Ashley Iredale with the Smeg FAB38RCRAU 

Cult brand Smeg has scored the dubious honour of the "worst fridge ever" in CHOICE's independent lab testing.

The Smeg FAB38RCRAU scored just 22% overall and 0% for temperature stability.

"This Smeg fridge received a truly chilling score of 22% - the worst fridge ever tested in CHOICE's independent lab," says Ashley Iredale, CHOICE fridge expert.

"This is even more appalling when you consider that it costs a whopping $3,990. You might get a 50s style aesthetic from this fridge, but you'll also get the 50s levels of performance."

Fridges in CHOICE's lab are tested on: Temperature stability (30%), temperature range (25%), response to outside temperature change (20%), temperature evenness (20%) and default setting (5%).

CHOICE also calculates a "keeping food fresher longer" score based on temperature stability (40%), temperature evenness (30%), and response to outside temperature (30%). CHOICE doesn't recommend any fridge with a "keeping food fresher longer" score under 55%.

Read more: How we test fridges | CHOICE.com.au

CHOICE's experts discovered a number of problems with the Smeg FAB38RCRAU. One of the most concerning issues was its stability score - 0%. This means that the temperature inside varies wildly, particularly in the freezer, which is really bad for food storage.

"This fridge also scored 22% for its response to the outside temperature, meaning the temperature inside will change a lot depending on the temperature outside. If you buy this Smeg fridge, you'll need to constantly adjust the settings as the seasons change, or even if there's significant day to day temperature changes in the area you live in," says Iredale. 

"Another downside of the Smeg fridge is that it's incredibly expensive to run, costing $1707 over the 10 year life of the fridge. Plus, there's the cost of replacing all the food in the fridge that is likely going to go off far more quickly than it should." 

"Don't buy this fridge. It might look pretty, but when your food goes off all you'll have is a smelly Smeg in your kitchen," says Iredale.

Read more about the Smeg fridge here: www.choice.com.au/smegfridge

Images and video available here: https://sites.google.com/choice.com.au/smegfridge

Media contact: Katelyn Cameron, 0430 172 669, [email protected]