New Singer Serger is Unrepairable

Letter sent to Singer Company via email this evening:

A few weeks ago I called your Customer Support line regarding a Singer Serger. The Serger was purchased in Spring of 2008. By late summer, I was having problems with the serger skipping stitches, specifically the right needle was coming unthreaded, or the thread from the right needle was dropping out of the stitch chain. I was able to sew about 50% of the time without issues. By Fall of 2008, the issue was consistent. I searched online message boards and websites. Advice told me to change needles, oil the machine, and rethread. I did all of these, countless times. I rethreaded constantly. I was using good quality Maxilock Thread. The problem increased. In December of 2008 I was unable to stitch more than 1 inch without the serger skipping stitches and coming unthreaded on the right needle.

I contacted Serger support and was told that I had somehow traumatized the machine and that the machine was out of timing and just needed adjusting by a serviceperson. I was told the nearest Singer Authorized Serviceperson was in Chicago. This is over 2 hours from me. I was told that the serger had a 90 day warranty and therefore any work done would not be covered by the warranty anyway, and so I discussed options and decided to go to my local sewing machine repairman (who is 45 minutes away!)

This business (family owned and operated for years) has serviced my Singer Sewing Machine. I took the Serger to them and they called today to let me know that after over a week of having the machine, they had deemed it unrepairable and that no matter what they do to the Serger, it will not sew properly. They confirmed that the serger issue is not timing, but that the machine seems unable to keep tension correctly.

Now I am faced with a $200 Serger, still less than a year old, that does not operate at all, and is completely worthless. I have projects piling up and a new baby on the way, and am very concerned that I will not be able to finish those projects by the time the baby gets here at the end of March.

I contacted the JoAnn Store where I purchased the Serger and was told that I should contact Singer again because the machine has a warranty of 2 years on electronic parts, and if it Is unable to be repaired, it is likely that the machine has had an issue since it’s purchase (which I believe wholeheartedly) and that 2 hours is too far to travel for an authorized repair center. I am hoping that the Serger can be sent in and looked at to determine what the problem actually is, and if it can’t be repaired, I feel that the Serger should be replaced as it is still less than 1 year old.

I am contacting you to see what can be done about this Serger. I am very disappointed in the Serger thus-far, and am hoping that I will not be forced to purchase another one. The way this is handled will definitely have an impact on my future purchases, including whether or not I ever purchase another Singer product.

Please contact me at XXX-XXX-XXXX or by replying to this email. I appreciate your time.

Meagan Johnson