If you can pass us the model, serial and any production numbers from the data plate on the appliance when you book your service visit, it can really help to get your appliance repaired in the shortest possible time. The general rule of thumb is that if you’re not sure which number is which, write them all down and we’ll decipher them later!

If you’re not sure where to look for this information, the following may help.

Washing Machines/Washer Dryers/Tumble Dryers

The model number is sometimes printed on the control panel or dispenser handle, but don’t expect to find the serial number here as it’s specific to your appliance alone.

The most common place for the data plate is inside the door. It may be stuck onto the front panel of the appliance just above the grey door seal so that when the door is closed the data plate is hidden, or it may be on the back of the door above the glass bowl or around by the door hinge.

Servis, Whirlpool and some very old Zanussi washing machines had the data plate stuck to the inside of the filter flap at the bottom of the appliance.

Refrigeration

Generally, the data plate is stuck onto the inner side wall and is hidden by the salad bins in the case of fridges or fridge freezers and by one of the freezer baskets in the case of freezers.

You may find the data plate on the underside of the lid at the front, hidden by the door when it is closed on some older Hotpoint or Creda products.

Try looking at the inner roof of the fridge section on American double door food centres.

Dishwashers

Mostly, the data plates are stuck onto the left or right hand side of the inner stainless steel door.

Bosch, Neff and Siemens machines now have a data box etched into the stainless steel top edge of the inner door (it’s pretty hard to make out – you may need to look from a certain angle to decipher it).

Freestanding cookers

In the main, the data plates are stuck onto the plinth or kickstrip at the bottom of the machine, just below the main oven door or storage compartment.

On range cookers, the model number may be inside the lower storage compartment.

Built in ovens

The data plate is usually found by opening the main oven door and looking around the metal framework/oven surround. These very often get obscured by cooking residue and can be pretty hard to spot. They can also suffer from losing their print if you try to clean them up to make the numbers visible again!

Built in hobs

One of the most difficult as they are usually only stuck to the bottom of the appliance (which is then installed above a built under oven!)

Occasionally a forward thinking designer will put a small sticker under one of the control knobs – they generally just pull off.

Cooker hoods

Always inside the body of the hood, accessible when the grease filter is dropped down.