Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  11/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I rentes a Rug Doctor at night and returned it the next morning. At night the next day I receive an email saying it's past due I will be charged a late fee and then billed for the entire amount to replace the machine and it is considered stolen. I didn't get a receipt and no person could help me because its self service. I used kiosk and looked myself up. The door opened automatically so I put vacuum and equipment in kiosk. I returned item I don't have it anymore. I brought it back to ******* already. I already returned it. They can't charge me any more. It was rented 11/5 and returned 11/6 morning.

  Business response

  11/11/2024

  We apologize for the unpleasant experience with Rug Doctor. We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. The prompt resolution of any issue faced by one of our valued customers is of the utmost importance to us.

  
  Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the history of the incident. We discovered that the machine was successfully returned on the proper return date, and no further charges we billed or applied to your rental. We are happy to report that this issue has been resolved.  
  
  We apologize for the unpleasant experience and thank you for taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. We work hard to ensure that each Rug Doctor rental is received in excellent and optimal condition. In the event that this is not the case, whether it be cleanliness or machine performance, our agents are ready and willing to assist with a resolution. Our contact information is provided directly on the kiosk screen or rental forms, your rental emailed receipt if you rented from an automated kiosk, as well as directly on each unit. Rug Doctor is grateful for your business and is proud to have you as one of its customers.  

• Initial Complaint

  10/18/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I rented this machine in good faith that it would work and that I would be able to clean the carpet inside my house, as well as inside of a car that I'm preparing to sell. However, the machine leaked like a sieve from it's clean solution tank the whole time I used it so I was only able to get the car cleaned. I didn't want to bring it in the house because it would have leaked half of its solution tank out onto the floor, so I would have been chasing my tail the whole time trying to use it inside the house while cleaning up excessively leaked fluid. I did get the car done, but at the expense of using two or three times the solution amount and having to constantly stop to refill it, not to mention the huge message made of my driveway after the solution dried on the asphalt. When I returned it to the store they offered no refund and really didn't seem to care. In fact, I'm not confident that they'll flag the machine for needing repair! I tried to contact rug Doctor about it twice, with the first call having them lose my case number, and the second call the *** told me that he couldn't help me because I didn't rent it from a ******* or Big box store and he had no proof that I had rented because it came from an independent business. To me this is unacceptable as they didn't even offer for me to send them my documentation so that the Rug Doctor company could take care of the problem with their product. So, I'm basically left out in the cold with only a recommendation to return to the original place I rented it where I was already not offered a refund or a replacement machine. It seems to me that rug Doctor should take care of this issue since ultimately they own the machine and provide the service to this business to rent out their product. On my second call to rug Doctor after returning the machine to the store I was given a new case number, even though of course they turned me down for receiving any kind of help from them.

  Business response

  10/23/2024

  We absolutely apologize that the machine you received did not meet your expectations. We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. Our team would like to assist you in resolving this matter. The prompt resolution of any issue faced by one of our valued customers is of the utmost importance to us.

  
  Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the history of the incident.  We are happy to report that we have processed your refund. Please allow 7-10 business days for this refund to reflect with your bank account.  
  
  We apologize for the unpleasant experience and thank you for taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. We work hard to ensure that each Rug Doctor rental is received in excellent and optimal condition. In the event that this is not the case, whether it be cleanliness or machine performance, our agents are ready and willing to assist with a resolution. Our contact information is provided directly on the kiosk screen or rental forms, your rental emailed receipt if you rented from an automated kiosk, as well as directly on each unit. Rug Doctor is grateful for your business and is proud to have you as one of its customers.  

• Initial Complaint

  09/22/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Rented carpet cleaning machine on August 21 of this year. Machine quit working properly would not extract water. Contacted **************** and went through checklist they suggested. Machine never worked, were advised to return machine and that I should call when doing so to start the credit card refund process. Returned machine on August 22 and was told that refund was being processed and would be 3-5 days to show up on card statement. This did not occur. After not getting refund, called again on September 16 and was told that original request had not been submitted. That a new request for refund had properly been submitted and would be processed in 3-5 days. Based upon what *** read in other complaints, this behavior, sadly, appears to be a standard practice at Rug Doctor. I want my refund, their product did not function as it should and I promptly notified them only to be given the run-around.

  Business response

  09/24/2024

   We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation, and we sincerely apologize for this unpleasant experience. We want all of our Rug Doctor customers to receive excellent customer service and have a positive experience with our company. Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the history of this incident. We discovered that you were to receive a full refund. Unfortunately, the refund did take longer than we anticipate to process. We have communicated this issue to our refund department and are happy to inform you that  your full refund has been processed as of 9/16/24. Rug Doctor is grateful for your business and is proud to have you as one of its customers. We are happy to report that this issue has been resolved. Again, thank you for your patience and we hope we can serve you again in the future. Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  08/31/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 8/26/2024 I rented one carpet cleaner and attachment for $49.94. I was done with the machine that same day and returned it around 8 pm. However I continue to receive text messages that machine has not been returned and I'll be charged an additional $43.45 per day. I called your customer support the first time and they called the store the next day and indeed the store has the machine and attachment. However the next night I got the text message again and this time customer service stated that there was a software glitch and they had to send this issue to their IT team. In the mean time I'm still getting text messages waking me up at 11:00 pm every single night.Your customer support has been helpful and has made sure I wasn't actually charged the late fees but seriously I'm getting tired of being woken up every night with even the possibility this might happen.Please help me make it stop!

  Business response

  09/05/2024

  We apologize for the unpleasant experience with Rug Doctor. We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. We aim to provide excellent service for all Rug Doctors customers. Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the issue. We are happy to report that the rental has been successfully closed out in the system, and you will not receive any future text notifications related to this rental. In the event that you ever experience an issue in the future, whether it be cleanliness or machine performance, our agents are ready and willing to assist with a resolution. Our contact information is provided directly on the kiosk screen or rental forms, your rental emailed receipt if you rented from an automated kiosk, as well as directly on each unit. We are happy we could resolve this issue for you and hope we continue to be your first choice for all of your carpet cleaning needs.

• Initial Complaint

  08/31/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I rented a machine Thursday evening 8/29 and returned to kiosk by 7:30am Friday 8/30/24 and am being charged for not returning it. This charge is fraudulent, the store has cameras inside and out and I was even engaged in conversation with the customer service employee at the store while returning the machine but had to argue with customer service just to get them to call the store and confirm the machine is in fact returned but now I must wait a possible 5 business days for the $47 fraudulent charge to be returned. This is an absolute joke!

  Business response

  09/05/2024

  We apologize for the unpleasant experience with Rug Doctor. We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. We aim to provide excellent service for all Rug Doctors customers. Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the issue. We are happy to report that you were not charged a late fee for your recent rental.  In the event that you ever experience an issue in the future, whether it be cleanliness or machine performance, our agents are ready and willing to assist with a resolution. Our contact information is provided directly on the kiosk screen or rental forms, your rental emailed receipt if you rented from an automated kiosk, as well as directly on each unit. We are happy we could resolve this issue for you and hope we continue to be your first choice for all of your carpet cleaning needs.

• Initial Complaint

  08/19/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  8/4/24 I rented a too dirty to use rug doctor carpet cleaner from ******* on ************* in *****************, to clean the carpet of a 2 bdrm apartment I was moving out of. When I got there it had dirty stinky water in the dirty water tank and the filter inside was clogged, I tried to clean it to use multiple times however was unsuccessful. I called and was told I would get a refund. I received the email confirming the rental and confirming the refund. Now 3 calls to rug doctor later and over 2 weeks have gone by since being told I would receive my refund in 3-5 days. My bank shows the charge completing on 8/6/24 after I was told on 8/4/24 I would receive the refund. Yesterday 8/18/24 when I last called I was told I was talking to a supervisor and the refund was issued on 8/4/24 and she would send me a screenshot of the transaction from their end of the refund and I would receive the screenshot by email within 3 minutes, I never received the email confirming they refunded the $43.07. I feel that this is unethical business practices being had gotten a clean usable carpet cleaner i would have had 24 hrs to use it, it was returned in approximately 2 hrs after I tried to clean it multiple times for my own use, called, was told to call back w the reference number as soon as I drove back and returned it, and called back. Not only would I like my refund of $43.07 but bc they lied I would also like them to send an additional $25 for retaining my money after agreeing to refund my money.

  Business response

  08/28/2024

  We apologize for the unpleasant experience with Rug Doctor. We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation. We aim to provide excellent service for all Rug Doctors customers. Upon receipt of your complaint, we conducted an investigation into this matter. We show that a bank error occurred during the processing of your refund. While it showed as refunded on our end, the bank can take several days or longer to process on their end before you see a  return credit. We have ensured that the amount has now been properly refunded, and you should see this reflected with your bank. In the event that you ever experience an issue in the future, whether it be cleanliness or machine performance, our agents are ready and willing to assist with a resolution. Our contact information is provided directly on the kiosk screen or rental forms, your rental emailed receipt if you rented from an automated kiosk, as well as directly on each unit. We thank you again for reaching out and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience. We are happy to inform you that this matter has been resolved.   

• Initial Complaint

  06/15/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I rented that rug Doctor cleaning machine on 6/8/24 at around 11 AM. And paid $60.28. Then I returned it on 6/9/24 at 19:00 pm. There was no any problem with returning. Then, after one day I got a massage that I didnt return that machine. Thats crazy. Then they told me that they were going to charge me but I emailed them immediately and solved the problem. They said that I wont get charged. But on 6/12/24 they charged me $86.14 for nothing and they even didnt send me any massage about the charge. That is absolutely stealing money. I want my money back!

  Business response

  06/18/2024

   We appreciate you taking your valuable time to notify us of this situation, and we sincerely apologize for this unpleasant experience. We want all of our Rug Doctor customers to receive excellent customer service and have a positive experience with our company. Upon receipt of your complaint, our team investigated the history of this incident. We discovered that you contacted Rug Doctor on 6/15/24 regarding the late fee issue. We have communicated this issue to our refund department and are happy to inform you that your refund has already been processed. Please allow 5-10 business days for this to reflect on your bank statement. Rug Doctor is grateful for your business and is proud to have you as one of its customers. Again, thank you for your patience and we hope we can serve you again in the future. Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  01/16/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We are a two time buyer of a rug doctor. The first one lasted over 20 years. We purchased a brand new Sept 2022 and went to use it Dec of 23 just 2 mos of the warrenty being up. We called the tec line and they stated that it lost the suction and the closest repair is 200 miles away. Because its out of warranty by 2 mos we are on our own.I tired calling the corporate office and only received the customer serivce ***** Where I was treated with disrespect and hung up on.Rug doctor states that their rug doctor machines will last a life time! Differently not in this case. We could have rented a carpet cleaner for much less then the $500.00 we spent.The we bought was a Rug doctor Pro X3.

  Business response

  01/22/2024

  Thank you for taking the time to educate us on your recent experience with Rug Doctor. The prompt resolution of any issue faced by one of our valued customers is of the utmost importance to us. Upon receipt of your incident, Rug Doctor reviewed your complaint and found the following information: Your Rug Doctor was outside of your warranty period. During the warranty period, Rug Doctor will, for the original purchaser, repair or replace including labor, any parts that are defective in material or workmanship within 1 years of purchase. Thereafter,you *** be directed to take the machine to a local repair center or required to ship the machine to a Rug Doctor warranty center should additional repairs be required during the warranty period. You will be responsible to pay any freight charges for shipment to ******************* for repairs occurring after the initial 30 days. Rug Doctor will pay the freight charges back to you. Outside of the warranty period, you are responsible for the repairs and any shipping charges (if applicable). Please note, you can always ship your item in for a free diagnosis. You will be responsible for any shipping charges, but our team will always diagnose your issue for free. Should any repairs be needed, we will let you know the cost before conducting any repairs. We understand that the closest Rug Doctor repair facility is located approximately 157 miles from you location, but you *** take it to any local vacuum repair facility that is will to work on the machine. You will be responsible for any charges the repair center *** charge. Alternatively, you *** send the machine into our repair center. If you would like to do so, we can provide you with the shipping information. Please note, you will need to pay for the shipping charges and any subsequent repair costs. We will diagnose it for free, and you will then have the option to have us repair the machine if you wish. Rug Doctor is grateful for your business and is proud to have you as one of its customers. We look forward to hearing from you and assisting you further in this matter.Thank you.

  Customer response

  01/22/2024

  I am rejecting this response because:   

  Because they do not stand by their products. We paid $500.00 for their rug doctor to last just over a year. We could have rented a machine for alot less and no repair cost for us personally. They have no repair stores in our area and will have to travel close to 200 miles for repairs that will be at our cost. We will be looking into purchasing another brand that will last and will stand by their product. It is obvious to me that a company that doesn't have direct contact with customers and uses a 3rd party for customer service DOES NOT back their products!

  Business response

  01/23/2024

  Rug Doctor is happy to diagnose the machine for free. The customer is responsible for shipping charges outside of the warranty period but will be given the option to repair the machine or have it sent back after the diagnosis. Alternatively, the customer may take the machine to any local repair center that is willing to work on the machine, they do not have to go to a Rug Doctor repair center. Repairs needed outside of the warranty period are the responsibility of the customer, but the customer can always call our help center for free troubleshooting instructions. 

  Customer response

  01/23/2024

  I am rejecting this response because:   

  The cost of shipping this item would outrageous! We have local repair shops however they do not work on rug doctors. I understand that our rug doctor is out of warranty by 2 mos.. Bottom line is that Rug doctor does not stand by their product nor do I get the feeling that they don't care about consumer satisfaction. We are looking at purchasing another brand of cleaners. One that offers a better warranty and quality. One that believes in consumer service.

• Initial Complaint

  12/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hello, Since I did not have a way of contacting the Rug Doctor, and the only semblence of it's existence, I had to return the carpet cleaning machine and long hose attachment to the crate at ******** where I first rented the machine. I rented the machine June 26th of 2023. I used the machine as directed on only rug and sofa cushions. The machine died on me the same day. I am not to be wrongly charged extra fees for whatever blame the company puts on me, the customer for the machine. There is no reason the be debted $130.32 and $326.25 after rinsing and drying of the machine prior to placing the machine and furniture attachment in the same compartments I retrieved the machine from. If the Rug Doctor charges every customer for a malfunction for the price of the machine, plus whatever fees like a car rental company, it should be publicly expressed that they are making an excess profit from customers who simply want to use a machine without having to go search a professional machine. ****************************************************

  Business response

  12/11/2023

  Thank you for reaching out to Rug Doctor. Upon receipt of your complaint, Rug Doctor investigated the details surrounding your rental. We can confirm that you rented on 6/22/2023, and your close out or "return" date was 7/6/2023 at 9:00 am, which was manually closed out by the company. This means that you either did not return the machine correctly (meaning to ****************** in the appropriate kiosk). Per you rental contract, you must return your machine by your "due back" date to ****************** you rented from, and it must be secured in the kiosk you rented from. Simply leaving the machine at a different store or within the store but not at it's kiosk does not constitute a valid return, and you will be charged for the original rental, late fees and unreturned machine fee as a result. Additionally, we confirmed with our call center that no problems were reported from your regarding your rental machine. 

  Business response

  01/24/2024

  Thank you for reaching out to Rug Doctor. Upon receipt of your complaint, Rug Doctor investigated the details surrounding your rental. We can confirm that you rented on 6/22/2023, and your close out or "return" date was 7/6/2023 at 9:00 am, which was manually closed out by the company. This means that you either did not return the machine correctly (meaning to ****************** in the appropriate kiosk). Per you rental contract, you must return your machine by your "due back" date to ****************** you rented from, and it must be secured in the kiosk you rented from. Simply leaving the machine at a different store or within the store but not at it's kiosk does not constitute a valid return, and you will be charged for the original rental, late fees and unreturned machine fee as a result. Additionally, we confirmed with our call center that no problems were reported from your regarding your rental machine. 

• Initial Complaint

  11/23/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I rented a rug doctor from my local ******* for 24 hours. I returned it several hours before the deadline and now it is showing that I didnt return it and is charging me late fees

  Business response

  11/28/2023

  Thank you for reaching out to notify Rug Doctor of your issue. Upon receipt of your submission, we reviewed the details of your rental. We are happy to confirm that your rental was returned on time, and there are no additional charges or late fees due. The only charge you received was for the original rental. We hope this will alleviate any concerns you have, and we will consider this matter resolved. Thank you again, and have a great day! 

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩