Carmela Puppi hoped a lift and massage chair would ease some of her burdens.
"I needed a chair that was comfortable and comparable to my needs," the Wallingford resident said. “I have a lot of health issues.”
In February 2017, Puppi paid $1,199 for a Hampton Serta brand lift chair and recliner from online retailer, RLB Furnishings, LLC. The chair was manufactured by Novo Home.
"I ended up stuck in this chair with my legs up and my back down," Puppi said. “It was really frightening.”
Puppi said she complained to Novo Home, and the manufacturer sent out a service tech to look at the problem. The service report described the problem as a manufacturer defect.
Novo Home decided to replace the chair with the same model under warranty.
But Puppi said she also experienced problems with the replacement chair and called Novo Home a few more times to service it.
Local
A spokesperson for the retailer, RLB Furnishings, told NBC Connecticut Responds Novo Home went out of business in the fall of 2017. The spokesperson said although RLB Furnishings is not a manufacturer or wholesale distributor, the company continued to work with Puppi, along with Lifestyle Solutions, which acquired a license to sell similar Serta chairs.
RLB told noted that it is not a manufacturer or wholesale distributor, that they offer a 30 day return policy, but that warranties are the sole responsibility of the manufacturer.
NBC Connecticut Responds attempted to contact Novo Home by phone and email, but did not receive a reply.
In response to our inquiry, Lifestyle Solutions provided Responds with the following statement:
“RLB (the retailer) approached Lifestyle Solutions with regard to supplying parts that RLB thought may be helpful to resolve the NOVO Home chair issue with Ms. Puppi. Lifestyle Solutions did, in fact, supply some new parts at the request of RLB to try and help RLB resolve the dispute with Ms. Puppi (at no cost to Ms. Puppi). Lifestyle Solutions was under no obligations to provide those free parts to Ms. Puppi, but did so as a goodwill gesture to both RLB and RLB’s customer, Ms. Puppi. Notwithstanding Lifestyle Solution’s goodwill gesture, Ms. Puppi then demanded that Lifestyle Solutions provide her with additional free parts (for a chair that Lifestyle Solutions had neither manufactured nor sold). Lifestyle notified Ms. Puppi that while it was happy to sell her additional parts, it could not provide her with additional free parts for a chair that Lifestyle Solutions had not manufactured or sold in the first place. Nor can Lifestyle Solutions offer Ms. Puppi a refund for a chair that Lifestyle Solutions had no connection in manufacturing or selling. Nevertheless, it is our understanding that Ms. Puppi is still in need of a comfortable chair to help her with her condition. As a further goodwill gesture to Ms. Puppi, Lifestyle Solutions would be pleased to offer Ms. Puppi (free of charge) one of the Lyft-type chairs manufactured and sold by Lifestyle Solutions under the Serta license.”
Puppi said she can live with that resolution.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection says whenever you purchase a product with a warranty, find out if the warranty is with the retailer or the manufacturer. You should also check the length of the warranty. The time range may vary depending on the product. And verify whether the warranty only covers a certain cost or certain components of the product. If you have questions about the warranty terms, talk directly with the warranty provider before making the purchase.
