Consumer Reports pulls recommendation for Dyson stick vacuums

Consumer Reports has pulled all Dyson stick vacuum models from its stick vacuums recommendation list over concerns about reliability, the company has announced. The decision was based on Consumer Reports' survey data, which it says revealed that Dyson's stick vacuums allegedly break at a higher rate than similar products from "any other brands" involved in the company's tests.

In September 2016, Consumer Reports called Dyson's V8 Absolute the "best stick vacuum" it had ever tested, doing so based on its ability to pass the company's tests. As such, this model has enjoyed a top position on Consumer Reports' ratings in the years since, but things have changed.

Based on its survey data, Consumer Reports said that Dyson stick vacuums are now positioned in the "bottom tier" when it comes to the company's predicted reliability ratings. A total of five V-series Dyson vacuums has been stripped of their "recommended" ratings, falling down to the mid-tier as far as recommendations go.

With this change, the seven stick vacuums Consumer Reports tested reside in its "Very Good" ratings bracket, this due to predicted reliability based on survey data. Using that, Consumer Reports estimates that nearly half of these stick vacuums will either stop working properly or break within five years.

In terms of predicted reliability, Dyson stick vacuums have a "Poor" rating of 2 out of 10. However, the company points out that Dyson's own satisfaction rating sits in the "Excellent" bracket, sharing that category with Shark, though the latter company also has an "Excellent" predicted reliability rating. Consumer Reports does not include products in its "recommended" list that have a predicted reliability of "Poor" or "Fair."