Repair, Replace or Buy on Credit: The Washing Machine Decision
The Grech family's washing machine, bought in 2016 for €450, has stopped spinning. A repairer quotes €180 for a new motor and labour, with a three-month guarantee on the part. A local shop offers two replacements: Model A at €520, A-rated, using 0.9 kWh per cycle with a two-year warranty; and Model B at €390, C-rated, using 1.4 kWh per cycle with a one-year warranty. Electricity costs €0.28 per kWh. The family of five runs about six washes a week at 40 °C. They have €250 in savings. The shop offers 0% credit over 12 months on purchases over €500, or a three-year extended warranty for €70. The parents disagree: the father wants the cheapest option, the mother wants to avoid another breakdown. The repairer says the drum and bearings on the old machine are still sound.
1. Calculate the five-year electricity cost of each option and compare the total outlay, including purchase or repair. Recommend one option with reasons.
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Over five years the family does 6 × 52 × 5 = 1,560 washes.
- Model A: 1,560 × 0.9 kWh = 1,404 kWh; at €0.28 = €393. Purchase €520. Total €913.
- Model B: 1,560 × 1.4 kWh = 2,184 kWh; at €0.28 = €611. Purchase €390. Total €1,001.
- Repair: €180. The old machine's consumption is not given, so assume 1.5–1.6 kWh per cycle: 1,560 × 1.55 = 2,418 kWh, or €677. Total €857.
On paper the repair is €56 cheaper than A and €144 cheaper than B. But it carries only a three-month part guarantee on a nine-year-old machine whose other components are near end of life. One further failure in year two wipes out the saving and adds laundrette costs of €8–€10 a load.
Recommendation: Model A, if the family can use the 0% credit without penalty. It has the lowest five-year cost of the two new machines and uses 780 kWh less than B over five years, about €218 and roughly 300 kg of CO₂ avoided. Repair is defensible only if the €250 savings must stay intact for emergencies.
2. Assess the 0% credit offer and the €70 extended warranty. What should the family ask before signing?
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0% credit: €520 over 12 months is €43.33 a month. The family must ask:
- Is the 0% conditional on a deposit, a store card or a direct debit?
- What APR applies after the promotional period, and is interest backdated if one payment is missed?
- Is there an early-settlement fee?
- Does taking credit affect the statutory two-year guarantee?
- Can they still afford €43.33 in a month when school expenses or a car repair land?
Extended warranty: €70 for three years. EU and Maltese consumer law already give two years of legal guarantee against manufacturing defects, so the €70 mainly buys the third year and possibly labour. They should ask what is excluded - drum bearings, call-out charges, 'wear and tear'.
The expected repair cost is €180, so €70 is reasonable insurance only if a sudden €180 bill would be a crisis. Otherwise the €70 is better kept in a repair fund.
This is an affordability question, not just a price question. After a €520 purchase the family's €250 savings are gone. A safer structure is to pay the €250 down, finance the balance, and skip the extended warranty.
3. Discuss the environmental and household-management factors that should influence the choice beyond the price tag.
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Running costs and environment: Model A saves 780 kWh over five years, about €218 and roughly 300 kg of CO₂. Water use per cycle and spin speed also matter: a 1,400 rpm spin removes more water and shortens drying time, which matters in a small flat where clothes are dried indoors. Detergent dosing and load size affect both.
Household management: six washes a week means reliability is a service, not a luxury. A breakdown costs €8–€10 per laundrette load and several hours of time. Capacity matters for a family of five; noise matters if the machine is near the living area.
Repair culture: if the drum and bearings are sound, repairing keeps the machine's embodied carbon in use and avoids electronic waste. The old machine must go to a WEEE bring-in site, not the pavement.
Risk: the two-year warranty on A reduces the risk the mother is worried about. The father is weighting day-one cash flow; the mother is weighting reliability and running cost. A simple decision grid scoring purchase price, five-year running cost, warranty, capacity and breakdown risk puts A ahead over five years, with B ahead only on the day of purchase.