Joe P. Kimmes Oil Company, Inc.

Review: I inherited this company as my propane provider when I purchased my home a few years ago. I went on their "keep fill" program and since then they have let me run out of propane 3-4 times and told me it's still my responsibility to check my propane levels even though the "keep fill" program is in place to take away the customers responsibility to check levels. My issue is that they let me run out completely in Dec 2014 and that was my fault according to them and Feb 2014, two months later, they came to my house and filled the tank even tho I had 38% left. They have told me in the past, when I call because its at 3%, that 3% is plenty and no worries and they get out to fill it. The problem with them filling it at 38% is that it's the first time in a few years that they've come and filled it before I almost, or completely running out and it just so happened to be at the time propane prices are sky high. I confronted them about this and they claimed that they came out and filled it because it's really cold out and they can't let people run out. Keep in mind they just let me run out completely two months prior during some of the coldest temps. I asked them to take the propane back and ill get it when I need it and pay the price at that time, they refused. I asked them to leave the propane but when I get to the % that I would've needed the fill then i'll pay the price then, they refused. It's my opinion that they really don't care about their customers until it suits them, i.e. filling my tank when I do not need it so that they can charge me the almost double the prices of propane at the time. I have only heard complaints from others i've spoke to about this company and I am certainly trying to get rid of them as my provider. This is not the way customers should be treated. I can't afford a bill twice what it should be and they clearly have no desire to make it right or even think about working with me. This is why i'm turning to the Revdex.com. Thank youDesired Settlement: I would like them to charge me the price that propane is at the time that I need it, not when they feel like getting rid of it. I know they have tankers full of propane, most likely that they purchased in the past at the low prices it was. Now they are making a killing off of dumping this propane on customers like me and charging the sky prices and taking the response of "tough luck"

Business

Response:

I received your letter about the complaint that [redacted] made on the price of propane he had delivered last February. As everyone has seen and heard on television, propane prices went historically high this heating season. There are propane companies in our areas that are no longer in business after this winter because of the high prices. It has been a very expensive heating season for everyone.

Let me start by saying [redacted] did chose to be on scheduled delivery, it is an option not a requirement. He has the option between scheduled delivery and will call. He chose to be on scheduled delivery. Scheduled delivery works off of heat degree-days and how much propane a home uses. With the scheduled delivery program it is also the customers responsibility to watch their propane tank also. Even though they are on scheduled delivery they need to watch their tank level often. In a perfect world the computer would always be able to predict exactly how much propane a home has been using, but because people turn heat up and down often it is only estimated date to deliver propane based on past usage and temperature. We ask that all propane customers keep a close eye on their tank level and if they see the tank approaching 30% to call us and schedule a delivery so it gives us time to deliver.

In [redacted]’s case his tank was at 32% when we filled it to 80%. During that time the temperatures were well below zero and we filled all scheduled deliveries in Oliver before the cold weekend. He was on scheduled delivery so we filled his tank. It had nothing to do with the price of propane.

As far as pumping back out the propane, that is not an option. We can not put it back on the truck after it has been put in the tank. We are only able to transfer it from one tank to another tank. So that was not something we could do.

Also, at Kimmes Oil, we have price programs in place to ensure that this can be avoided. Last fall we sent all of our customers, including [redacted], a pre-buy/lock-in contract. This allowed our customers to purchase propane at $1.59 per gallon. We do understand that not everyone can afford to pay up front for their propane, So for their convenience we also offered our customers to lock-in at a price of $1.69 per gallon with no up front costs. [redacted] chose not to purchase or lock-in any propane at those prices for this heating season. He could of locked-in at $1.69 with absolutely no money down. That was his decision to make. We have lost a lot of money this heating season honoring contracts. I am very proud to say we have honored all contracts this heating season, unlike some of the propane companies in our area.

We did fix the problem so that it doesn't happen again. We took [redacted] off of scheduled delivery and are allowing him to make his own decision of when to purchase propane and at what price. We know that the propane prices this heating season have been very high and we are doing the best we can to keep the prices as low as we can for everyone. As we see propane prices falling we are hopeful that they can get back down to the levels they were before the huge increase. After this heating season I think a lot of our customers will be looking in to the contract pricing next year.

I hope that I was able to answer all your questions and concerns. If you need any more information or have any more questions don’t hesitate to call me.

Thank you,

Joe P. Kimmes Oil Company, Inc.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

Kimmes oil and propane has done nothing in their response to fix the issue at hand. They have let me run out of propane several times, including December which was one of the coldest months, and then they charged me to have a leak test done. Keeping in mind that I was on a keep fill status that whole time. The keep fill program is Kimmes's promise to keep my propane tank full so that I don't have to keep it full myself. The name of the program explains it in itself. Kimmes oil and propane wants to play this game where its either the customers responsibility to check the propane levels or they can go on a keep fill status in which they say it is still the customers responsibility to check and maintain their propane levels. Therefore the keep fill program, in the eyes of Kimmes, means they can show up whenever they want and fill your tank without your permission. The only time in over three years that they've shown up on their own to fill my tank it just so happen to be when the price of propane was doubled and my propane levels were at 38% not 32% which Kimmes is now trying to say. They also think this means they can let you run out of propane and then blame the customer. This company is taking advantage of people and someone needs to regulate them.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]

Regards,

Business

Response:

We have thoroughly reviewed this complaint and have decided to stand by our previous position in this matter. We strive to keep our prices as low as possible for all of our customers and after looking in to our cost on the propane that was delivered, we are not able to change the price.