Office Chairs Unlimited
Complaint 97470 Details

Office Chairs Unlimited...Mike Harley (Owner) refused to honor the warranty on my office chair. He claims there was a separate warranty somewhere in the package with the chair but none was found.

Warranty Information directly from Office Chairs Unlimited web site. As of Feb 8, 2010, this is the only information available to the public regarding a warranty on the Office Chairs Unlimited web site. This clearly states that Office Chairs Unlimited products, at a minimum, are covered by a 6 year warranty.


"Manufacturers warranties range from 6 years to lifetime warranties. If your item is found to be defective at any time, replacement parts will be shipped to you by the respective manufacturer. Our products are rated for a
standard 40 hour work week by persons weighing 250 lbs or less unless otherwise noted."

This clearly states that Office Chairs Unlimited products, at a minimum, are covered by a 6 year warranty.

If this chair is warranted for the minimum mentioned on the web site, the warranty on my particular model will expire May 22, 2013 at the earliest. This would be 6 years (inclusive) from the date of purchase.

There was nothing in the box with this chair that indicated anything regarding a warranty but had there been, it would almost seem...dishonest.

To imply on his web site that he chooses products that are of the highest quality and warranted "from 6 years to lifetime" then slip a 18 month warranty in the box is dishonest at best.

Mr Harley attempts to make the case that it is something I am doing wrong by stating the following to me in an e-mail dated Feb 5, 2010...

"Please keep in mind that this chair is designed to only hold up to 250 lbs. If you are over this weight, the chair will continue to break. Another cause of the chair
breaking can be leaning forward or to the side as to pick something up off of the ground. This type of motion wears on the mechanism causing it to eventually give. "

I informed Mr. Harley that I weigh about 190 pounds.

If this particular chair is not a "40 hour" chair or is designed to only be used on an infrequent basis/for display purposes only or is not an everyday chair, these facts should also be mentioned so the public will be fully informed.

Mr. Harley's also failed to consider or mention the very distinct possibly that the chair and/or mechanical parts are of less than suitable quality for a chair like this...which seems obvious to me.

Mr. Harley implies that I am being dishonest. Here are the facts…

Mr Harley states on his web site: “Many customers ask us if our furniture is used since our prices are so low. We are proud to say that all of our products are BRAND NEW and in the original manufacturer’s cartons. They are not used, customer returns or defective items.”

The parts that Mr. Harley refers to that I must now replace at my expense have been replaced twice and now need to be replaced again. This should be obvious to anyone that these are “defective”.

Mr. Harley states on his web site that “Manufacturers warranties range from 6 years to lifetime warranties. If your item is found to be defective at any time, replacement parts will be shipped to you by the respective manufacturer. Our products are rated for a standard 40 hour work week by persons weighing 250 lbs or less unless otherwise noted. Each product information page has the available warranty listed for that product. Please consult the warranty that ships with your product for complete details. Make sure you keep your receipt as well.”
This statement directly from his web site is the only mention of a warranty the public is informed of prior to purchase. It clearly indicates that the minimum warranty for any of his products is 6 years. The 6 year warranty was one of the attractive features of this company.

There is no “fine print” anywhere to be found on his web site.
Mr. Harley claims that there was “fine print” provided in the shipping container with the chair I purchased that would negate his web site claim that this chair comes with a minimum 6 year warranty. There was no such paperwork. If there had been paperwork indicating a “bait and switch” scenario, I would have immediately returned the chair.

I despise unscrupulous business that advertise one thing and sell another then cling to fine print that is allegedly “right there in plain sight” I spent 25 years in the US Army. Mr Harley reminds me of the car dealers that used to pop up around military bases that would do anything for a buck.

I located Mr. Harley’s company via a Yahoo search. The buyer protection program he touts on his web site may be another avenue for me to seek the fair treatment from Mr. Harley and Office Chairs Unlimited.