Why won't my washing machine start?

"Won't start" is the second most common washing machine fault, accounting for 11.6% of all washing machine repairs (24,412 cases in the Archimede management system). The usual culprits are a faulty control board, a broken door lock mechanism or a power supply issue. The rate varies considerably by brand: on Candy machines it is the number one fault at 15.2%, whilst on Bosch it drops to fourth place at 9.6%.

Why is my fridge not cooling?

"Won't cool" is by far the most concentrated fault of any appliance in the dataset: it accounts for 45.6% of all fridge repairs (55,001 cases). The problem almost always traces back to the compressor, the refrigerant circuit or the thermostat. No other appliance has a single fault that dominates so completely — the second most common fridge problem ("won't start") trails far behind at 13.4%.

My washing machine is leaking — is it serious?

Water leaks are the third most common washing machine fault at 11.5% (24,143 cases). The severity depends on the source: a worn door seal, a loose hose connection or a cracked detergent drawer are typical causes. The data shows significant variation across brands — on LG machines, leaks reach 21% of all faults, roughly double the overall average.

My dishwasher won't drain — what should I do?

Drainage failures are the third most common dishwasher fault at 12.4% (20,065 cases). A blocked filter, a kinked drain hose or a faulty pump are the most likely causes. In the dataset, the rate is higher on Miele (16.3%) and Bosch (14%) than on other brands. Related error codes to look for: E24 or E25 on Bosch, I30 on Electrolux, F11 on Miele.

What are the most common appliance faults overall?

Across all appliance categories, "won't start" is the most frequently recorded fault at 14.2% (88,939 cases out of 906,994 interventions). It is followed by "won't cool" (9.4%, concentrated almost entirely on fridges), "water leak" (8.0%, spread across washing machines, dishwashers and fridges) and "error code" (7.5%, where the appliance displays a diagnostic code rather than a recognisable symptom).

The most common appliance faults

Published by Archimede · Numeri Primi Srl · Data updated March 2026

"Won't start", "won't cool", "leaking water" — these are the problems as customers describe them when they ring for a repair. This page ranks them by frequency, based on interventions recorded in the proprietary Archimede management system (over 900,000 interventions, July 2019 – March 2026).

For error codes (the appliance's own diagnostic language) and for the full repair statistics overview, the Lab has dedicated pages.

Washing machine

4x11%

The washing machine presents a remarkably fragmented picture: the top four faults all sit between 10% and 12%. There is no single dominant problem — it breaks down in many different ways. More detail: dedicated washing machine page.

Fault	Occurrences	%
Won't drain	24,502	11.7%
Won't start	24,412	11.6%
Water leak	24,143	11.5%
Noise	22,315	10.6%
Error code	16,604	7.9%
Stalls / freezes	14,417	6.9%
Won't spin	12,871	6.1%
Drum won't turn	11,568	5.5%
Door won't open	9,191	4.4%
Door seal	8,856	4.2%

Dishwasher

"Won't start" is the most reported fault (15%), closely followed by "error code" (14.3%). The dishwasher is the appliance most likely to display a specific error code on screen — a feature of newer models. For the full ranking: appliance error codes. In-depth analysis: dishwasher repairs page.

Fault	Occurrences	%
Won't start	24,244	15.0%
Error code	23,239	14.3%
Won't drain	20,065	12.4%
Won't fill with water	16,249	10.0%
Water leak	13,927	8.6%
Stalls / freezes	9,825	6.1%
Won't turn on	8,737	5.4%

Fridge

45.6%

"Won't cool" dominates completely: nearly half of all fridge repairs involve the same symptom. The second most common fault ("won't start") trails far behind at 13.4%. In-depth analysis: fridge repairs page.

Fault	Occurrences	%
Won't cool	55,001	45.6%
Won't start	16,205	13.4%
Water leak	9,110	7.5%
Ice build-up	5,889	4.9%
Noise	5,470	4.5%
Won't freeze	4,119	3.4%
Over-freezing	3,566	3.0%

Tumble dryer

The tumble dryer is the fastest-growing appliance category in terms of repair demand. The most common fault is predictable enough: "won't dry" (24.1%). Next comes "drum won't turn" (15.3%) and "won't start" (13.9%). In-depth analysis: dedicated tumble dryer page.

Fault	Occurrences	%
Won't dry	10,053	24.1%
Drum won't turn	6,372	15.3%
Won't start	5,790	13.9%
Noise	4,651	11.1%
Stalls / freezes	2,237	5.4%
Won't turn on	2,151	5.2%

Oven and hob

Oven — "electrical problem" is the most frequent fault (27.8%), followed by "won't heat" (16.1%) and "won't start" (14.9%). The oven is an appliance where electrical issues (heating elements, thermostats, control boards) are the primary driver of service calls.

Hob — "won't start" and "won't turn on" together account for 63% of faults. For gas hobs, the more specific problems are "burners won't light" (9.2%) and "won't hold flame" (7.9%).

Most common faults by brand

For the three most frequently reported faults overall, we cross-referenced the data with brands. As with the general ranking, a brand's presence here reflects its commercial market share — more units sold means more interventions recorded.

"Won't start" — 88,939 occurrences

Brands with the most reports:

Brand	Occurrences
Ariston	7,850
Whirlpool	7,430
Candy	6,685
Bosch	6,515
Electrolux	6,463

"Won't cool" — 59,224 occurrences

Concentrated on fridges and air conditioners:

Brand	Occurrences
Samsung	8,457
Whirlpool	5,886
Ariston	5,622
LG	4,752
Beko	3,098

"Water leak" — 50,430 occurrences

Cuts across washing machines, dishwashers and fridges:

Brand	Occurrences
Samsung	5,796
Candy	4,403
Whirlpool	4,138
LG	3,944
Bosch	3,873

Explore the Lab

906,994 interventions

Full overview: appliance types, brands and most frequent faults

E15 Bosch most frequent

Ranked by frequency, grouped by appliance type

299,013 interventions

Faults, brands, error codes and fault profiles by brand

224,554 interventions

Faults, brands, error codes and fault profiles by brand

171,499 interventions

"Not cooling" dominates at 45.6% — Samsung the most repaired brand

58,572 interventions

Electrolux leads at 14.8% — "won't dry" the most common fault

Source and methodology

The data covers faults recorded in appliance repair interventions tracked by the proprietary Archimede management system (July 2019 – March 2026, over 900,000 interventions). These figures do not represent the appliance repair market as a whole, but the activity of service centres that use the software.

Fault classification is based on what the engineer records at the time of the intervention. The same underlying problem may be described differently by different engineers — the data reflects this variability. For the full overview: appliance repair statistics.