Hank's Service, Inc.

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:The response from Hank's Service Company is a complete misrepresentation of the facts, which isn't surprising considering the history of the way they have handled themselves up until now.Granted, I was upset that I had two huge water bubbles in my ceiling, but I never insisted that the cable guys were at faultWhen the technician asked me if anyone had been in the attic, I told him only TW Cable guys.The reported results of the technician's inspection are completely inaccurate according to the technician who fixed the problem correctly, my husband and a friend who was in the a/c business for over yearsThere may have been dirty water in the pan, but that pan held water just fine. This technician told me that he would say whatever I wantedIn other words, he would write whatever I wanted on the billWhen he said he couldn't rule in the TW cable guys creating the problem, and he couldn't rule it out, I told HIM that I didn't think it was fair to pin the whole bill on them and I asked him to please write down exactly what he did so I could share it with the TW Cable technicians. When the sheetrock guys showed up and discovered that the ceiling was still leaking, I contacted Hank'sThey sent someone else to take a lookHe was very interested in helping and promised me a crew dedicated to fixing that leak first thing the next morningHe then went on to tell me that the entire system in the attic needed to be reworkedAt a cost of over $I politely told him I didn't have that kind of money and I was only interested in fixing the leak.At that point, he and Hank's dispatch stopped returning my callsThey did NOT show up the next morning and as I've said, wouldn't return my calls. So I called another company, they came out, diagnosed and fixed the problem for $Hank's charged me $for nothing as far as I'm concerned because the leak was not FIXEDThey also owe me for the add'l sheet rock repair I had to do since the a/c leaked for 10-days before we realized the leak was still there. As I said in my original complaint, I wrote them a letter explaining the situation and asking for a refundThey didn't reply after two weeks so I filed this complaint.In the meantime, the owner of this business had the audacity to try to contact me through my BOSS'S MOTHER for crying out loudHe called my employer's mother to complain about what I was doingUnbelievable! That is entirely unprofessional and inappropriate. In addition, I have absolutely no reason to believe these pictures are of my a/c unit in my atticIt's the first I've seen of them so if the tech didn't show them to me when he was here, where did they come from? The only way to know for sure is for me to climb up into that crawl space to take a lookWhich I'm not going to do.I'm extremely angry that they have continued to twist the facts to make it seem as though they are the victim hereI'm the one who is out $plus the sheet rock workI've submitted all of the information, including a copy of the bill from the second a/c company that fixed the problem permanently. I want a full refund and I'm not going to back down just because the owner is being a bully.
Regards,
*** ***

This a response to the complaint filed by *** *** against Hank's Service, IncMs*** had water leaking into her home from the ACShe communicated from the beginning and throughout our communication that it "was someone's fault"Water leaking from an AC into the home has many possible
causesSome examples are; a dirty filter, a dirty evaporator coil, improper installation, rusted drain pan, and dirty condensers are some of the causesMs*** called Saturday August 15, for AC service at Poquito Stdue water leaking inside her houseMs*** reported that she believed the "cable company" had damaged her AC causing water to leakHANK'S SERVICE HAD NEVER BEEN TO THIS RESIDENCE BEFOREWe dispatched a technician Sunday, August 16, The technician saw that there was water in several rooms of the houseHe performed an assessment ad discovered the AC main condensate drain line was clogged resulting with water backing up and leaking into the houseThe technician unclogged the drainHe also made an adjustment on the secondary float switch, and re-glued the connection drain PVC pipesHe monitored the drain to ensure it was draining properlyThe technician told Ms*** that was additional work that needed to be doneShe told him to do just enough to get by, that she didn't want to spend a lot of moneyMs*** requested the technician put in writing that the water leaking/damage was the fault of the "cable company"He told her he could not do that, it would be dishonestMs*** signed the invoice and paid for the "emergency services"There was no warranty, no guarantee on the services renderedThere are many causes of condensate drains becoming clogged causing water to leak into the houseTwo weeks later Tuesday September 1, Ms*** requesting service due to water leaking into the house through the ceiling againWe dispatched another technician to her homeUpon inspection he found that the emergency drain pan under the evaporator coil appeared to be rusted and has rusty standing water in itThe drain line was not properly slopped, and the wood that the unit sat on was rottingThe technician suggested several "code upgrades" to help prevent continued water leaking/damageHe made it very clear that these "code Upgrades" would have to be paid forMs*** had recently purchased the home so the technician asked to see the inspection reportShe did not provide this reportThe technician did agree to credit her for the previous work if we performed the upgrade workMs*** never agreed to pay for the work, so we did not dispatch any technicians back to her residence the next day due to no agreement to pay for servicesHank's Service went to this residence two timesWe cleared the clogged condensate drainThis was not a new problem, which is proven by the attached photoWe are not responsible for her water damageMs*** did not want to pay for repairs/code upgrades, and wanted blame others (cable company, Hank's Service) for her water damageShe was not reasonable, communication was nonproductive, and there was no agreement to resolve this matter

Complaint: ***I do not understand where you are getting this informationIt’s as if you are pulling things right out of the airI have explained this time and time again and you continue to twist the facts.Fact 1: Please tell me where you are lifting this quoteI’ve never disputed the original workWhat I have said is that your technician failed to completely troubleshoot the problem because the a/c continued to leak into my attic.Fact 2: Your technician DID NOT say anything to me about repairs that could be done to prevent this from happening againMost of our conversation was me explaining that since it wasn’t clear whose fault it was, I intended to split the expenses with the cable technician companyTo that end, I asked your tech to be as descriptive as possible on the invoiceClearly, he declined to do thatSee the invoice that has been attached since the original complaint.Fact 3: I have explained what happened when the second technician came outI see no need to repeat itAnd no, I never saw these pictures, nor was I aware of their existenceWhich is why I’m skeptical that they are of my attic and a/c unit.Fact 4: I only claimed $of the charges from the second company because that was what it cost to fix the leakI had them do the other work because I saw the value in performing that maintenanceIt was OPTIONALI stated that.Fact 5: I never NEVER spoke to you in your officesI spoke with your dispatch ladies and I talked to your technicians over the phone until they stopped returning my calls and answering the phone when my name came up on caller IDI never spoke with you and I’ve never even been in your office! Honestly, where do you get this stuff?Fact 6: You’re right I did use ***’s Angie’s List account with his full and complete supportI have been working for *** for some years now and I’m completely responsible for hiring his service companies, meeting them, approving the work and paying them so I’m the only one who uses that Angie’s List accountHe is very upset at the way I was treated. So … ***’s mother is a long-time client? InterestingShe told me “I sent them on their way because their estimates were way off”I can get her to write a letter stating this for the record but WHY WOULD I? Bringing her into this is so completely unprofessional and unethicalI’m completely taken aback that you would stoop so lowFact 7: This is MY FACT - I have never seen that proposal dated September 2, in my lifeAnd you were NEVER waiting for a callback from my husband with his approvalThe only reason I had him call was to see if your tech would answer the phoneHe did - surprise, surpriseMy husband isn’t responsible for financial decisions at this house and he never would have given anyone that impressionYou are fabricatingIt’s obviousOf course we had an inspection and there were no problems reportedAs if that’s any of your business! I’ve been occupying this home, running the a/c without incident since MayBy my count, that is FOUR full months of use without any problems whatsoeverI’m not sure what the point of this isIf you’re saying it’s a code violation, I’m saying you are mistakenOur inspector is very well-known in Austin and he knows the code to the finest detail and if he didn’t raise a red flag, I’m certainly not going to take your word over his.Honestly, this is very clear-cutYou sent a tech out who didn’t completely troubleshoot the problemWhen the second tech came out, he was initially apologetic and promised a crew out there the next morning to take care of itThen he called me back and proposed $worth of workHe never said it was necessary to fix the leak, only that he highly recommended itI explained that I couldn’t afford that right now and please just focus on the leak.At that point, the tech stopped returning my calls and after leaving multiple messages with your dispatch, they answering the phoneThe crew was a no-showI waited around most of the day before calling someone else out who fixed the problem for $End of story.I wrote you a letter explaining the situationI asked for a refundI explained that if I wasn’t granted one, I would be filing complaintsAnd I didThis is not a campaignThis is how consumers attempt to get recourse from unscrupulous businessesThey file complaints so that other consumers can be warned
*** ***

Hank's Service would like to clarify and respond to Ms .***'s responseHank's Service strives to provide good service to our customersWe honor our warrantiesWe did not do anything wrongWe also are stating the factsFirst fact I would like to clarify that this was not a "leaking or disconnected pipe"It was a clogged/ backed up condensate drain pipeWe concluded that this possibly was due to a dirty condenser, and improper sloped condensate pipeAs long as the air conditioner runs the condensation(water) needs to drain out this pipe located in her attic to outsideMs*** agreed to this work paid and signed the invoice/contractSecond fact, we went to her home on her request to diagnose water leaking into her homeWe had never serviced any equipment at this home beforeOur technician did clear the drain line, and made an adjustment to the 2nd float switchOn our invoice (contract) there is no warranty for labor or parts listedWe did not replace any partsThe technician also told her there was other repairs that should/could be done to prevent this from happening againThird fact, two weeks later we went back to her home on her request due to water leaking into her home againA different technician went to diagnoseHe took a picture while in the atticHe told her his recommendations, which was to raise the air handler and place it on Styrofoam blocks rather than woodThe wood that the unit sat on had obvious water damage and was rottingRaising the unit would have also raised the slope of the condensate pipe to ensure better drainageCode upgrades which were installing drain controls, (SS& Pan Switch), and a new Emergency Drain PanHe also told her she needed to have her equipment cleanedDirty coils, dirty air filters are very common culprits for clogging the condensate drainShe was offered service the next day, but never agreed to pay for the serviceWe did not charge her for this service callForth fact, the company that did go to her home also cleared the drain, and they cleaned the condenser coilThey also installed a "code upgrade" breather pipeShe was charged $for these repairs, not $as she reported earlier(see copy of invoice) Fifth fact, we did talk to her several times in our officeThe technicians did not go to her home a third time because she never agreed or approved the preventative necessary repairsOur office tried to call Ms *** times on 9/2/The 4th attempt we reached her husband relayed the specific repairs, and the amounts., and asked to have her call us to schedule, she never did(See letter with estimate) Sixth fact, the owner did call Ms***'s boss's motherHis mother Gloria is a longtime customerWe had received a complaint filed with Angie's List under *** C(her son's name see Angie's List complaint)We were investigating why *** would file a complaint against us when we had never done service for himWe were not successful reaching ***, so the owner called GloriaWe were called by ***'s office manager *** who informed us that Ms*** works for *** and used his Angie's List account to file an untrue complaint that "***" was unhappy with the work we did, and wanted his money back*** assured us that she would have the complaint removedMs*** recently purchased her homeThis would require a home inspectionThis report could possibly help settle this matterAfter our inspection we concluded that the issues she was having with her HVAC equipment were not new problemsThe photo shows there had been previous water damageWe were more than willing to return and do "necessary preventative" repairsWe were not willing to do the work for freeNo one from our company ever claimed any responsibility for the backed up condensate drain line or any of the water damageWe also never offered or agreed to do any repairs or home improvements for freeWe are not stealing or out "preying" on little old people or anyone with little moneyWe are sorry Ms*** has had a difficult time, but believe this campaign is unjustifiedI apologize for the lengthy response, but feel it is necessary to defend our reputation