Customer ReviewsforAmerican Water Heater Group

I purchased an AO Smith water heater several days ago from Lowe's that had a high pitch noise right out of the box. A Google search indicated that this high pitch is an indicator of excessive pressure in the tank and is a safety issue. My contractor removed the water heater and brought it back to Lowe's hoping to return the defective water heater especially as it was within two hours of purchase but was informed that we could not as we needed a return authorization number from AO Smith. I found this completely ridiculous as we had just bought the unit and it had been defective straight out of the box.

I called AO Smith the next day and was informed that I could not get a refund on the unit as they needed a technician to first try to repair the unit. I did not feel this was acceptable and demanded a refund because 1) I have had 3 issues with your heaters in the past, each time costing me XXX-XXX dollars for a contractor to inspect the unit; 2) I do not have confidence in the water heater and I consider it a safety issue with my two young children; 3) it was defective out of the box and I can't even imagine what else is wrong with the unit.

In addition, their customer support yelled at me when I asked to speak to their supervisor to get additional support. I was really surprised and offended by this and indicated that I would post my concerns on social media, they simply replied by telling me to "go ahead". Taking their advice, I have been posting on Twitter, tagging AO Smith, Lowe's and their CEO, of my concerns. My hope is that I can inform at least a few individuals of the dangers from purchasing an AO Smith water from Lowe's.

This is a scam and they should not be allowed to stay in business if they expect customers to accept a device that is non-functional out of the box and expect customers to be fine with an unsafe water heater. If I had known that I could not return a brand new but defective device, I would not have purchased AO Smith!

We're sorry to hear of your experience with our product and will be glad to look into this further to see what warranty may be able to offer. We will be reaching out to you to discuss.

In 2016 I purchased a Whirlpool 50 gallon water heater from Lowes hardware unaware AO Smith owns that brand. It had a lifetime warranty and cost $429.00 which was twice the price of a standard heater. It had a 9 year standard warranty but a lifetime promotional. Six years and three months later it's leaking and AO Smith will not honor the life time warranty and the replacement is only warranted for 2 years and 9 months, the remainder of the original warranty and then I'm back to square one. Misrepresentation, false advertising, deception. Call it what you wish but stay away from AO Smith products or you will be sorry.

We're sorry to hear of your experience with our product and will be glad to look into this further to see what warranty may be able to offer. We will be reaching out to you to discuss.

Update, AO Smith representative Gabe quickly contacted me and I have to say he was very kind and professional. Although I am disappointed in AO Smith's current policy, I feel that Gabe done a great job and we reached a conclusion.

VERY UPSET CUSTOMER and WORST EXPERIENCE EVER! We purchased a 48 gallon electric water heater from Lowes in Cookeville, TN on 3-29-22. We tried to install on 4-2-22. Let me start by saying no where on the box were we told we could not return to Lowes if there was a problem, nor were we told this by a store associate. Once you open the box, if there is a problem, you are stuck with it. So, we open the box to install and the pressure valve is damaged. I called Lowes first and was very rudely told not their problem, contact AO Smith, which I tried to do. Of course got the recording that says greater than expected call volume, please leave name and number and someone will call you. Well, that didn't happened. We paid of $700 for this water heater and had to purchase a new pressure valve that cost an additional $27 at a local hardware store. I called AO Smith again and waited 45 minutes and no one picked up and was not given an option to have a call back. My complaint is two-fold against AO Smith and Lowes. Both companies will never get another penny from me. Kinda hard to stay in your home without a water heater but I fail to see how this purchase is any different than buying a fridge, stove, dishwasher as far as Lowes is concerned why would they not stand behind what they have sold someone. I will steer clear of AO Smith and Lowes.

We apologize for the frustration experienced. We are reaching out to the customer so we can look into this further.

My 5 month old $2000 A.O. Smith hybrid water heater stopped working. breaker flipped and would not come on. I called A.O. Smith support and the guy said he would authorize a part(element) from Lowes but I had to pay labor. I explained that I have a 1 year labor warranty but he insisted I did not...I am looking at my warranty papers now. it say's I do. He said to call Lowes and they could do the labor...Lowes said absolutely not because I didn't have an extended warranty from Lowes. They sent me back to A.O. Smith. after 6 calls I decided to clock out of work and go to Lowes to speak to a manager...well, that wasn't any help at all. He said nothing he could do because no returns on water heaters due to HEPA. I asked him to call AO but he said no, nothing would help! I paid $2000 for a water heater with a 10 year parts warranty and 1 year labor warranty but didn't get it after only 5 months ownership. I'm out that $$ plus work hours to fix it myself. These people should be shut down!

We are reviewing the information and will reach out to the customer so we can look into this further.

Had our hybrid American water heater for 7 months. Nothing but headaches. American made it such a hassle to repair we just bought a different brand and took this one to the dump. The warranty is as good as the product. JUNK!

We are reviewing the information and will reach out to the customer so we can look into this further.

We were contacted by American. It would have been nice if the unit had been repaired but since we had replaced it with a different heater they did give us a check for the price of the unit. That is more than most companies would do.

I'm having the same experience as others here. I replaced an old AO Smith water heater that came with the house with a new one I bought and had installed through Lowe's. After installation I noticed a dent on the bottom of the brand new unit. Installer assured me it was fine. Immediately I noticed that the new unit was not producing anywhere near the amount of hot water even though the specifications were exactly that of my old AO unit. After about a month the unit started whining and creaking noises whenever water is flowing through it. Inspector finally came out and when I told him about the noise he said "not to worry about it". Noise has since gotten worse. I called the installer that Lowe's provided to explain the problems I was having and they said I would have to contact AO Smith directly so they could send out a technician to determine whether the unit or installation was faulty. I'm sure you can guess what happened next. I called the first time and was on hold for over an hour before I gave up. Left a call back number - no call back. I called again, and again, and again each time leaving a call back number - no answer and no call back. I emailed - no response. It seems like they are trying to wait out my one year warranty so they are not liable for their faulty heater. I want to add that it's very interesting that AO Smith seems to have a representative responding to the complaints here in less than a day. It's laughable that a company worth 11 billion dollars cant fill a few call centers with enough customer service representatives to take care of the incoming 1-800 calls. For shame.

We are reaching out to the customer so we can look into this further.

I purchased an AO Smith water heater through Lowes with an extended 5 year warranty. Less than 2 years later it stopped working. I called to have a technician work on it, only to be told that because it was in a room accessable by the bathroom they refuse to repair it or even look at it. The owners manual said it could not be in a bathroom, not a room with a door separating the two. I have lived in my home for 22 years and the hot water heater has always been located in the same space. Before I bought the new water heater a technician looked at it and never mentioned anything about it's location. Buyer beware because I am not only out of the money I paid for the water heater, I'm also out of the money I spent on the warranty that they claim is void. I will not shop at Lowes again because I asked the sales associate every question about installation and not once was this mentioned. I will also never purchased an AO Smith water heater because it broke in less than 2 years.

We are reaching out to the customer so we can look into this further.

Bought this water heater 6 months ago from Lowe's the alarm went off on it last night so I unplugged it. I. Went to reset it in the am and called customer service and after talking to them how I had it just plugged it from the wall instead of having a turn off switch besides it they told me my warranty is voided till I have an electrical Ut off put in😳😡meanwhile I have no hot water no warranty . I talked to my electrician and he said it should not void the warranty due to that. What about when the lights go out?They do not give a crap except all they say is we can't do anything until you put that hardwire in with a cut off and submit pictures😡do not buy one I have never had any issues with any other water heaters or voided warranty's I am 53.....I gave them a one star only because I thought it was a cool water heater until it broke and customer service of getting help they hung up on me😡l called Lowe's and they said So AOsmith needs to give me a RO number to return ...it well since the warranty is voided because I don't have the shut off I can't get a ro# from them .... Do not buy because you will sooner or later be disappointed...I wish I read reviews more I even saw where the reset button caught in fire😳😳not a happy customer... from San Antonio ty

We are reaching out to the customer so we can look into this further.

We have a lifetime warranty hot water tank be bought from Lowes years ago. The circuit board went out and I called to have them replace it. They never sent the board. I called back and they said " I don't know why it wasn't sent, but I'll re-file a new order for one." That one wasn't sent either. I called again and they informed me, "it's now on back order." Had they sent the part when I originally filed, I would have already received it. It's now been 2 weeks we've been without hot water and no estimate on when I'll receive it. They're customer service is horribly unreliable and disorganized. They deserve to go out of business.

We are reaching out to the customer so we can look into this further.