By Claire Reilly

Almost one quarter of Australians opt for aesthetics over functionality when choosing a refrigerator, according to an independent survey conducted by consumer research agency, Canstar Blue.

“We expected appearance to be important but were surprised to see such a substantial group of Australians rating looks over functionality when it came to choosing a key household item we rely on daily,” said Canstar Blue manager, Rebecca Logan.

“Interestingly, the results also showed 75% of respondents picked energy efficiency as the most important factor when choosing the best fridge for their needs,” she added. “This shows the message is getting out that energy efficient electrical items are better both for your pocket and for the environment which is good to see.”

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The survey, which was conducted in conjunction with professional market researchers Colmar Brunton, took responses from more than 800 Australians who had purchased a refrigerator in the last 3 months, charting their satisfaction with brands and features. According to the results, looks were twice as important to NSW consumers (28 per cent) than to QLD buyers (14 per cent).

The stand out in terms of brands was Kelvinator, which scored five out of five stars in the categories of value for money, reliability, food freshness, quality of fittings, and after sales service – leaving it tied for first place or the outright winner in each of these categories. Despite falling behind Fisher & Paykel for internal layout, it achieved a full five-star rating in terms of overall satisfaction.

The survey rated consumer satisfaction with a total of six refrigerator brands, including Fisher & Paykel, Kelvinator, LG, Samsung, Westinghouse and Whirlpool. Each brand needed to receive more than 30 responses in order to be included in the Canstar results release.