Product Safety "Recall" costs the consumer money and allows the company to recoop all costs?

This coffee maker is 'awesome' because it makes a full pot in 3 minutes - and it tastes great. Unfortunately, though, Bunn as a company leaves a lot to be desired regarding customer and product support. I received a letter from JC Penney (where I purchased it) regarding a safety concern recall. Apparently, the coffee makers internal plastic bowl which funnels the water into the 'holding tank' may melt and subsequently cause a fire. The company has offered their 'remedy' - you can either send yours in for a repair (be without it for some time), or for $50 you can send yours in (be without it for some time) and then get a new one (same model - potential recall - how much life testing was done) or you can get another model. To think that a company has created a significant safety concern - enough to warrant a 'recall' and then charge the consumer for that recall is unconscionable, albeit irresponsible. It demonstrates the value system for which Bunn subscribes. How could this be allowed through the government which is overseeing the 'voluntary recall'? Makes you wonder what's going on. Although this is a very desirable coffee maker due to it's holding tank and swift brewing time, I certainly value that a company needs to be responsible for it's products and behavior. This is not the actual 1st time they've had a problem - they're just admitting it. This is my 2nd one of these - the 1st brewer I had (same model) lasted around 4 years and started leaking water - why? - because the water bowl had melted and was not making contact internally. I had contacted Bunn at that time - 1 1/2 years ago - and they were 'happy' to send me a 'free repair' kit, which I had to install - that's how I know what was going on - I saw how the plastic bowl had melted and disintegrated - I still have that pot by the way. When this occurred I attempted to compel them to replace my unit since they obviously had a 'known' problem - e.g. a free repair kit - but they were not responsive to this plea and denied a problem - they blamed it on my water - 'Had I ever ran vinegar, or another cleaner through the pot?' - How could that be done with a heated holding pot? - so Bunn is apparently not a responsible supplier by any means - nor do they appear to truly care about the consumer - your home may burn down or someone could get injured...shame on them no doubt. By the way, the repair kit on the 1st one did not work - so I hesitantly went to buy this 2nd one that is now being recalled...so shame on me as well...I did try to get JC Penney to support a replacement - since they sent me the notification - their response - They cut and pasted the 'official' recall notice (which was in the letter they sent) and stated 'This is how to handle your recalled coffee maker' - I like JC Penney, but will certainly consider other options when spending money - and Bunn - well - you get the drift - I did call their return/recall number just to 'air' my concerns in a friendly manner - the lady there was pleasant - I'm sure she's getting 'beat up' pretty well - but I pointed out that a company's values need to be used to referee their behavior and actions - that's why the values are so important - especially in 'hard times' like this - she said she forwarded my comments to 'appropriate' personnel - I hope so - Bunn - Wake Up!!!!!

These next comments were added based on feedback to the above - I hope it makes this review more thorough and helpful - Thank you for the feedback. I will add some more detail specifically for the attributes you mentioned. The coffee pot has a 'special' spray head which is meant to 'evenly' spray the already heated water through the coffee grounds - it works well. The coffee is hotter when first brewed than when being kept heated on the burner; however, the burner hold temperature (for me) is more desirable - it's still 'hot'. Amazingly, if you don't pour too fast, the carafe does not spill like so many other makers carafe's do...Cleaning of the unit is easily performed. I wipe the unit with a paper towel and Windex - the carafe - I put in the dishwasher - it is also easily wiped in the sink as it's not tapered like many which make them difficult to really clean well. Performance wise, I believe it's very good - I'm quite a coffee drinker - but the company's attitude to the safety issue and it's 'remedy' overshadow this for me. I hope that this information is more of what was needed on Epinions - Again - thank you for the feedback