A & S Mechanical

I have used A & S for a number of years to fix a variety of problems, from repairing my gas furnace in the house, and faucet fixtures on the outside, to keeping my radiant bar heater in the garage functioning! They have always been prompt to keep their appointments and concientious about returning calls and keeping me appraised of when parts that are ordered have come in. The office always works with me to schedule appointments that are convenient for me and the workers have always been on time. I have always been kept appraised of work that was being done or needed to be done. No work has ever been done that wasn't already cleared with me and a price clearly established. Communication is a two-way street. It is also the responsibility of the customer to be clear about what they expect and understand. I would recommend A & S for absolutely any plumbing, heating, water and gas issues you might have!

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:One: They had a large section of our furnace for months and did not respond to phone calls. Yes, I know they were waiting for parts, but months? THEY DON'T CALL YOU BACK.Two: I asked Todd what the added cost of the extra adaptor part would be and he said the cost would still be the same as the estimate. He never mentioned the added $to the bill. They do work without talking to you about what they are doing and you just find out when you get the bill.Three: Todd specifically told my wife on the phone that the $bill was the total invoice. Four: My zoning STILL DOESN'T WORK
Regards,
*** ***

A & S MechanicalHEAT PUMPS  ?  AIR CONDITIONERSFURNACES  ?  WATER HEATERS  ?  BOILERS [redacted]                                            ...

                                                              Owner:  Randy L[redacted]                                                                                                              Phone:  ###-###-####Milton, PA  [redacted]                                                                                                                       Fax:  ###-###-####   [redacted], I am writing in response to your email regarding complaint id#[redacted].  A&S Mechanical performed three separate service calls at [redacted]’ residence of [redacted] Lewisburg , PA  [redacted].  The first call was initiated by customer 2/24/14 for boiler not working.  Upon arrival, technician found that inducer motor was going bad.  He was able to make it run by oiling motor and A&S gave customer a price to make repairs.  A&S then heard nothing from customer till months later, and we returned to the home 5/9/14 when customer informed us they felt there may be additional issues as well.  A&S ordered the motor kit and yes, it did take some time to receive repair parts.  Upon trying to install the motor kit, it was discovered that the new motor kit was not going to adapt to the customers unit and additional parts would be needed.  A&S then ordered these parts and scheduled with customer to complete repair.  Yes, the cost of the completed repair was more than the “estimated” cost but please understand that A&S charged the customer cost of material with no mark up and labor was also discounted due to the issues that we encountered.  The third call we received from the [redacted]’ was in reference to the zoning or control of the individual areas of the home.  Upon arrival, technician found that the boiler control board had failed and was not working properly.  A&S stocks this part and was able to make the repair the same day therefor eliminating a no heat situation for the customer.  I’m not sure what the confusion was regarding the invoices, and I can’t imagine anyone at A&S telling the customer that the $700 invoice was for all the work done.  I apologize for any confusion, but the invoices A&S submitted to the customer and the customer paid are legitimate invoices and in reality, they are much lower than they should have been. Thank You,Todd F[redacted]Service Manager A&S Mechanical

Review: This company was hired to determine if there was MECHANICAL failure of my hot water tank heater. The technician told me there was a failure of a heating element, did work for an hour and then told me that the element was fine, all mechanical elements were fine so he went ahead and flushed my hot water tank. He did not ask for my consent to flush the hot water tank, but the company billed me for that service. He never fixed the source of the problem but they billed me for doing something that they did not ask me if it was okay to do and I could've done it myself.Desired Settlement: I am happy to have paid the $75 for him to come out and assess the working order of the mechanical elements, but I do not want to be charged the additional $95 for him to have flushed the tank when he did not ask me if I wanted him to do that and I could've done that myself AND I'm still going to have to pay the water company to do. I would like for the $95 balance to be removed from my account.

Business

Response:

09/25/13

To whom it may concern,

I am writing to try to explain and clear up the complaint that was filed against A&S Mechanical on 8/30/13 by [redacted] with the ID of [redacted]. **. [redacted] became an A&S customer via her home warranty company, [redacted], or [redacted]. A&S performs service for [redacted] and various other home warranty companies at many properties and when dispatched by the warranty company, we are working through the warranty company not the homeowner.

A&S Mechanical agreed to send a representative to **. [redacted]’s home after receiving a call from both [redacted] ([redacted]) and **. [redacted]. I personally spoke to **. [redacted] regarding her issue and what could possibly cause it and at this time, she agreed to let A&S perform service to try to remedy the issue. A&S Mechanical was then sent a dispatch from [redacted] indicating that **. [redacted] had a strong odor coming from the hot water in her home and it indicated that **. [redacted] had to pay a $75.00 deductible.

A&S Mechanical representative [redacted] Aikey was dispatched from our shop to the [redacted] home 08/19/13 @ 7:30 a.m., arrived at the home @ 8:20 a.m. and worked at the home until 10:00 a.m. Upon arrival, [redacted] confirmed homeowners report and started to work to diagnose the problem. [redacted] checked all electrical components, including upper and lower elements, upper and lower thermostats, and thermal reset. Initially, [redacted] thought he may have found an issue with the upper element but after further diagnosis discovered it to be in good working order. This instance is what the customer is referring to when she notes that the technician “then told me there was a failure of a heating element”. During this process, [redacted] called me, as he knew I had spoken to the customer, and told me what he had found and wanted to let me know what had transpired and what his plan was. [redacted] indicated he was going to drain the water heater to check for excess sediment and any rust or corrosion that may be causing an issue. I agreed with this and he continued his diagnostic. Upon draining, [redacted] did find the bottom of the tank holding a significant amount of sediment and continued to drain and flush water heater in order to clean it out. After performing this, [redacted] and the homeowner both stated that the smell was in fact gone and the water was much better.

After [redacted] had performed his service, he then called [redacted] in order to receive authorization for the claim. Upon reporting that the issue was related to the sediment and water quality, [redacted] denied the claim and informed [redacted] that he was to bill the customer for the service.

A&S Mechanical promptly billed Ms. [redacted] for the service call on 08/20/13 and mailed it to the home showing a remaining balance of $95.00 with an explanation that [redacted] denied the claim. Upon receipt of the invoice, **. [redacted] called our office and disputed the fact that we flushed the water heater and stated that if she had known or been told she would have done that herself. I repeatedly tried to explain that the draining and flushing was part of our attempt to diagnose the issue and she continued to argue. I informed her that I would be willing to have her water tested and present her with a proposal to fix her water issue, but she indicated she was not interested and would call someone else. Again I tried to explain why we did what we did and she continued to argue and ended our conversation with “I guess I will have to call the Revdex.com” as a threat. At that point I welcomed her to do so and wished her a good day.

As the Service Manager for A&S Mechanical, I then called [redacted] to inform them of what had happened as we are instructed to do and the representative I spoke to said she would note all of the issues on her account and apologized for any issues we incurred during our service. In the best interest of A&S and [redacted], I have requested that we not be the contractor of choice on any future service at **. [redacted]’s residence.

I hope this helps clear up any confusion and misunderstanding that **. [redacted] has as we made every attempt to please

her.

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because: Neither [redacted] nor [redacted] offered to test my water and find a way to fix whatever is producing the odor, had they offered to do that I would've accepted (the last thing I want to do is continue having smelly water). Even after [redacted] drained the tank, he told me I'd have to call another company to test the water and check out our filtration system in order to figure out what was causing the odor. [redacted] also told me that draining the tank would temporarily help with the odor, but it that could come back anytime; the odor did fully return by the next day. I did already know that draining the hot water heater could temporarily eliminate the odor, however I did not want that done because I felt it would just mask the source of the problem without fixing anything, which is why I paid the company to come out to begin with. I am upset that A & S mechanical performed a maintenance service without consulting me, without permission, without telling me it was a service that was considered temporary maintenance and not diagnostic, and that they charged me for doing something that was not going to fix my problem to begin with. As a customer, I have the right to know what is being done beforehand and have the right to choose whether or not I want to pay to have a company perform maintenance that can be done without professional help. I would also like to make it known that during our phone call, [redacted] told me that I did not have this right because I was not the customer, but the insurance company was the customer so he didn't have to get my consent for anything; that statement is what we argued over, after all it is me they ended up billing, not the insurance company. I had another service person come out to my house and he confirmed that draining the water heater would not contribute to making a mechanical diagnosis and the technician said that there should not have been a labor charge for something as simple as draining a hot water heater. My deductible was supposed to cover the diagnostics, I did not give any consent for anything beyond that. Lastly, I recently spoke to my insurance company and they stated that they have no record of [redacted] calling them about this matter and that the only call they received from A & S was the call after the service visit during which [redacted] told them that he was unable to diagnose or fix the problem, which is why my claim was denied. Again, I ask that they keep the $75 deductible that I payed for them to come out to perform any diagnostic test, but I ask for the $95 labor fee to be removed as I did not approve any labor to be done.

Regards,

This company was hired to determine if there was MECHANICAL failure of my hot water tank heater. The technician told me there was a failure of a heating element, did work for an hour and then told me that the element was fine, all mechanical elements were fine so he went ahead and flushed my hot water tank. He did not ask for my consent to flush the hot water tank, but the company billed me for that service. He never fixed the source of the problem but they billed me for doing something that they did not ask me if it was okay to do and I could've done it myself.