ComplaintsforPV Heating & Air

• Initial Complaint

  06/19/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My furnace was replaced by PV Heating & Air on February 1, 2023. Now that Spring is here, I have noticed that my ** unit is no longer working. I have not had any ** issues until after PV Heating & Air serviced my home. I have tried to resolve the issue with the contractor via email and phone. However, they have clearly stated that they are not taking any responsibility. Their stance is that the ** unit is no longer working due to its age. My stance is that old or not, the unit had been working very well without any issues, until the handling of the unit which could be the probable cause of a leakage. During the initial inspection and conversation, no issues were ever brought to my attention. The agent who performed the inspection was most focused on his salesmanship. Inaccurate and blatant lies are in the notes that were provided to me. It is apparent that the contractor is blaming the age of the ** system rather than being able to effectively prove that the system was not working prior to being handled. Just because something is old does not mean that it does not work. The contractor is attempting to use age as a "pre-existing" issue, "the unit could break at any time". However, the time did not occur until post-contractor. I am a 65-year-old senior. While I am grateful for the grant ******* designed to assist low-income seniors such as myself and others, I am concerned that this contractor is taking advantage of the *******'s recipients by practicing unfair and unethical methods in order to boost their sales. Whether the ** unit was damaged intentionally or unintentionally by the contractor, the contractor refuses to take any responsibility. The contractor was commissioned to replace a furnace. However, they are also in the business of repairing/replacing ** units. I do not find it coincidental that my ** unit just happened to stop working post-contractor. Needless to say, the contractor is willing to make repairs at a cost of $1,555 or recommendation of replacing the entire unit (no quote provided). No doubt this would boost their sales revenue. I am fed up with the fix this, break that scams. I am left without ** during hot Georgia weather.Thank you very much for your consideration in this matter. Any assistance that you can provide will be appreciated. Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or concerns regarding this matter.

  

  Business response

  06/20/2023

  PV Heating & Air participates in a non profit program with Hopeworks to install gas furnaces and water heaters for program participants at no charge.  We have been participating in this program for over 5 years to help provide heat and hot water to those in need in the Metro Atlanta area.  We in fact were not hired by the **************** but rather the Hopeworks non profit agency to replace her old furnace and water heater.  We are unable to work on any existing AC systems as a strict rule of the Hopeworks program.  Attached are the pictures of the existing indoor coil that remained in the same exact place both prior to and after the installation of the gas furnace or water heater.  Unfortunately, we are not able to warranty a 23 year old AC system and Hopeworks does not allow us to work on AC systems under their highly regulated program.  We are incredibly sorry that the existing AC system developed a refrigerant leak.  The average life span that we see in ******* is between ***** years and this system is well beyond the average lifespan of HVAC systems in *******.  We hope to come to a swift resolution and are here to have a more in depth conversation.  

• Initial Complaint

  10/31/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  PV has engaged in unfair & deceptive business practices. PV induced me to give them a large installation contract with the promise of 10 years of fixed price maintenance fees. Now, 4 years later, while purporting to raise fees only modestly, PV has created new categories of charges, raising my out-of-pocket expenses considerably. Worse, PV is extorting my compliance by threatening to walk away from most of their service obligations, leaving me in an untenable position. In 2018, I hired PV (~$17,000) to install a new **** system, tankless water heater, steam humidifier, & transfer my dehumidifier to the new system. I have 2 other **** systems & wanted 1 company to service all 3 & my water heater. I selected PV, in part, because of their warranties & fixed maintenance fee of $360/yr for the 3 systems for the 10-yr warranty period. PV told me there were no separate maintenance fees for the humidifier & dehumidifier & none were in the written agreement. There was a $175 fee to service the water heater. PV later replaced my dehumidifier & did some other work (~$7,000). PV now seeks to impose higher costs on me. They not only raised their fees for the **** systems to *************** heater to $192, but they are attempting to strongarm me into paying substantial additional fees for the dehumidifier ($150/yr) & humidifier ($159/yr with canister) and $150 to replace the humidifier electrodes. Replacing both the humidifier ********************* takes ~5 minutes. When I tried to resolve this matter, PV proposed cutting services to reduce charges, which isnt acceptable. When I told PV that Id file a complaint if they didnt honor the agreement, they threatened to stop servicing my 2 secondary **** systems & the humidifier & dehumidifier they installed. Besides added costs for me, it isnt even feasible to hire someone else to service the dehumidifier & humidifier because they are wired into the main **** system PV installed & no outside vendor can service them in a vacuum.

  

  Business response

  11/01/2022

  We did agree to service her 3 systems and the tankless for the original contract price.  Nothing on the contract states that we would service her de-humidfier and humidifier for free during the 10 year term.  Nothing states we even have to service her basement or specialty pool system.  Since we do focus on over satisfying our clients we communicated to **** that we would service all 3 units and her tankless for the same rates.  We ask that **** covers the media filter, dehumidifier filter and pay for the humidifier canister and electrodes as needed.  PV never factored in those items to her initial maintenance contract.  Nothing on the original contract states that the accessories are covered in full. We are asking **** to pay $157 per year extra for her humidifier and $150 every 3 years.  This equals about $17 per month.  **** is submitting a complaint over $17 per month.

  If **** wants to use another company for her maintenance PV will still stand behind our 10 year labor warranty on the equipment we installed.  This also proves that PV did not lock **** into using our company.  

  Customer response

  11/06/2022

  1. Am I to understand that PV now agrees to honor the maintenance fees in the agreement ($360 & $175) & will not charge additional fees for maintaining the dehumidifier? Please confirm in writing. I already agreed to provide all disposable filters needed for my HVAC systems (the dehumidifier filter is metal & can be washed in the sink).

  2. PV is a master of obfuscation. The $157 fee to replace the humidifier canister is designed to obfuscate a new & novel annual labor charge of $79 for <4 minutes of work to replace a canister during an already scheduled maintenance visit. Moreover, PV is charging an additional $150, which includes a labor fee of ~$125, for just 1 minute of work to replace the humidifier electrodes that have to be unplugged anyway when the canister is replaced. PVs fees for <5 minutes of work (as shown in the manufacturers videos) to replace these parts equate to an absurd labor rate of >$2,400/hour, & the humidifier maintenance fees come to $621 over 3 years for a unit that cost $1600 to purchase & install. It should be noted that for >3.5 years after PV installed the humidifier, PV overlooked, negligently or intentionally, replacing the canister & electrodes as recommended by the manufacturer & failed to inform me of these manufacturer recommendations. I will for settlement purposes agree to pay for the humidifier canister & electrodes (at the discounted maintenance customer rate) & a more reasonable labor fee of $25 for replacing both parts as needed.

  3. BBB & existing/potential PV customers should be aware that PV imposed, by a broadcast email, excessive add-on equipment maintenance fees for existing customers, including those locked-in to HVAC service agreements which are required for PVs 10-year labor warranties on new HVAC systems

  4. I notified PV in May that I was incorrectly charged HVAC maintenance fees of $384 (rather than $360) for the last 2 years. PV stated in an email that if I was overcharged, I would be reimbursed, but this is still outstanding.

  

  Business response

  11/09/2022

  We want to focus on the solution that satisfies our client. The time it takes to maintain these items nor what we charge hourly is properly reflected in the provided analysis. Before we finalize a solution we would like to specify the exact agreement. 
  
   -We need to credit $48. 
  -The cost of maintenance for three systems, one dehumidifier, one humidifier, and one tankless water heater is $560 ($360+$175+$25).  
  -You will provide the media filter, the canister, and the electrodes and we will use a reusable dehumidifier filter. 
  
  
  

  Customer response

  11/13/2022

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩