James Plumbing Repair Service, Inc.

The homeowner did contact us about a problem with her system only heating one side of her homeThe technician diagnosed the problem as air in the systemIn order to remove the air from the system a number of repairs needed to be made to the systemUpon completing those repairs the technician
should have been able to push the air out. Unfortunately, there was something else that was creating an obstruction in the piping on the north side of the homeThere was no way for any technician to have known that until the system was repaired in a way that would allow him to diagnose it furtherThis is so remote that it’s not something that could have been reasonably foreseen prior to the initial repairs made to the boilerThis homeowner was given a quote on repairs to install an air elimination device and re-pipe the boiler so the system could be purged of air. The quote also included the installation of a customer supplied expansion tankAll of the aforementioned repairs were completedUpon completion of the repairs the technician realized there was an issue with the system beyond just air. Again, very unusualAt this point he involved his manager (me)When I arrived on site and inspected the system it became clear to me that the system had been tampered with at some point in its pastThere were bleeder valves broken off on several baseboard radiators. Upon discussion with the homeowner’s husband via a telephone call, he informed me that he had broken the bleeders off in years pastHe indicated to me that he had problems with the system for at least a year. As noted on the original quote, the homeowner had his own Filltrol (expansion tank and auto-fill) system which we used per his requestI then visually traced the entire nonfunctional loop of baseboard out. The baseboard piping did run under a piece of concrete slab. I indicated to the homeowner that we could alter the system to eliminate that area under the concrete as this is where I suspected a more severe and unusual obstruction to beI also indicated that we would certainly roll any current repair pricing into the next set of repairs needed to get the system working so the homeowner wouldn’t be paying full service rateAfter I sent the revised estimate over to Mr*** he expressed his dissatisfaction with what had taken place and declined further repairs citing what is mentioned in this complaintThe reasons for why the heating system problem was unable to be resolved had to do with something very unusual and remote taking place within the system; something virtually impossible to diagnose without completing the necessary repairs as listed above and the homeowner declining to go further by eliminating the section of piping where the obstruction may be locatedNotwithstanding, Stramowski Heating completed work necessary to purge air from the system. We still need to collect for the job we completedStramowski Heating was perfectly willing to move forward to get the system operational but the homeowner prevented us from doing soWe do our best to diagnose problems as thoroughly as possible. I understand that this was a very unusual problem and if I felt our technician was negligent in his diagnostic process or simply made a mistake I would not have hesitated to remove all of the charges. This is not the caseTo recap, the technician diagnosed some severe issues with the boiler upon arrival that are very common and could have been 100% of the cause for the heating issue. The repairs were made per the estimate. After those repairs were made we found another more major issue in the system. The homeowner was quoted to fix that as well. The homeowner declined those repairs. The homeowner owes Stramowski Heating for the initial repairs made to the system

The work Stramowski Heating performed on our heating system did nothing to resolve our heating issues.  I don't believe it is reasonable to ask us to pay the full amount quoted of over $1,200.00 for repairing our heat when nothing was repaired.  The quote stated the heating system would be repaired after the quoted work was complete.  We scheduled the work on those terms yet the promised results were not met.  Even so, we offered to split the bill to settle the dispute, but Stamowski was not interested as stated in their response.  We thank the Revdex.com for their service in attempting to assist us in resolving our billing dispute.  Businesses should not be allowed to misdiagnose needed repairs and then charge the customer the full price when the work performed does not resolve the issue. Therefore, we will consider other avenues for resolving this dispute.

Our pricing is consistent and upfront. We at Stramowski Heating understand that this is very unusual and we sympathize with the homeowner but we commenced and completed work at the price agreed upon and authorized by the homeowner. This was the first time Stramowski Heating was contracted by this homeowner.  Stramowski Heating had no history with this system and lacked specific operational knowledge about it; knowledge we attempt to get from the homeowner and through careful dissemination of a system.  Due to the obscurity with respect to this problem, the only way to obtain such information would be to complete the work Stramowski Heating technicians performed at the residence. Upon discernment of the north heating circuit obstruction another quote was provided with specific consideration for the work already completed. The homeowner halted any further work and prevented Stramowski Heating from getting the entire system functional again as was expected by the homeowner; notwithstanding, the original bill for services and/or products rendered remains valid. Unfortunately, Stramowski Heating cannot accept the offer to “split the bill”.  Stramowski Heating technicians completed the repairs as stated and authorized by the homeowner.

On the original service call the technician did, in fact, look into warranty. He discovered that Stramowski Heating Inc did not install his equipment. The technician quoted the homeowner a price to repair his system. The homeowner became apprehensive about the repair pricing and inquired about...

warranty. The technician looked it up in our system and determined that the system would not be covered as we didn’t install it. He went on and informed the homeowner about our warranty policy and procedures. He informed the homeowner that our installations come with 100% double coverage.  The homeowner responded to the technician indicating that he didn’t want to pay “Stramowski prices” and that he had this one(his furnace) installed for a “bargain” price. Despite his reservations the homeowner agreed to the repair. Our office ordered up the part and another technician was dispatched to the home and repaired the system on a different day. The payment was collected for the work agreed upon.  There will be no refund.   The homeowner stated that our technician “implied” that we considered other “independents” hacks. I apologize for the homeowner getting that impression. I hope to clear this up now. The reason for our warranty policy isn’t punitive in nature and it is not to diminish the perceived value or quality of any other contractor.  It is simply in place to honor our commitment to our customers that see the value in having a contractor who responds to their calls for service in a timely manner; those customers who invest with our company for the long term. This homeowner referred to having numerous units installed over the past 10 years.  He promises of lots of “potential” future work. What he may not know is that we hear that quite frequently from property owners who simply want work done and want it done on the cheap or at a “bargain”. In order to maintain our professionalism, we MUST respond to these customers no matter what or risk a negative review for not responding. We cannot escape it.  I can only respond to this complaint publicly and further educate our homeowners or anyone reading this as to why they may want to do business with a company like Stramowski Heating and why they may not want to do it the way this homeowner did.   To expand on the warranty “why not”, please understand the following: Most of the equipment breakdowns we see in cases like this(system installed by “independent”) are a result of improper installations.  Many of these installations are completed by companies without proper licensing and even without pulling permits.  Some are done by technicians as “side jobs”(cash jobs). I investigated this homeowner’s assertions. And, I was even able to run the serial number against the databases to determine how his “independent” contractor was able to install his furnace for such a “bargain” price. You can’t just walk into a furnace distributor and buy a furnace.  I wanted to know more. In this case, his furnace was not installed by an “independent”, but by a technician employed by another company. The furnace was sold by a local distributor for cash to a technician under his employer’s account.   Many homeowners may think they’re saving by having work done in this fashion; however, it is instances like these that it ends up costing homeowners.  In some cases, it may cost far more than they expect.  I would recommend that anyone considering installing heating equipment in their home let a qualified professional install their system.  Make sure the dealer is appropriately licensed and insured and is pulling permits.   I hope that this homeowner is able to understand Stramowski Heating a little better and realize that we never sought to “punish” him and that everything we did was above board and transparent.  He had the full authority over the call.  He could have simply declined the repairs and called another Goodman dealer.  He chose to accept the repairs, wait a day, and then call looking for us to adjust our pricing. It would be immoral and unethical to change our uniform pricing for this customer and not all customers.  And, while I can appreciate this homeowner’s comments I do not agree with his assessment.  There was no deviation in our policy or procedures and; therefore, will be no refund of any type.

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and I accept the response with disappointment.  It is obvious that continuing would get us nowhere.   Several events outlined in the response are chronologically mixed up, probably because it was written second hand by the general manager who didn't returned my calls and never talked to me.  But the real issue is that I am disappointed that Stramoski feels they are "morally and ethically" bound to a policy where they say to the customer "you must pay for this part" even though the manufacturer will give us the part for free.  In the Stramoski response "our policy" is what they are defending.  As a customer I may not have policies but I have "principles" and if something doesn't seem fair or logical then I have a "moral and ethical" responsibility to look out for my interests and resist something that doesn't make sense, like "we could get the part for free for the customer, but instead we will charge him for it". Regards, 
[redacted]

I feel it would be a fair compromise if Stramowski would split the difference in the cost of the repairs.  We received no benefit from their work, but would still willing to pay half of what they are charging to resolve the dispute.