Angie Winter was getting washday blues every time she pressed the start button on her machine - because she wasn't sure if it would stop again.

In the last two years she estimates her Hotpoint washer-drier has broken down at least 12 times.

But she will soon be the proud owner of a brand new machine - thanks to Rights and Wrongs.

Hotpoint investigated her complaints after we contacted the company, and within hours said it would replace her faulty machine.

The 44-year-old from Eccleshill, Bradford, said each time it broke down engineers came out - under the five-year warranty she bought - and tried to fix the particular problem.

In its short life it has had new door seals, a replacement pump, new time switch and hours of work on it - and it still doesn't work properly, she says.

"It's now stopped working and it's full of water with clothes in it," she said.

"They have replaced just about everything inside and it still keeps going wrong. On some occasions it hasn't turned itself off and it has just kept going and going.

"Other times it's flooded the kitchen because it hadn't drained the water out when it finished and I have opened the door.

"Then there is this awful banging noise that keeps happening.

"I have been told I can't have a refund because under the warranty as long as they can repair it each time they will - even though it's costing them a lot of money."

Malcolm Holdaway, company secretary of General Domestic Appliances, which manufactures Hotpoint, told Rights and Wrongs yesterday: "The number of problems she has had with this machine is unacceptable - it shouldn't have happened.

"We are very sorry about it and we will replace it with a new one free of charge."

Last month we told how disabled couple Renie and Ray Karle had a Hotpoint which had broken down 14 times.

On that occasion the couple also received a new machine after we contacted the manufacturers and Mr Holdaway investigated.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.