Spengler Plumbing Co. Inc.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/01/02) */
On 12/29/14 Customer Care Manager spoke to [redacted] about repairs performed at his home. He feels that when we told him that we needed to hydrojet the line that it would have fixed his entire problem and he would not have had to replace...

the line. Original diagnosis was that line was potentially collapsed. Explained the professional recommendation of our Solution Specialist was to replace the line and did not feel that hydrojetting would have opened the line. Offered 25% rebate due to the concerns of the client that since line was not collapsed that he did not need to replace. He is going to discuss with his wife and will call back.
On 12/31/14 Customer Care Manager spoke to client again. Client was requesting 50% rebate back for work performed that he felt did not need to be performed. Stated they had spoke to other companies and were originally wanting 100% but had been explained the expenses that went into the work. Customer Care Manager offered to give them $1500.00 back for the work. Client will think about and call back to let us know.

Mr [redacted] called into the office and informed us he did not want the service plan. I tried to explain to him that with the service plan he actually received a lower price on the work that we did as you receive a discount when you purchase the plan, as well as other free services and discounts for...

a year. However he stated he did not want to keep it. I informed him that I would refund the 300.00 for the service plan as well as extend his warranty for the new pump we installed from the original 1 year to 5 years so he would not have to worry about anything for 5 years. He seemed very pleased with the outcome of our conversation when we hung up. Mr [redacted] was given several options to take care of his problem, chose the option he wanted us to do and signed the agreement before any work was ever performed. We are a task base company, we do not break down by labor and parts, we charge by each job that we perform.

Our a/c went out this past Saturday and I called Spengler. The dispatch said it would be $89 for a technician to come out on a Saturday but if we had Spengler fix the issue the $89 would be waived. I thought this was reasonable and no other company we called were able to come out until the next Monday. We were stuck so I said yes. The technician arrived, spent 10 minutes diagnosing the problem and discovered our capacitor was bad, a $40 part I could have ordered on line. I watched him change the capacitor and I could have done it in my sleep. After he drank the bottle of water I gave him he spent 5 minutes changing the capacitor. In fact, he spent more time in his truck than he did fixing our a/c. Now the outrageous part. He said he would "waive" the $89 (which the dispatcher already told me about) and the total came to $499.98!!! $500 to replace a $40 part which took all of 15 minutes at most?? I am disgusted and Spengler should be ashamed to charge this much for a simple task. I really don't understand how they are able to get away with this. The technician didn't give me an invoice before he left (my fault for writing a check without getting a receipt) but I was just happy to have my a/c working again. Stay far away from Spengler unless you want to be price gouged!

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/01/14) */
I have talked with this customer and have resolved the situation.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/22) */
Spengler Customer Care Manager has no record of client calling in to discuss services performed at location however the daughter of client called to discuss the details. Customer Care Manager asked for permission of client or copy of Power of...

Attorney to discuss all details of work performed but was never supplied. Spengler provides up front pricing prior to performing work and all work was completed as proposed. It is our policy to obtain a 50% deposit up front and the balance upon completion. Several options were given to client including lower priced options and the client chose to proceed with the first option for $1401.20 on May 14, 2015. Work was completed in full on May 15, 2015. A second option was chosen on May 14, 2015 for $6946.02 and work was completed in full on May 15, 2015. Client requested Spengler employee follow him to his bank for a cashier's check. Additional work was proposed on May 15, 2015 in the amount of $9942.45 and was scheduled to be performed May 18, 2015. The daughter and son in law cancelled additional work. No money was collected for additional work.

This is in regards to ID [redacted], the job that our Solution Specialist went to for [redacted] and performed the yearly maintenance on the unit.  I have enclosed the summary form as well as a note stating that Spengler Company would not be liable if any carbon monoxide would leak into the...

house since they chose not to have any additional work performed.  It also has the customer's signature on the form as well.Our solution specialist went out to perform the maintenance on the unit as he did as well as do an inspection on the unit.  The customer had purchased a maintenance plan from us, which is 228.00 for the year and has many benefits.  If they do not have a plan, but they have us just come out and do a one time maintenance cleaning and check, the amount is 189.00.  When the customer called in and informed us of our Solution Specialist leaving with the vacuum hose, we got a hold of him and had him take it back out after she had called.  That was a mistake on the solution specialist part and we did take care of that right away.  That was a mistake and we did apologize for that.When Ms. [redacted] decided that she wanted to cancel the maintenance plan and just wanted to pay for the maintenance check, I did cancel it and informed her I would be sending her the 39.00 refund.  That has been credited to her credit card, it takes time for it to go through the finance department, it is not something that is done everyday.  I do apologize that it was not done in a week, but it has been credited.Thank you.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/22) */
Spengler Customer Care Manager has no record of client calling in to discuss services performed at location however the daughter of client called to discuss the details. Customer Care Manager asked for permission of client or copy of...

Power of Attorney to discuss all details of work performed but was never supplied. Spengler provides up front pricing prior to performing work and all work was completed as proposed. It is our policy to obtain a 50% deposit up front and the balance upon completion. Several options were given to client including lower priced options and the client chose to proceed with the first option for $1401.20 on May 14, 2015. Work was completed in full on May 15, 2015. A second option was chosen on May 14, 2015 for $6946.02 and work was completed in full on May 15, 2015. Client requested Spengler employee follow him to his bank for a cashier's check. Additional work was proposed on May 15, 2015 in the amount of $9942.45 and was scheduled to be performed May 18, 2015. The daughter and son in law cancelled additional work. No money was collected for additional work.

I called to have a main sewer line backup remedied. They advertised a $73 clean out up to 100 feet. From previous occurrences, I knew it would be longer than 100 ft. I asked on the phone how much it was beyond that length, but was told the service person would have to cover that with me. From the time Steve arrived, he was talking about different problems that could be causing the backup, none of which was a simple blockage. He insisted on running line , then a camera, which he said showed a blockage at 130 ft. He told me my pipe had "bellied" and needed to be excavated and repaired. I asked him to just continue snaking the line through the blockage. To my surprise, he quoted a price of $535 in addition to the $73 charge to continue to clear the line. I paid the $73 fee, and he left with my line still blocked. Two hours later, I had a competitor come out and clear my line for $150 including the line back into the house. Water flowed freely to municipal sewer line, even though Steve told me it wouldn't because it was being forced to flow uphill due to my pipe 'bellying". Seems to me, he was determined to make this a MAJOR job, no matter what, and he didn't mind at all leaving his customer with a clogged drain. STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY!!!

.12/13/2017 2:07 pm [redacted] is at lunch she should return in 20 minutes I will have her call you.12/13/2017 2:42 pm I reviewed the file and when a unit is as old as this one we need to replace parts progressively andit may not fix something.  We did offer multiple options and did the one he choose. We would have credited the cost of the repairs against a new unit.  The chemicals we use inside are not toxic and should not be a health issue. If he can supply an invoice for the circuit breaker repair or a summary of what was done by the company we will review it and management will consider taking any further action.01/3/2018 3:11 pm Mediator called email to send to [redacted] is [redacted]@spenglerco.com to forward customer repair summary01/03/2018: We asked for a copy of the receipt1/10/2018 2:31 pm Mediator left message.1/17/2018 3:30 mediator left message1/24/2017 2:38 pm She is out of building I will ask her to call you shortly.2/24/2018 3:36 pm Mediator called again got voice mail.1/31/2018 2:57 pm Meidator was told to call back in 30 minutes2/7/2018 2:18 pm If he has no documentation to show what the other company did I'm sorry but I cant take any action or consider some compensation. I think you would understand my position and it appears the other firm wont summarize the work they supposedly did for free. Without any evidence we cant consider this request.  I'm sorry we traded messages so often.

I am responding to you regarding ID # [redacted] a customer complaint from [redacted].  In regards to her complaint I will tell you that we did go back to her home and level and reseeded her yard, which that is what is included in her yard restoration.  We actually went to her home twice...

and did this.  This also requires the customer to maintain and water the yard after that is done in order to maintain the growth of the grass.  We hired a landscaping company to come back out and do her yard for a third time but it being the time of year that many are trying to get their yards ready for the winter, we are waiting for them to reseed her yard.I am enclosing pictures that the customer herself sent us to show you that we follow through and do the proper work, but it does need to be maintained by the customer.  Pictures enclosed are of her home as well as the neighbors home that we also did a sewer replacement for and we also did yard restoration for them.  As you can see proper care was taken and maintenance by the neighbors yard and you can see in the pictures that there is a significant difference.We did follow through with what the customer has paid for.  We have actually gone above and beyond just to make sure the customer is taken care of.If I can help in any way, please let me know.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:  The neighbors house/yard that you are referring to is owned by [redacted] and [redacted], [redacted].  Spengler actually was called back and reseeded their yard 3 times.  The grass that is shown as green in their yard was NOT the grass Spengler planted.  After Sengler seeding their yard 3 times with no grass growing, they actually hired Turf Gator out of Lebanon, IL to come seed it yet a 4th time.  The grass in the pictures is the grass Turf Gator planted, NOT Spengler.  I did water the "grass" Spengler planted, but after realizing nothing was growing outher than nutgrass and crabgrass, I discontinued watering.  I can show you the increase in my water bills from all the watering I did do, and my neighbors can attest to the fact that I was always out watering.Something needs to be done on Spengler's part.  This is not how my yard looked prior to the sewer line work.  There yard was not leveled properly, but I can deal with that...it's the weeds and bare dirt I cannot, especially at a cost of $1800.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Date Sent: 11/15/2016 12:00:00 AM I am responding to you regarding ID # [redacted] a customer complaint from [redacted].  In regards to her complaint I will tell you that we did go back to her home and level and reseeded her yard, which that is what is included in her yard restoration.  We actually went to her home twice and did this.  This also requires the customer to maintain and water the yard after that is done in order to maintain the growth of the grass.  We hired a landscaping company to come back out and do her yard for a third time but it being the time of year that many are trying to get their yards ready for the winter, we are waiting for them to reseed her yard. I am enclosing pictures that the customer herself sent us to show you that we follow through and do the proper work, but it does need to be maintained by the customer.  Pictures enclosed are of her home as well as the neighbors home that we also did a sewer replacement for and we also did yard restoration for them.  As you can see proper care was taken and maintenance by the neighbors yard and you can see in the pictures that there is a significant difference. We did follow through with what the customer has paid for.  We have actually gone above and beyond just to make sure the customer is taken care of. If I can help in any way, please let me know.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:  The response from Spengler confirmed they never intended to fix my system, rather they were more interested in selling me a new one. When The original "options" were given to me by [redacted], I specifically asked him "What...

is the cheapest option to fix my air conditioner?"  Had I been informed that I was dumping over $1000 into Spengler's pocket for nothing that would fix my unit I would have made a different choice. The fact that the part [redacted] installed on my unit had deteriorated within 48 hour of installation as verified by [redacted], shows the poor level of quality from the parts used by Spengler. My system was incorrectly diagnosed by Spengler and I was over charged for substandard parts and supposedly needed fixes. Another HVAC company properly diagnosed the problem and provided a solution at no cost.  I still seek reimbursement of the over $800 charged to me for "options" that were not needed and that did not correct the problem. 
T[redacted] you for your time. 
Sincerely,
[redacted]

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.  We appreciate that Spengler's going to refund the amount of the original job.  They had been made aware of issues we were having for many years and ran their own camera through the sewer line several times and could see what the problem was, so for them to claim that they weren't given an opportunity to make it right is simply false.  During any of their many trips to our home over the years they could have informed us of their past error and offered to fix it.  Instead, they tried to convince us to do and pay for major unnecessary projects, and their failure to disclose their past error resulted in thousands of additional dollars in continued maintenance costs.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:We have received the complaint from you regarding [redacted].  I have looked over his account and even though it looks as if our solution specialist did everything the way that he is supposed to do things, I will have finance send a 60.00 refund to the customer. ...

Customer should be receiving this in the next few weeks.Thank you[redacted]The Spengler Company

Regarding the unit that the customer is talking about.  That was discussed when our Solution Specialist was out at the home discussing the options, but it was agreed upon that because of the size of the room that it wouldn't be done.  The customer was given options before we did any...

work and the customer signed the contract and agreement which states clearly what is being installed before we proceeded on doing any of the work.  We have a signed copy of the contract/agreement that is signed and dated by the customer. 
Thank you
[redacted]
The Spengler Company