Charge for service call to fix a problem the company caused

debodun

debodun

SF VIP
Location
way upstate in New York, USA
A few days after I had a new water heater installed, I found the water inlet pipe leaking (spraying, actually). I called the business that installed it. A tech came an repaired the leak, but handed me a bill for $150. I said that wasn't right to charge to fix something that was their oversight in the first place. He said that fault or not, it was still a service call which involved a fee. This business has a monopoly in this area, so you can't refuse to pay their bills. If you need their service again they can go tell you to go pound sand if you owe them money.

Is it right for a company to charge to fix something that was caused by them in the first place?
 

You could try appealing to the owner of the business. I wouldn't think that was fair, they should stand by their work. If they are reputable, they should try to make good on it.
 
Most reputable HVAC/Plumbing businesses have a written warranty in their contracts....covering parts and labor for a year, or more. Look closely at your paperwork, and see if this company does so.
 

Yes, look at all the paperwork. Better still, ask the Better Business Bureau to help you look at it. This does not sound right to me. they messed up, by what you say.

If you signed an agreement to pay for their mistakes, you might be out of luck. Otherwise, I would refuse to pay and would go to court over it.
 
That doesn't sound right at all if it was there mistake. And they should pay for any damage the leak caused.. Do you live in a small town that there aren't any other water heater installers? Usually there are at least a few unless you are way out in the sticks. Write a review on Yelp.
 
I think it could go either way. If the breakdown is with the new material then I think the installer should pick up the tab for the repairs. If the the breakdown has to do with old plumbing pipe where it attaches to the new water heater it could be on you. Because it is an old house it probably would have been a good idea to install an updated intake pipe from the water meter to the water heater. Hard to say without knowing all the facts but if the fee was strictly for the service call and not for any parts or labor then
they may be in the right, I would check the fine print and then follow up with the company.
 
I agree with the others here Deb, check you paperwork carefully to see what kind of a warranty they have. As Don said, any reputable company will back their work, especially only days after an install. Sometimes there's no communication and mistakes are made, the guy who did the service call was just following orders. I'd definitely contact the manager or business owner, someone who is in charge that can possibly reimburse you. If they don't make it right, I'd take Rose's suggestion and file an official complaint with the Better Business Bureau at least.

Maybe Aunt Bea has a point there about an old pipe being at fault, in any case I would think they'd recognize a potential problem beforehand and suggest replacing it while they did the heater installation. That would be if the company was reputable. What's the name of the company that did the work?
 
SeaBreeze said:
I agree with the others here Deb, check you paperwork carefully to see what kind of a warranty they have. As Don said, any reputable company will back their work, especially only days after an install. Sometimes there's no communication and mistakes are made, the guy who did the service call was just following orders. I'd definitely contact the manager or business owner, someone who is in charge that can possibly reimburse you. If they don't make it right, I'd take Rose's suggestion and file an official complaint with the Better Business Bureau at least.

Maybe Aunt Bea has a point there about an old pipe being at fault, in any case I would think they'd recognize a potential problem beforehand and suggest replacing it while they did the heater installation. That would be if the company was reputable. What's the name of the company that did the work?
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Contact the owner..If he balks at refunding, tell him you will be contacting the news media for some help resolving the issue!! I bet he does not want any unfavorable news coverage..
 
You are not real specific in your upstate NY location. If you called the company I think you did,(HALCO), yes they are well known for such shenanigans. However they in no way have a monopoly. There are thousands of independent heating and plumbing contractors, you just failed to research properly. They may be the biggest but certainly are not the only.

I would stop payment on any check or cc charge yesterday, and be on the phone with their office non stop.
 
debodun said:
Yes, that's their loophole, and how can I refute it when I don't know what end of a monkey wrench is the business end?
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Just curious. Did they mention the possibility of a problem there when installing the water heater, or suggest more work should be done?
 
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