Gecko causes ac dispute

AUSTRALIA: Mitsubishi Electric is at the centre of a dispute over damage caused to one of its air conditioners by a gecko.

Birds, rodents, snakes, spiders and numerous insects find their way into air conditioning units in their search for food, warmth or shelter. A gecko which found its way into the outdoor condensing unit at a house in Brisbane ended up short-circuiting the power board and led to the homeowner accusing Mitsubishi of misleading customers.

According to reports by ABC television, the homeowner, Felicity Sawford, was told that her five-year extended warranty did not cover damage caused by geckos.

While Mitsubishi’s warranty states that the owner is responsible for the repair of damage to the product caused by vermin, Ms Sawford said geckos could not be classified as vermin.

With geckos being particularly common in Queensland, Ms Sawford said Mitsubishi should be making air conditioning units to suit Queensland’s conditions if they would not honour warranty claims involving geckos.

“What’s the point of having a five-year warranty on an external unit if something as small as a gecko can be the end of it?” she is quoted as saying.

Gecko infestation is not uncommon and, for some, such a problem that special measures need to be taken, as this video suggests:

A particular problem in the US are certain ants that appear to be attracted to electrical equipment with air conditioning condensing units being a particular target (Ants behaving badly).