BUYER BEWARE: Read this before buying from Sunwest Wholesalers (B.C., Canada)

NOTE: I just want to say in advance that we have made the effort to post this in any and every forum available. It is our goal to warn our Canadian colleagues about Sunwest Wholesalers by sharing our experiences here, online.

Sunwest is a Canadian, west-coast distributer from whom we purchased a TanAmerica Malibu bed in November 2008—less than one year ago. We attempted to buy from TanAmerica/Heartland themselves, but they re-directed us to their Canadian suppliers; telling us that all purchases of this kind, North of the boarder, are done through Sunwest.

It is important to note, here, that we were VERY hesitant to buy anthing from Sunwest at this time. We have purchased equipment from them in the past and found them to be very unreliable. Having been in business ourselves for over ten years, we have come to understand that not all suppliers are created equal.

Unfortunately for us, our sights were set on a Malibu, and we needed to shake hands with Sunwest once again. Along with this bed we purchased a 5 year full warranty. Brian Boneci (sp?) is the cowardly individual who represents Sunwest in the parts and service department. While everything was going good and they were getting paid, Brian was our best friend. Now he won’t talk to us anymore. (Maybe he just got sick of the bed breaking and us calling him about it all the time.)

Which leads us to our story: On day three of the Malibu running, one of its fans broke. Sunwest didn’t have our part in stock, so we had to ship it from TanAmerica/Heartland in California. Overnight shipping cost us over $100 cdn, plus about $30 in boarder fees. Sunwest did not compensate us for this unnecessary cost. Shipping from them would have be less than half and no boarder fees.

Since this time, three more fans have broken (all on separate occasions), the fan delay has needed replacing three times, and there was a problem with the facial bulbs which required full replacing. Each and every time it was the same story with Sunwest Wholesalers. They have NEVER ONCE honored their warranty contract.

We accept that this unit has proven itself to be quite a lemon, in spite of the fact that we have done everything possible to ensure that it is expertly wired and receiving the correct voltage. We have had 2 electricians take a look at it, just in case.

Slowly Sunwest’s communication with us has tapered off. Today I found out by accident through their lotion girl, Judy, that Brian mentioned to her that he wants us to call TanAmerica for warranty parts from now on! WTF?!

We have never had the opportunity to discuss with Sunwest their decision to defer us TanAmerica. Every call goes to voicemail, and no-one returns our calls. Suddenly all our service costs have a price tag that includes international shipping and duty-fees. What happened to the warranty we bought from Sunwest?! Are they not somehow legally bound to their end of the contract? Can they simply wash their hands of us like this, just because it’s convenient?!

Our frustration with Sunwest Wholesalers and our anger at how they have treated us has led us to this post. We are making every possible effort here to warn others about their unprofessional behavior.

Buyer Beware!