns raised by the article in Consumer Reports.

Luckily, two U.S. Senators on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee appear to be interested in fixing the problem. As reported by Ben Geman on March 20, 2009, in Environment and Energy Daily, Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and ranking member Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) are considering language that would require EPA and DOE to certify products before they are eligible to use the Energy Star label. I have already called and written both senators fully supporting the idea. I encourage others to do the same.

Energy Star needs to be improved. Make companies prove a product meets the standard before permitting them to use the Energy Star label. As LG and Sears have proven, we can not always trust the companies.


Next Steps


I'll keep you posted on my progress.


Page Last Updated: 3/27/09
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