ComplaintsforA+ Plumbing Heating & Cooling, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  01/24/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Our sump pump check valve broke on Jan 8th, 2020. We called A+ Plumbing Heating & Cooling to see if they come to repair it. After a few hours they appeared under an emergency call fee. The plumber replace it and redo *** pipe system. The total cost was $699. The next day the *** pipe system was leaking. We called them again, and they resolved the problem first thing in the morning. Of course, this was without giving us warning that it might not be their fault, and perhaps they needed to replace other *** pipes. At the end of the day, it was their responsibility, and we did not pay.**** broke loose Jan 17th, 2022. One of the *** pipes that they installed broke again. This time it was serious; our basement was flooded. We called then again. We heard the same speech over the phone: it isn't probably our responsibility. Our work is of high quality, you will need to pay for new repairs, plumbing systems are complex, etc. We are talking about a *** and a rubber check valve. It is straight forward plumbing. They came again and sort it out at no cost, because it was obviously their fault: a sloppy and poorly bad job. They helped to remove the water from our basement, though we had wet carpets, and built up humidity, which we needed to dry at our own cost! No apologies from A+ Plumbing.Our saga hasn't been over yet. Today, Jan 22, 2022, the rubber check valve came loose, and our basement is once more flooded. We telephone them. A+ Plumbing is nowhere to be found. I decided to fasten the check valve himself. Now we are working hard to remove all the water, and start to dry our basement again. This come at our own cost!!We now need to call a qualified plumber, because A+ Plumbing Heating & Cooling has none. Given that we need to pay for someone else to do the job, we request at least a full reimbursement of the $699.00, and if A+ Plumbing has any decency compensation towards paying the cost of drying out basement.

  Customer response

  01/25/2022

  Thank you for your email, and prompt response to this matter.

  I have an update to my complaint.  A+ Plumbing Heating & Cooling, **** sent two distinct plumbers to our home: *********************** and Tavris *****.  After checking online if they are licensed to serve as plumbers in the ****************, I learned that *********************** is not licensed, and Tavris ***** has an apprentice licence.  This has been a shocking discovery, because they are offering plumbing services without qualified technicians to serve as independent plumbers.  This could explain why our experience has been a nightmare with this company.

   

  Yours faithfully,

   

  *******************************

  Business response

  02/14/2022

  Hello ******************, 
  
  We are sorry to hear about your experience and assure you that this is not the A+ quality standard. We deal with thousands of satisfied customers every year, and while we provide solutions on the first visit sometimes, we need return visits to fix certain plumbing repairs. 
  
  We understand that working with plumbing issues can be upsetting, and we were happy to provide you with our services both initially and at no cost to you on the second & the third visit.
  
  When we returned, the leak was in a different area than where we had done work. This was a separate issue, yet we did not charge any fees for these additional visits. We also offered to provide you with our services on Saturday when you call the emergency number, which you declined.
  
  For this reason, we werent given a chance to verify that the leak mentioned was the result of our work.
  
  We apologize, but our policy doesnt allow for refunds for work that wasnt paid for or when the paid work is completed and put back in service. Any issues with our services are to be fixed as part of a warranty. Should you have any problems with our work that was paid, please let us know so that we can assist you.
  
  About the license, A+ operates under a Master/Contractor Plumbing License in ******* as required by law. Both technicians mentioned in the review have a combined experience of over ten years, and each of them handles over ***** plumbing calls per year. Once again, were sure that we could've resolved your last issue if we had been allowed to do so.
  
  Regardless, we would like to extend our sincerest apologies for your present experience and always strive to use the reviews to continue to create a better customer experience.
  Thank you
  

  Customer response

  02/14/2022

   I am rejecting this response because the second leak was not in a different area than where we had done work. As a matter of fact, the leak was precisely above where you installed the check valved.  Secondly, you are right out lying when you say that you offered to provide us with our services on Saturday when you call the emergency number.  You never did.  I'll be glad to provide a copy of my phone records to demonstrate that you never called us. I subscribed to a phone service that provide itemized incoming and outgoing phone calls. You neither called or visit my home to provide your services on Saturday, January 22nd.  
  
  
  

  Business response

  02/16/2022

  Good afternoon. Thank you for responding to our message, as this allows us to solve this problem with our services. We hope that we can work together to come up with a resolution.
  
  On our first call to your house, our technician gave you an option to replace the entire PVC pipe from the ejector pump and to the main stack and a spot repair that included a new check valve. You chose the latter. Going with the first option from the beginning would have provided the best solution, and the entire job on this drainpipe would have been covered under warranty.
  
  In the second visit, the leak was coming from a spot that we hadnt repaired, and the technician pointed this out to you.  Due to you being upset, he decided not to charge you for this repair. Once again, when we came out a third time, we did not charge you for the third visit.
  
  Please understand that we cannot take liability for a leaking pipe that you choose not to repair.
  
  In response to never receiving a return phone call, please note that our after-hours phone number shows up on caller ID as a different phone number other than our regular business office phone number.
  
  Perhaps when you were looking at your call history, you were looking for our regular business hours phone number. We apologize if this made you think we did not call you back. We have an after-hours phone in place so we can ensure we are readily available to help our customers when they need our help, day or night.
  
  We would like to have this matter taken care of in a manner that both parties see fair. Our policy does not include returning money for work completed, so please think about what else we could do to resolve this issue.
  
  Finally, we would like to offer to have our plumbing manager call you to help explain any other questions regarding the work completed. We would like for this to be resolved in a satisfactory manner for all parties involved. We only ask that the phone conversation be kept respectful and reasonable. We look forward to your response. 
  
  Sincerely,
  A+ Plumbing, Heating &Cooling LLC

  Customer response

  02/17/2022

  I really appreciate that A+ Plumbing Heating &Cooling is working with us to come up with a resolution.  However,I am still rejecting their response because:

  
  1.On your first call to our house, your technician only offered one budget and one solution to the problem.  As a matter of fact, when I asked him if the plumbing for the backup sump pump was properly installed, your technician said that he could do only PCV pipe installations and was not qualified to determine if our sump pump system (default and backup) were properly installed. He said that he will contact his boss to send someone to look at the installation.  This never happened.

  
  2.I really appreciated that you responded to our second and third calls. The problems causing our basement to flood were either with the *** piping above or below sump pump check valved you installed, or the sump pump check valved you installed (fourth call, third incident).  If there were problems with such PCV pipes, your technicians should have never installed the sump pump check valved in damaged PCV pipes.  It is a sign unqualified technical personnel, which is obvious clear by the fact that the sump pump valved came loose during the third flooding incident after your first visit.

  
  3.You are claiming that I declined to accept your services during the third flooding incident.  Once more, I never received a phone call from anyone representing A+ Plumbing Heating & Cooling from your regular business hours phone number or any other number.  To be very honest with you, I am puzzled by your response to this matter, because your standard operating procedure has been to give a call bank and send a text message including your after hours.  I neither received a phone call or text message.  In fact, I only received one phone call on January 22nd from a friend, and no calls until January 25th. This has been confirmed by my telephone company phone records, which provide a detailed billing with incoming, outgoing and spam calls.

  
  4.My basement flooded significantly twice after your visit our home for the first time.  The flooding was caused by the unqualified and unlicensed plumbing technicians sent by you.  There has been considerable, but repairable damaged to the basement. For example, our default sump sum has a catastrophic failure, because it was pumping water non-stop for hours due to the improperly installed sum pump check valve (last incident).  We have gone through significant expenses replacing our default sump pump, installing properly the check valve with a qualified and licensed plumber, and then carrying ourselves water damage restoration to our mechanical room, basement carpets and furniture. Despite of this, you are still unwilling to reimburse us for a service that has caused all these damages.  As I discussed with you over the phone during our third visit, I would be seeking legal counsel on this matter.  In response to your statement that you are operating under the law, our private counsel contacted the **************************** from the ******* Attorney General yesterday. He informed us that you are acting in violation of the ******* Code for Professions & Occupations and committing a Class A misdemeanor under the ** 25-1-11 by offering plumbing services with unlicensed technicians. 

  
  Given your continued reluctance to provide us a reimbursement -- which it will only partially cover all the expenses we have incurred to address the issues caused by your first visit -- we will have no other alternative, but to request an official investigation to the **************************** of the ******* Attorney General. Pending the outcome of that investigation, we will work with our private counsel to seek compensation for repairs and damages.

  Business response

  02/18/2022

  ******************,
  
  Our service manager will be calling you to reach a resolution.
  
  Respectfully,
  A+ PHC

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