John DiRosato Plumbing & Heating

August 31, Dear *** ***,
On February 2, we received a call from *** *** because she had a toilet that was not flushing and there was a leak under the kitchen sinkWe dispatched a service technician and arrived the same dayThe serviceman was first
asked to check the powder room toiletHe told the customer that he could auger the toilet and clear the jets, but because of the age of the toilet there would be no guarantiesThe servicemen do not discuss pricing, if a customer asks for pricing, then that person is referred to our officeThe customer did not call our office for pricing or ask for pricingOur Serviceman used an auger to clear the toilet trap, and opened the clogged toilet flush jets to promote better flushing action for the toiletThe serviceman then reinstalled the existing leaking continuous waste assembly under the kitchen sink.The toilet augering is a flat rate price of $Re-connecting the leaking waste piping under the kitchen sink was done at no additional chargeAn Invoice was mailed February 10, in the amount of $On March 30, at 2:PM we called and left a message regarding a lack of payment, no return call was received
On April 28, at 2:PM we called again and left a message regarding a lack of payment, and again no return call was received
On April 29, the account was sent to collections.On May 7, at 2:PM we called again and left a message regarding a lack of payment, and again no return call was receivedIt was not until August 26, at 12:PM that we received a call from the customer complaining about the amount of the invoice and that it had been sent to collectionsWe feel that all work was done properly, in a timely and professional manner, at a fair and reasonable price and we expect payment in fullSincerely,
John D President

I would like to preface this complaint by saying that John DiRosato P&H doesn't have a Billing Department, so the owner is the only person who can resolve this issue. The owner, John DiRosato, charged me $400 over what I was quoted for what was supposed to be a $560 job. He keeps dropping the same bill with the included hidden $400 charge, and every time I call the office demanding a call back from the owner. Instead of calling me back to work out the details of this unwarranted mystery charge, the owner elects to ignore my messages. He has since sent me to a collections agency. I explained to the collections agency that I am more than willing to work with J.D., but I cannot get him on the phone. Since then, the agency has stopped calling me. I'm guessing that since I am cooperating in every way possible to resolve the situation, they feel as if John should handle the situation and contact me himself. I've heard that this isn't the first time that John has done this to one of his customers. If you need plumbing work done to your home, you would be foolish to call this company unless you're prepared to pay hundreds of dollars more than quoted.

Review: I spoke to John DiRosato Plumbing employee [redacted] by telephone to have a worker come to our house to do a simple hook up of a faucet to a recently installed wet bar. I explained that we had the faucet which needed to be mounted to the counter. I also advised him I needed the drain attached to the sink and hot/cold water lines attached to the faucet. Water and sewer pipes were already installed prior to this service request. DiRosato Plumbing sent out TWO workers to our home the next day on August 14, 2013 for this job that really only required one. The two workers were at my house for no longer than 1.5 hours. After they left my residence, I later noticed water leaking inside the wood cabinet beneath the pipes they connected. I placed a bucket under the leak and I advised DiRosato Plumbing of the leak with a answering machine/voicemail message. The presence of the second plumber had no affect on the workmanship of the job. Two plumbers completed a 1.5 hour job and the job quality was poor. One couldn't check the work of the other? Fortunately, I discovered the leak and cleaned it up before any harm was done. They sent someone out the next day to fix the leak. We received the bill a week later and were shocked at the charge of the bill for this 1.5 hour job. They charged $848.43 for the job. Although the job only took 1.5 hours, they billed 6 hours worth of labor. Their total charge for labor that was listed on the bill was $570 for what they describe as two men for three hours of labor. My wife telephoned DiRosato Plumbing to ask about the high number for the labor cost. Employee [redacted] also said they charged labor costs for travel time from their business to my residence. [redacted] told my wife that he would discuss the matter with the owner and perhaps the issue could be resolved. I never received any type of written or verbal communication from anyone at John DiRosato Plumbing regarding my inquiry of the inaccurate billing charges. It was at that point that I decided to write this complaint to the Revdex.com. I have not paid the bill yet as I am trying to get the labor costs cut back to what should have been done originally. John DiRosato Plumbing's charge for labor was excessive and inappropriately applied to this service.Desired Settlement: I would like the labor costs of the bill to be reduced. I also strongly disagree with two workers coming out to do this job. I cannot realistically fathom two plumbers having their four hands making the pipe connections inside the sink cabinet for three hours. It would be awkward for one plumber and almost physically impossible for two plumbers to be working inside that cabinet. The charge of three hours for each plumber's time at a price of $95/hour cannot be a reasonably expected job performance by a professional. I also feel we should not be charged labor costs for travel time back and forth to the job. A more reasonable labor cost that reflects the hours they worked would be around $180 for the job. I arrived at this with a labor cost of $95/hour multiplied by 1.5 hours of work plus about $40 charge for gas/travel. This is a more reasonable charge especially since we had to be inconvenienced a second time to have a worker come back the next day to fix the faulty work that led to a leak. If the labor costs were reduced to this amount we will pay the bill. This would mean the total cost of the bill for this job would be around $ 458.

Business

Response:

September 18, 2013

Dear [redacted].

Please Excuse The Delayed Response As I Was Away And Just Received Your Letter.

On August 13, 2013 Wc Were Called By **. [redacted] To Connect The Plumbing To A Wet Bar In His Basement. We Were Told That It Was In A Granite Counter Top And There Was PEX Flexible Hot & Cold Water Piping For The Faucet. We Scheduled To Have Servicemen There The Next Day.

On August 14, 2013 On Their Way To **. [redacted]’s House The Servicemen Picked Up Special Fittings To Connect The PEX Hot & Cold Water Piping To The Faucet. This Stop Was At A Supply House On Their Way.

When They Arrived The Two Men Installed The Provided Faucet, At That Time It Was Found That The Waste Piping For The Sink Had Been Roughed-In Incorrectly.

While One Serviceman Was Connecting The PEX Water Lines To The Faucet Including Installation Of New Hot & Cold Water Shut Off Valves, The Other Serviceman Had To Return To The Supply House In Collegeville To Get The Proper Fittings To Connect The Drain Including A Shallow Sink Strainer And A Chrome Offset,

Upon His Return, The Shallow Basket Strainer Was Installed Along With A Chrome Sink Tailpiece, The Chrome Offset, And A Chrome P Trap.

The Next Morning We Had A Call That There Was A Leak Under The Sink. One Man Returned And Repaired The Leak At No Charge.

On August 20, 2013 Invoice #[redacted] Was Mailed In The Amount Of $848,43, This Amount Was For Two Men - 3 Hours Plus Material.

We Did Receive A Call From **s, [redacted] And [redacted] Our Office Manager Explained That Our Rate Was SI 90.00 Per Hour For Two Men Plus Material. That The First Hour Includes Travel Time To The Job From [redacted], And That We Charge For Time To Get Special Material. At That Time She Said That It Was Only A One Man Job. After Checking With The Servicemen, It Was Determined That It Was A Two Man Job Between Installations And A Second Trip For Special Material, One Man Could Have Been Sent, But It Would Have Taken Twice As Long To Perform The Work Between Installations And A Second Trip For Special Material,

We Feel That The Work Was Done Correctly, In A Timely Fashion, Was Invoiced Fairly, And Expect To Be Paid In Full In The Amount Of $848.43.

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:

This company has highly inflated prices. It bills more employees than is necessary for the job. The company charges its hourly rate from door to door which is not an industry standard. I believe this company took advantage of the opportunity and overcharged the customer from hours billed, hourly rate, number of workers. John DiRosato plumbing and heating has unethical business practices. I would like to thank the Revdex.com for their time and service regarding my complaint.

Regards,

Business

Response:

October 7, 2013

Dear [redacted],

In Response To Your Letter Dated October 02, 2013,

John DiRosato Plumbing & Heating Co., Inc. Has Been In Business Since 1973 And Has Tens Of Thousands Of Valued And Loyal Customers.

Our Hourly Rate Is $95,00 Per Hour Per Man Which Is Slightly Below The Industry Rate In Our Area. The Hourly Rate Also Includes Travel Time To The Job Which Is Also Standard Industry Practice For A Licensed And Insured Plumbing Contractor,

The Man Hours It Took To Perform The Work Was Representative Of The Job.

We Still Feel That The Work Was Done Correctly, In A Timely Fashion, Was Invoiced Fairly, And Still Expect To Be Paid In Full In The Amount Of $848.43.

Sincerely,

I would like to preface this complaint by saying that John DiRosato P&H doesn't have a Billing Department, so the owner is the only person who can resolve this issue. The owner, John DiRosato, charged me $400 over what I was quoted for what was supposed to be a $560 job. He keeps dropping the same bill with the included hidden $400 charge, and every time I call the office demanding a call back from the owner. Instead of calling me back to work out the details of this unwarranted mystery charge, the owner elects to ignore my messages. He has since sent me to a collections agency. I explained to the collections agency that I am more than willing to work with J.D., but I cannot get him on the phone. Since then, the agency has stopped calling me. I'm guessing that since I am cooperating in every way possible to resolve the situation, they feel as if John should handle the situation and contact me himself. I've heard that this isn't the first time that John has done this to one of his customers. If you need plumbing work done to your home, you would be foolish to call this company unless you're prepared to pay hundreds of dollars more than quoted.