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Kirby Vacuum Cleaners

Preying on the Elderly & Infirm?

Kirby Vacuum Cleaners • In-Home Demonstration • Three-day Return Policy • "Trade-In" Policy • Warranty Service • Poor Quality • Elderly & Infirm • Home Alone • Neighborhood Pests • U.K. Complaints • South Africa Complaints • Andrew's Kirby Adventure --- • Kirby Sweeps Up in West Virginia • Arizona Sues Kirby Distributors • Kirby Salesman Arrested • Salesmen Respond

Stan of Troy, AL (12/6/05)
My 80-year old father allowed two individuals (representing Kirby) into our home. They told him that he had been selected to receive a free carpet cleaning service for the entire house. Needless to say, that did not happen, and while one person did a bit of vacuuming in one room, the other occupied my father in another room.

My father's cell phone was stolen, and before it was realized, his cell phone bill was for $330 over two billing cycles. Typically his bill is around $50 per cycle. If we are able to locate these individuals, we intend to prosecute.

Marla of Jesup, GA (10/24/05)
Kirby might be an excellent vacuum, however the sales and finance methods are quite questionable. I suggest that all Kirby sales individuals should have one basic understanding of "NO". I had to repeat "no" five separate times (maybe more) in varying tones before this was understood.

Interestingly, the price kept coming down (to $780) each time I said no. The sales method gives Kirby a bad name.

By the way, this is the first time I have ever complained in writing regarding any product or service of this nature. But this affects a lot of elderly people, who purchase a vacuum just to get the salesman out of the house.

Laurie of Commerce Twp. MI (11/10/03):
My mother is 78 years old and has Parkinson's Disease. Some female representative of the Kirby company talked her into buying a Kirby vacuum cleaner. It is not easy to use, and my mother has used it once in the months since she bought it. I visited her this weekend, and tried to figure it out (had to read the manual) to find that you had to turn a very difficult-to-move plastic part a full revolution or more, and remove the whole front of the machine to attach the hose, then turn a stiffly operating metal latch to hook up and unhook the hose attachment.

My mother cannot even operate the thing as her hands do not work. She cannot safely bend over to work on it (she uses a walker and is very unstable), and shouldn't be lifting one foot to operate the on/off (foot operated) switch. She doesn't even know where to get replacement bags (they gave her 3) ("she told me where, but I don't remember....) It is unconscionable to prey on the elderly in such a manner.

Consequences? An old woman spent a fortune on an appliance that she cannot safely operate and should not be operating so that some woman without a concience can add to her paycheck. I would starve before I would do that for a living.

Dan of Whittier CA writes (7/23/01):
The salesman Hakeem sold my 83-year-old father a Kirby vacuum cleaner. My father doesn't remember buying it, or how it got into the house. My mother just passed away in November and my father has been depressed. He loves to have someone to talk to but doesn't remember when someone has been to his home.

We have talked to the company and they say he signed the contract so he purchased the vacuum. He put it on a charge card. He can not afford this and I feel that the saleman and this company took advantage of man who is depressed with the loss of his wife of 62 years.

I know that we are going to have to keep the vacuum but I just wanted you to know about the company and maybe notify senior groups to watch out for this company and Kirby. Thanks for listening.

Dan's father needs help. Memory loss of this severity can be a sympton of serious underlying conditions. His father should have an immediate workup by a physician, preferably one who specializes in geriatrics.

Ana of Freeport NY writes (11/2/01):
Salesperson came to my house selling a Kirby vacuum. My mom doesn't really know English, she only knows a little bit. Well the lady wanted to sell the vacuum; she said she would appreciate if we bought the vacuum so she could go on her trip to this place she had mentioned.

She came at about 12:00 pm in the afternoon and insisted we buy the vacuum from her. At the time my mom was under medicine, these pills the doctor had told her to take. The lady made my mom go to the bank and take out money so she would give in her first payment.S he didn't explain anything.

The vacuum then later broke and they said we only had a 3-day guarentee so we couldn't return it, that we had to pay. Well my mom decided to pay her $1,200. Now they keep on sending letters about how we have to pay $1,700.

Ana should contact her local consumer agency for assistance.

Brenda of Stockton CA (12/18/03):
Three years ago a Kirby salesman came to my house. I told him I did not want to buy a vacuum and could not afford to buy a vacuum. He persisted with his sales pitch. He was with a team that had been brought in from San Jose, CA (70 miles from Stockton). I contintued to say no, he wanted to call his supervisor to come talk with me. I said NO, and NO and NO. He was very smooth, said he was in college at San Jose State and needed the commissions from these sales to stay in college. I finally got rid of him.

I wish I had known or thought then to call the police. They had about 6 sales people working the circle that we lived on. It was a very disturbing experience.

The next time I visited my mother in Belleview, Florida (a very small town near Ocala), I found she had bought a Kirby. She had a Kirby that was about 40 years old that had been a good vacuum. She was 81 at that time and said she kept telling the salesman no that her old Kirby was fine. But she said the only way she could get rid of him was to buy the new Kirby and they took her old Kirby as trade in.

My mother lives on Social Security and interest from a small savings (about $750 a month). She couldn't afford this. I found the Kirby web site and sent an e-mail expressing my anger at their sales methods and preying on my elderly mother. I never received a response. The new Kirby is now inoperable (3 years old).

I've had a Hoover for 12 years and it is great, no problems with it and it just keeps on going. I hope more people find this web site and maybe one day Kirby will be put out of business with their unethical practices. Once you buy it, its yours, no service, no help with problems. This happened in California and Florida, so its not JUST A FEW SALESMEN that operate this way; it appears to be the way Kirby trains them.

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