Kensington windows customers out of luck on warranties
Customers who bought Kensington Windows products have little to no chance of getting their warranties honored, a Better Business Bureau official said.
"There isn't any recourse for them because the company went out of business," said Warren King, president of Better Business Bureau of Western Pennsylvania. "They (the customers) are so way down on the list of creditors that more than likely they would not get anything."
Kensington Windows shuttered its doors in October with no warning, leaving about 150 employees without jobs. Its parent company, Ohio-based Jancor, filed for bankruptcy on Oct. 30, claiming to owe from $100 million to $500 million to its creditors.
A California-based company announced last Tuesday it acquired Kensington Windows' equipment and leased its plant at the Parks Bend Industrial Park. Company officials said they plan to hire as many former workers as possible.
Serious Materials, based in Sunnyvale, will make super-insulating windows and commercial glass.
It intends to begin manufacturing its products at the old Kensington Windows facility within a month.
Serious Materials, however, won't be honoring warranties on Kensington Windows' products, having not acquired those liabilities through the bankruptcy process.
"We have no way to service them because we didn't get paid for them in the first place," Serious Materials CEO Kevin Surace said. "We literally just can't take that responsibility."
The news leaves customers such as Bridgette Stephens of Columbia, S.C., wondering where to turn to get her windows fixed.
Stephens bought windows from Kensington Windows through a dealer in her hometown about four years ago, spending about $4,000.
About a year ago, she said, the windows started leaking. She first tried contacting her dealer, but that dealer had gone out of business.
Stephens eventually contacted Kensington Windows, and the company agreed to send her replacement window panes. But the pieces the company sent turned out to be the wrong size.
"I called the company back, and got no answer," Stephens said. "So I kept calling and calling. And nothing happened. The number just pushes you to voice mail."
Between the time Stephens got the wrong panes and when she tried to rectify the problem, the company had folded.
"Here I have to replace these windows again because I want to get my house fixed up so I can sell it," she said. "That's a lot of money we're talking about.
"All I want is my windows to be replaced. It's a bad situation. You buy these windows because (the company) claims they're durable and easy to use; and you want to invest in your house and make it look nice. And to my surprise, I have trouble with the windows."
Asked if she planned to contact a lawyer in an effort to get her warranty honored, Stephens said, "That's my next step."
Craig Wood of Alvin, Texas, had his windows made by the local plant damaged when Hurricane Ike rumbled ashore and wanted to get his warranty honored.
When told that was unlikely, Wood said, "That ain't right. The warranty was part of the price of the windows."
Stephens and Wood are among about a dozen Kensington Windows customers who contacted the Valley News Dispatch, asking what recourse they had for getting warranties honored.
Surace said he'd like to honor warranties but indicated that Serious Materials doesn't have the resources.
"We're a 100 percent different company," he said. "We never collected any money from these customers so we could put some aside for warranties.
"If we have the parts, we'll certainly fix their windows and charge them a very reasonable fee. I wish the answer were better than that because we really want to do right by the customers and the workers. I would hate for all of the goodwill to be lost."
A spokesman for the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office said customers could have recourse in filing a claim through the bankruptcy process. He cautioned it was a long shot because Jancor has a lengthy list of creditors to pay first.
The case is playing out in U.S. Bankruptcy Court -- District of Delaware. Jancor was incorporated in Delaware.
Lawyers representing Jancor refused to comment or offer information about how Kensington Windows customers could file a claim.
William Harrington, the trustee in the case, couldn't be reached by phone for comment.
Additional Information:
On the Web
A spokesman for the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office urged Kensington Windows customers who want a warranty honored to file a complaint. The forms are available online . Customers who have their warranty information should print the form and mail the information with it.
Additional Information:
Jobs available
Kevin Surace, CEO of Serious Materials, which will operate out of the former Kensington Windows plant, said former employees interested in working for Serious Materials should send an e-mail .
