That is a very nice outcome!

Some companies will go very far to stand behind their product.

I once sent a Victorinox Swiss Army pocket knife to the US office for some repair, details lost to memory. I received a letter, yes it was a long time ago, saying my knife required repairs that could not be performed in the US and my knife would have to be shipped to Switzerland for refurbishment which would take many months, or they would be pleased to send me a brand new pocket knife free. I wrote back requesting refurbishment of my original knife. Six months later I received a small package from Switzerland with my original knife, entirely refinished - blades reground, plastic panels replaced, etc - with only some nicks in the bolsters to show that it was indeed my original Victorinox Swiss Army knife companion.

We received a wine bottle opener from Le Creuset as a wedding present, and it served faithfully for just over ten years until something in the mechanism finally broke. I sent it to Le Creuset with a letter explaining the sentimental importance of this wedding present and asking that it be repaired, at my expense since the warranty had expired on the tenth year. The company sent me a free replacement rather than repatriating the injured warrior to the motherland for repair and renovation, but I could hardly complain, could I.

Of course, some unscrupulous consumers will abuse these fine policies. I once bought a pair of Merrell river sandals, wore them everywhere for two years, and when they finally expired I sent them back to Merrell with a letter explaining that I had chosen their product due to my respect for their hiking boot heritage and was just ever so slightly disappointed that sandals bearing that august name should have failed before their hiking boots would have even broken in. Suitably admonished, Merrell sent me a new pair of sandals. Two years later, I was typing up a new letter to send back with *that* pair of thoroughly worn-out sandals when SWMBO, outraged at what she deemed an unethical scheme to take advantage of the fine Merrell company, frog-marched me to REI and forced me to buy a new pair.

P.S. She was not even at the time “Mrs“ SWMBO. A warning I failed to heed.

Awesome!

Wonderful Wustof. Years ago I snapped the blade of a Henkels filet knife. I figured it was user error but intended to mail it back yet never did. I wonder if it is still in my implements drawer?

I did send my long serrated knife back to Cutco for sharpening. They charge for the service but it made me happy to have it frighteningly sharp again. (I removed the very tip of one finger slicing cooked sausage with that knife during a busy holiday prep session).

John, that’s beyond impressive about all of those items! It’s reassuring to know some companies really do stand behind their products. Fairly recently we had to replace a kitchen faucet from Moen. Our plumber told us to contact them since they had outstanding customer service and lifetime guarantee. Being somewhat skeptical, I called Moen. They sent an entire new faucet with all the parts…no charge. Our faucet was about 9 years old, and I had no proof of the original purchase. I was truly impressed!

Olychick, nice!

Great customer service stories!

I have a similar story from Zyliss for a can opener. I thought I'd had good use of it for the time I'd had it, i.e., fully used up my investment, before a small plastic part broke. It's not like a knife where one expects it to last forever. I e-mailed them just to find out if they still made it and where to buy. They sent me free their updated version, just for a statement about my ownership. The new one is almost as good and makes up for the difference with the new version small plastic part seeming much more durable..

I think all these companies regard the good will and good reputation they create worth the small investment in free replacements.

Compare to the purveyors of my new beautiful knife. They sent an e-mail offering a one year insurance for it for about ten percent of the price. WTF? There is a lifetime warranty from Zwilling, I handle my knives with caution and care, and while I have trained myself to instantly jump back if I drop a knife (ordinarily, one jumps forward to catch something dropped), it's very rare that I put that into practice and have never broken a knife that way. And I do expect my beautiful new knife to be able to withstand a tumble, same as its lesser brethren (the warranty doesn't cover misadventure, but falling to the floor shouldn't make it snap, except maybe the very tip). Which is why I'm not surprised that Wusthof made good on Chloebud's knife. So, I feel like this "insurance" thing is akin to a scam. Buyer beware at the least!

Some very good points, plllog. I agree regarding WTF for a year’s insurance for your knife. Like you, I do expect quality knives to survive a fall, but I guess much stranger things can happen. The woman from Wusthof mentioned “…may be covered by our warranty policy.“ I’ll have to check exactly what that entails.

I truly was impressed with Moen’s lifetime guarantee. I think normally that means some proof of purchase. I was sure I registered the faucet when purchased but apparently not. I did have the owner’s manual that came with it but that’s not exactly proof of purchase. All they wanted was a photo of the faucet, not even the defective part. So, our plumber was spot on when he mentioned their ”awesome customer service.” Also, I contacted Moen by phone, and the woman actually sounded like sending me a new faucet was doing THEM a favor. Amazing!

Interesting from Wusthof, especially the second bullet.

Why a broken blade may not be covered:

• Misuse: The warranty explicitly excludes damage from inappropriate use, such as cutting frozen foods, bones, or on surfaces like glass, granite, or cutting boards made of dense materials.
• Accident or Force Majeure: Damage from dropping the knife or accidents is not covered.
• Normal Wear and Tear: Bent or dull blades can also fall under "customary wear and tear," which is not covered by the warranty.

Yes, but if the damage is greater than what should happen when your knife is dropped is a grey area. That's what the person you spoke to implied I once broke a knife with a similar snapped off thing going on. It was a cheap knife which was handed down to me from who knows where when I was young, \ which I'd used on a thick pumpkin to try to get the top off, because one doesn't use a really good knife to do that!! I was stabbing it in and out to make perforations around the stem margin. Then the pumpkin, being annoyed by all the little stabs, grabbed hold of the blade and wouldn't let go, and the blade snapped. That's the kind of abuse that's not covered. ;)

I had a Pac-Safe handbag which I purchased for our first overseas trip. It was great and very useful, and I used it for a few subsequent travels when the swivel clip which attached/detached the shoulder strap failed.

I wrote to the company and said that I would have expected the product to last more than the few weeks of use it had had, adding up the travel time which was the only use it had, and they sent me a new one.

I ended up using it as my "all the time" handbag and when some teeth came out of the main zipper I had it repaired myself. When it finally died I figured it had given me excellent service for a long time so I replaced it at my own expense.

I especially like the Pac-Safe bag for travel as it has steel mesh reinforcing the strap and bottom to foil potential thieves cutting either to steal either the whole bag or the contents. You can clip shut the main compartment zipper so it can't easily be opened by a thief, and the strap unclips so you can attach it to something solid like a table leg in a restaurant so a thief can't walk past and take your handbag while you're dining.

“That's the kind of abuse that's not covered.”

I have to keep an eye on a certain DH with his use of some of our knives. Kind of amazing we haven’t had more mishaps.🥴 He uses this sausage knife for umpteen tasks, but it’s held its own for years. Still sharp as can be.

Colleen, I’ll have to check out the Pac-Safe bag!

So maybe since we're kind of on the topic, how about nominating a company or a couple whose products you have faith in and that you are confident the company will stand behind a decade after sale?

Based on our experience, I’d say Moen 100%. It didn’t seem to matter what was wrong with the faucet they replaced. No questions asked about the problem. They simply sent a replacement 9-10 years later with no proof of purchase (and waived a $27 shipping fee). Right now I’d put Wusthof up there, too. They’re sending a warranty credit I can use to purchase another knife from their site. I’ll feel better once I have the knife.

I liked my first pair of Ecco shoes so much that I bought a pair just like them shortly after my initial purchase. They sat in my closet for a few years before bringing them out as replacements for the original pair. The soles began to crumble shortly after I began wearing them. I contacted the company, expressing my disappointment, telling them how much I liked the original shoe but that this one must have had a production flaw.

They sent me a coupon for $200 credit towards another pair of Eccos; more than covering their replacement cost. This was over 15 years ago and I've bought several more Eccos since.

I can confirm that the Delta faucet company stand behind their products, as well. I had replaced my kitchen faucet in 2005 when my kitchen was redone.

Recently the faucet became loose and was retightened multiple times, but inevitably, it would loosen again. i contacted Delta, acknowledging that the faucet was old, and at first, they sent several replacement parts which didn't solve the issue Since that faucet style is no longer produced, they offered a replacement of my choice of a similar style and price range, shipped to my home, within days.

Delta had a lifetime warranty at the time i had purchased the faucet. I believe the current wording of the warranty is slightly different, i must check that out.

ETA: still seems to be a lifetime warranty for residential use

”Parts and Finish
All parts (other than electronic parts and batteries) and finishes of Delta® faucets purchased from authorized Delta sellers are warranted to the original consumer purchaser to be free from defects in material and workmanship for as long as the original consumer purchaser owns the home in which the faucet was first installed. ”

Good to know, blubird! I’m thinking maybe Kohler and some others do the same.

Yes, @chloebud, we’ve had the same experience with both Kohler and Delta.

Great, jrb!👍🏻

I L O V E my Wusthof knifes! Never would have occurred to me to ask for a replacement...great outcome! I did email Fiskars when the plastic handle on my scissors broke. Sent them a photo, they replaced them for FREE. And Kohler for hot & cold faucet cartridges. I actually purchased a Kohler faucet with a manufacturers defect. The metal tube to the water, goes to the handle wasn't soldered closed. They gave me a full refund, told me to keep it. DH soldered the tube....FREE faucet!

Just wanted to update. Replacement knife came.👍🏻

Yaay!

You can get the broken one ground down to be a very short paring knife, oyster knife, concealable dagger, etc.

John, today I noticed the broken knife was next to my husband’s wallet and phone. Pretty sure it’s headed for some kind of makeover.👍🏻

Go Wusthoff ! I'm glad they stand by their product ! My 10" chef knife is wusthoff, what a splurge 20 years ago ! And I have their steak knives too, no wooden handles on mine but I really like them.

A few years ago, Oster replaced my mother's >50-year old blender glass jar hat had broken (the motor was still fine). - she expected to pay for it, but they sent it for free.... since the replacement was plastic she requested a glass replacement and they accommodated that for free too ! At her age of 86, she has recounted this story often to me because it warmed her heart that they did that ... and it is sweet because I used that blender growing up to make my comforting after-school milkshakes . It means a lot when companies stand by their products and have a consistency of design to offer replacement parts in this throw-away culture of ours.

One more but on a complaining note - Patagonia offers free repairs, so when my husband's nano-puff' jacket needed a replacement zipper, I mailed it in. They sent a $100 gift card that at the time covered replacement cost. I asked to have the jacket back instead due to its sentimental value (many mountaineering trips) and it had already been recycled - I asked what that meant and they couldn't explain the process... I strongly felt it had just been discarded, and the interaction was rude. From my point of view, they needed to communicate before discarding/recycling it . from their end, they felt it was fair because of the economics of it, like what more do you want besides the money... they didn't understand the memory aspect at all, which I found to be contrary to the company ethics talked about in their amazing catalogs and nice essays therein...I would have taken that jacket up to the Korean repair shop if I had known what Patagonia would do :(( . Needless to say, I don't buy their stuff anymore - the ethos I thought they embraced ended up just seeming like PR. I never did use their gift card just out of disappointment.