Mariners Bay Inn

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  I am still waiting for the insurance adjuster to give the final estimates for the settlements, as well as hired a contracting company to fix the damages and work with the adjuster to make sure the reimbursement will cover the repairs.
Regards,
[redacted]

Dear Mr. [redacted],To date you have paid Wahl and the Home Depot $4776 for the installation of an air conditioner, coil, line-set, and thermostat.  You have paid $0 for return visits although there is currently a balance due in the amount of $99 from a trip/diagnostic charge on 8/7/17, and a $389.70...

re-stocking/installation cancellation fee due.  I offered a $56 discount on that amount due if you use a standard method of payment instead of the Home Depot credit card.  These charges incurred after we have diagnosed the furnace as being the reason for failure twice.  The first visit was on 7/7/17 during which we waived the $99 because you decided to replace the furnace.  You signed a contract in the amount of $4900 for a high efficiency Rheem furnace installation.  Since this install was cancelled within the 3-business days as is your right we did not charge any cancellation fees.  While we should have collected the $99 for the visit our records indicate that it was not paid and we did not attempt to collect it.On 8/3/17 we made a second trip and found that the blower motor on the 15-year old furnace had failed.  (This was the same information that we had provided on 7/7/17).  We again waived the $99 for the installation of the new furnace.  The difference was that this time a contract was signed along with a Notice of Cancellation, termination clause, service invoice, and 3-day waiver right of rescission.  When Mrs. [redacted] called to cancel the installation I informed her that I could not cancel a second installation without charging for both the $99 trip and diagnostic and the 10% re-stocking fee. We will honor our installation warranty however that coverage does not include failed parts on a 15-year old furnace nor our continued visits to find the same issues. We offered replacement of the furnace 3-times.  Once during the initial estimate on May 11th, 2017 (attached page 8), once on 7/7/17 (attached), and once again on 8/3/17 (attached).  During the visit on 8/3/17 we found out that the furnace had been previously diagnosed as failing and as having a bad heat exchanger prior to our affiliation with you.  The technician found the crack and again confirmed that the furnace needs to be replaced in order for the air conditioner to continue to run.  We have not yet received the cancellation form required to officially cancel the installation.  To avoid paying the $99 plus the $389 restocking fee we can re-schedule the installation and move forward with the work.  OR you can pay the restocking fee and the trip/diagnostic charge.  We still have a 1-year complete install warranty on the air conditioner and we are interested in resolving your complaint.  If the issue is a matter of confusion over the diagnosis we'd be happy to meet with both Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] to review all of our findings again in person so that you understand where the charges are coming from and why you continue to get the same information during each visit.All of our new equipment installations come with a 1-year complete installation warranty which means that we do not charge a trip/diagnostic nor repair fees for any portion of our work or the equipment we installed for 1-year from the date of installation.  We do however charge the standard trip and diagnostic fee in the event that the issue is unrelated to our installation or workmanship.   hich was 8/9/17.  She agreed and signed the contract, the service invoice, the termination clause, the notice of cancellation form. and the waiver of the right of rescission. W

It's unfortunate that we weren't able to communicate the value of the work that we provided for this customer.  This was a difficult job that was professionally executed and the finished product was fantastic.  That being said we have attached the contract, waiver of the 3-day right to...

cancel, and the financing approval form complete with terms for interest clearly indicated on the paper work.  We've addressed each of their complaints below the statements that they made, in red, so that we were sure to answer each concern as clearly as possible.  We'd be happy to discuss this situation in greater detail with the customer.  Customer’s Statement of the Problem: In January the gas company red tagged my home along with another home due to a neighbor calling in since she smelled gas. The gas company told us that we needed to contact a plumber to see what the issue is and to get it fixed before they could turn our gas back on. We contacted a couple of vendors and Wahl heating responded the quickest. Yes, they were friendly on the phone and offered to bring us heaters to heat our home. They did come by quickly to discuss the issue and what needed to be done.   We were happy to be there for you in such a stressful situation.      They provided us 2 quotes, 1 with 2 services (fix the old lines and to fix the pipe from our furnace to the roof (0ver $10,000) the other was those 2 services plus replacing our water heater (over $13,000).   The tag from the gas company (attached) listed that they found gas leaks in the service line and the houseline.  During the inspection of the gas appliances we noted that the water heater was past its life expectancy and noted some concerns about the current venting.  We discussed the possibility of replacing the water heater and installing a chimney liner (for the water heater and boiler) or replacing the water heater with a power vent (which would mean a chimney liner would be needed for the boiler).    We provide the following options with pricing:   The first price was to replace the outside gas line.  The initial price was provided at $4622.74 at 7.9% APR or if you chose not to use our financing we offered a contractor’s rebate of $4,321.   The second option was to replace the whole-house gas line inside from the meter to each of the seven gas appliances inside of the home.  We offered this work at a discount if it was purchased at the same time as the outside gas line. We showed that separate from the outside gas line the price would be $6598 at 7.9% APR or $6382 contractor’s rebate.  However if you decided to get them done at the same time we offered a discount to $5697 at 7.9% APR or $5106 contractor’s rebate.    The third option was for the houseline to each of the seven appliances and for the replacement of the existing water heater with a power vent model that would vent directly outside bypassing the chimney for $9157 at 7.9% APR, or $8476 contractor’s rebate.   Total for everything option 1 and 2 included the service line (outside) and the houseline (inside) with lines to 7 appliances for the total price of $10,319.74 at 7.9% APR, or $9427 contractor’s rebate.  Or to do option 1 (outside)( and option 3 (inside gas lines with power vent water heater) totaled $13,779.74 at 7.9% or $12,797 contractor’s rebate.        My husband and I stated we thought that was more than we could afford. The service tech went back to the van and came back that he could lower the 1st option of over $10,000 to $8,500. We said that we did not want the second option since there was nothing wrong with our water tank.  He stated that the 1st offer, they could start the job the next day and that he recommends the pipe to the roof needed replaced. We spoke to him a little more (he didn't seem to want to take no for an answer). I said that I wanted to call a couple of other places and we finally gave in because he was stressing us out. Below are some of the items that were told but we did not get with the quote of $8500. We did not get the roof done as we were told.   The technician made a call to me (General Manager) requesting a decrease to the price in order to help fit the scope of work into your budget.  The new prices includes quote only the inside and outside gas line for the price of $9346.77 at 7.9% or $8346 contractor’s rebate.  After some negotiating we agreed to drop the finance price down to $8,500 at 7.9% APR for the inside and outside gas line as listed on the attached contract.  The total reduced price of the work was $4,297.  During the negotiation process to help the customer get to where they wanted to be price wise we dropped the water heater and chimney liner.  I apologize if there was any confusion regarding the chimney liner however we clearly stated our scope of work on the contract that you signed and there is no mention of the discounted price including a chimney liner.       When they finished the lines and left, I contacted them to find out why they did not do the roof and they told us that the first quote now did not cover the roof. There is no mention on the contract of the chimney as it was not included when we reduced the price by $4,297.       1) We were told they would start the next day. After we signed the contract, he told us that they can not start until the day after.    We apologize if we set any expectations that we were unable to meet.  This was a major gas line renovation that required excavation and our cooperation with PA 1 Call.  They must come out and mark the ground so that we avoid hitting any other pipes or lines during the excavation process.        2) They applied for a loan for us and we were told that the finance charges were included in the quote. We have been charged an extra $100 + in interest so far.    The interest rate was clearly labelled on as 7.9% APR (interest) on every piece of paper from the up-front pricing to the contract to the approval form that we had signed for Wells Fargo giving us permission to charge them for the work. If the interest was included in the quote it would have been listed as 0% APR.      3) We were told that they needed permits from our borough and the county.  The price included in the total. We asked to see them and were told that they do not have to provide us and that they were at the office.  I contacted both the borough and the county and they both told me that permits are not needed   The price included permits with the borough and/or county if they were needed.  We do not check with individual counties or boroughs to find out whether or not permits are required when quoting the jobs but rather before we begin the work as that would take a lot of extra time that we don’t invest before we know whether or not we have the job.  If they had required a permit you would not have been charged extra. *If the water heater option had been chose we would have been required to pull a permit for the county health department.  Lastly, while permits specifically may not have been needed we were required to work closely with PA 1 Call and the gas company for this job.  While we don’t specifically call the fees associated with these services “permits” there is a good bit of overhead involved.     . 4) We were told that they would provide a complete itemized statement, we never received one.  Our pricing is provided flat-rate, up-front.  We do not itemize the bill however we did provide the pricing separated into inside and outside gas line.    Inside gas line to 7 appliances:  $4850 That included flexible gasline (Gastight)- 7 appliance manifold, #14 ½” gas cs, #7 ½” nipples, floor flange, 150’ of ½” gastite, 50’ of 1” gastite, 1” ends, ½” ends, and two days of installation. The outdoor gas line was $3,650 and included excavation and replacing the gas line from the curb box to the house, wall sleeve, backfill to construction grade. Of the $8500 total we paid 7% ($595) to Wells Fargo for allowing you to use their 7.9% APR financing.    5) We were told that they have "priority status" with the gas company which means when they call the gas company to advise them that the job is done the gas company will be out ASAP. They did not come until the next day. I did contact the gas company and they said that they do not have any priority status with any vendors. Again there seems to be some confusion although the goal is the same.  We report it as a gas emergency to the gas company so that they restore service ASAP.  We do not claim to have “priority status” above anyone else nor did we represent it in that fashion.    6) We were told that they price was high since it will take atleast 4 days. The job took 2 days (not full days). This we were OK with the 2 days since it was winter.   We do not consider the price of this job to be high but we do consider it to be fair.  During the winter months we realize the risk to the health and safety of our customers and their properly and we go above and beyond to get our customers heat, hot water, and their stoves back up and running.  We typically run two man crews.  If we had done that in this case the job would have easily taken every bit of four days.  However due to the inclimate weather and the urgency of the situation we had two crews (4 men) on the inside job both days to complete the work and get your heat on for you as quickly as possible.  In addition to the inside crews we also had a third crew working outside on the excavation.   7) We called the company 3 times and complained and we were told that they will have the GM contact us.  The first day of the installation our plumbing manager was on site directing the crews.  You asked about the chimney liner.  He called me and the technician who sold you the work to review the work type and then reported back to you that the chimney liner was not included.  He referred you to the contract where there is no mention of a liner.  Aside from the first day of the installation, there is no record of any phone calls made into the office to discuss anything.       We never received a call back. 8) We contacted another plumber and they said that we were totally over charged for the small job that we had.  They said it should have cost us over $5000.   This was not a small or easy job by ANY means.  The outside excavation was dangerously close to the street and inside there were 6-7 appliances because of the wall mounted heaters located in several areas around the home.  Most homes have 2 – 3 appliances.  Had this job been in a standard home with less appliances the price would have been closer to what this other plumber had quoted.  That being said we feel confident that the scope of work matched the price.     We were totally suckered in by Wahl and I would never use them or recommend them. We feel that we were pressured into using them and after we signed the contract they switched and changed services originally stated. I even went over all the services with them to confirm, which they verbally agreed too as well, prior to signing the contract. This is 100% untrue.  The scope of work that we agreed to is clearly listed on the contract.  It is our policy to put everything in writing to avoid exactly these circumstances.  The original price before discount is the only thing that is changed when we reduced the price down to the $8,500 but also allowed them to finance the job at the 7.9% interest.  If the customer had any questions about the work the time to do it was prior to signing the contract and asking us to get started before the 3-days.  We followed all of the Consumer Protection laws and we did our best to not only communicate clearly but to provide professional workmanship in a timely manner.  Please note - all of the new gasis covered by a 3-year complete warranty which means that if they have any leaks or problems we will come back and fix it at no additional charge.

Revdex.com:
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.
Regards,
[redacted]