ComplaintsforCity Plumbing

• Initial Complaint

  04/23/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I am very dissatisfied with City Plumbing. First, the issue was the backyard was not draining well. We called out to have the lines cleared by hydro-jet. There are 2 main lines going to the street. They came out and attempted to do so but failed to make much headway on the first line. ****** claimed that the roots had infiltrated the pipes and quoted $2500 to replace the pipe section, then finish the hydrojet. Well, they dug up that portion that ****** had determined and replaced the pipe. The part dug up didnt appear to be much damaged. When they came back to finish the hydro-jet, it was still clogged and they couldnt make much headway. ****** determined that there was further blockage that needed to be dug up and replaced. He initially said that he would take care of the problem as he had promised for the price he quoted to fix it. Then, when they tried to hydrojet the 2nd line (they didnt even check it out the first time they came in), they also had difficulty getting through. At this point, ****** decided that this project was too much trouble, and said that he was not working on this anymore. While he reneged on the contract, he still demanded payment for no result, even charging for the hydro-jet that they werent even able to do. I did agree to pay for the partial work done for $1750. Then, during the payment, **** took the verbal authorization over the phone with my credit card information. I clearly authorized for $1750 because I checked the invoice. When I later checked my credit card charges, I saw that they charged $1802.50 instead! At no point during the conversations with ****** and **** did they mention extra charges for credit card payments. This is against the law. Even when I reached out to ****, in the end, they refused to refund me $52.50 which they failed to disclose. They are very unprofessional and they do not care. I am now moving on to filing legal complaints.

• Initial Complaint

  03/06/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Poor service left with water heater gas leak leaving us sick and put in extreme danger, what I believe to be fraudulent charges and not being given any receipt when asked multiple times. Needed to have water heater replaced and my home warranty, AHS, had city plumbing come out on 10/21/2022. AHS covered replacement but I had to pay for any installation done to meet code standards which came to $950. I asked plumber after install what that entailed and he said straps. $950 for two metal straps bolted into the wall is ridiculous. He was in a hurry cause he said that he’s paid by the project not hour so he wanted it done quickly. He messed up the spackle on the stand for it and said he would come back to fix and paint it. Never did. In being buried, he didn’t connect the gas line correctly which caused it to leak. We didn’t realize this till next day when my wife and I both woke up sick. Upon entering garage where heater is, I got extremely light headed and smelled the gas and opened garage. It was early morning so I wasn’t able to call them but I turned off the gas and left for work while my wife called PG&E out to investigate. They said it wasn’t connected right and looked like they were just in a hurry but was able to fix it out of kindness. Wasn’t their job to do so. I called to complain and it was mostly laughed off. I wanted some type of reimbursement but was only offered for them to come out the next day to fix it. I started to question the $950 but was told they would send an itemized bill. Never got it. I called back a few days later asking for it and they said they would email and mail it. 5 months later and nothing. I believe their charges to be fraudulent and would like at least a partial refund along with an itemized receipt. I didn’t receive a bill at all even when the plumber was there to charge me.

  Business response

  03/06/2023

  First and foremost, I want to personally apologize for the issue with your water heater installation.
  

  
  

  That plumber was removed from service and placed back in training for 3 months at a reduced hourly pay and the loss of potential commission sales.

  
  

  I do not tolerate bad service and when it concerns the health and safety of my techs or customers, I take it very seriously.

  
  

  I will personally send a receipt for the non covered costs, which you were required to pay by your home warranty.

  
  

  There were quite a few code and modification required items to bring your 22 year old water heater up to current city and state codes and none were excessive or fraudulent, which I am sure the city inspector confirmed.
  

  
  

  The non covered costs are set by your home warranty company and are something that we have no control over, so addressing your request for a partial refund, that is not something that I am able to do.

  
  

  I hope this response has assured you, that I took immediate action and took the steps needed to correct the mistake made by my employee.
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/23/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We had been quoted $5,000 out of our own pocket + what our insurance was going to cover by the company employee when they had first came out for a pipe leak under our home. We shopped around for a week or two to see if we could possibly find something more that was more of a possibility for us because we are a one income family of 5 in our first home. We ended up calling them back but they said they had to send someone out again to revalue the leak. When that employee came he quoted us $8,500 we told the employee there was no way we could do that and he then advised us to speak to the owner and let him know our situation. We had called the front office and spoke to **** told her our situation and how we had no way of paying that amount she spoke to the owner and let us know that he agreed to $6,500 which we also agreed to we set a date for the repairs and that was it until the day of the appointment. Once the day of the appointment came the plumber had showed up with another man who we had said was his helper he proceeded to start the clean up and repairs and a few hrs in he approached me and had said they were going to have to keep to the first quote of $8500 once he had came in with the invoice I asked him why the price had changed from what we had agreed he lied stated that the price was so high because our insurance company was not covering any of the material for the repairs to get me to sign the invoice for him to leave. I got in touch with my insurance company and they let me know that they had covered all the repairs and materials. I called the pluming company back also for an incident where their plumbers left a mess of dirt on my carpet from the cleanup which they were supposed to give us a reimbursement for but still to the day have not.I let them know I spoke to my insurance company and they denied any type of reimbursement for the overcharge. I asked to speak to the owner multiple times and never end up getting a call and fail to provide me his numbe

  Business response

  11/24/2022

  I will be looking into this personally and will get back to you early next week.

  
  

  I have been out of the office for almost 2 weeks with serious medical issues but will make the time to get you some answers.

  
  

  Have a Happy and safe Thanksgiving.
  

  
  

  ******
  

• Initial Complaint

  05/18/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Unresolved

  More info

  On 2-12-2022 American Home Shield sent City Pluming out to replace a faulty water heater. At that time they charged me $250 for a permit. Since then I have been trying to get a copy of the receipt for the permit to submit to my insurance company foe reimbursement. I went to their office to get a copy of the receipt. *** their office manager said her boss wasn't in and she needed him to get access to the receipt. She calls me the next day and said a city inspector would be out on 5-16-2022 between 8am and 12am. There was a no show. I called City Pluming but she is always out of the office. I finely called Fresno Building Dept. and they told me that a permit was never issued.

  Business response

  05/24/2022

  Permit number *********

  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  05/24/2022

   I am rejecting this response because: Talking to the Fresno Building Dept. This is not a permit number. It is a record number. The Building Dept. is waiting for a signature affidavit before they will issue a Permit. Again a Permit has not been issued and a fee has not been paid.
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  02/09/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  City plumbing was sent out to unclog my toilet and the plumbers snake got stuck in my toilet. The plumber was able to get snake out of toilet, however he left scratches in my toilet bowl. I have been contacting the company since 12/14/21 to get reimbursed for the damage and no one has returned my calls or messages. When I speak with someone on the phone they state that the owner will look at photos I sent and call me back, it has been more than a month and I have not received a call back.

  Business response

  02/10/2022

  The cable was stuck due to a foreign object lodged in the water closet.

  
  

  This is what caused the secondary damage (scratches) which we know how to remove but were never given that opportunity.

  
  

  Your home warranty denied your claim due to not normal wear and tear (foreign object in the water closet) and also the secondary damage because someone in the home dropped or flushed something that caused the obstruction.

  
  

  We are bound by your home warranty policy guidelines. We are contracted by them and unless they approve a service, a replacement or compensation for any reason, we cannot offer services not approved by your home warranty provider. 

  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  02/10/2022

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  The company never called me to offer repair to be done as stated in my original complaint. I have been calling since December leaving messages and speaking with a woman that has not once told me that repairs can be done. I was only ever told the owner would contact me. I have yet to get a phone call from anyone from City Plumbing and feel that they are only responding because a complaint has been made through BBB. 

• Initial Complaint

  01/11/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  BBB, My complaint is with City Plumbing of Fresno. They are contracted by my home warranty company American Home Shield. . We had a leak late in 2019 in the upstairs bathroom which caused damage in the downstairs laundry room. City plumbing fixed what they said was the overflow in the tub and said it's all better now. This was not tested at the time. They rough patched the 2x2 hole and left. It took weeks for the sheetrock to dry out get the rough patch done I understand my home warrenty dosn't cover secondary damage so I hired a contractor, Golden Eagle Painting, invoice 1328..to come and return the patch to look like the rest of ceiling. 348.00. So we thought that was that... Within the next few months, we noticed the same spot leaking and reached out to CP paid another 75.00 and another employee came out and said it was not the overflow but the drain itself. He said he fixed the drain in the tub and it was all good. Well, the leak got worse, cabinets now have water damage and had to reopen the work order. This has taken many phone calls and months to get them to get this far. I called CP and they came out after 2 no shows at this time and 2 days off work to get this leak to stop running down the cabinets and on the floor when baths were taken. ( stopped the bathes when that was noticed.) I was a little frustrated at this point because nothing was ever tested or the ceiling opened again to see where the leak was coming from. All pipes on the 2ns floor all go this 0ne spot. I had to ask them to open the ceiling and look for a leak. They advertise top of the line leak detection but never seemed to have the right tool to do any of the simple jobs. He opened the ceiling in the same spot as before 2x2 area, ran the tub and saw the main drain from the tub to the water main .I'm asking for 616.00 to repair reopened ceiling ,5 holes and now cabinets. They have not contacted me since Nov. 23. and no returned calls. I RAN OUT OF SPACE HERE..i HAVE SO MUCH MORE. :)

  Business response

  01/12/2022

  I have gone over all of this with the home warranty policy holder and there were multiple issues occurring. 

  
  

  The first issue (tub overflow) was repaired. 

  The second issue, months later (tub shoe drain) repaired.

  When these issues were repaired, the next issue (leak in drain pipe in wall) surfaced and was repaired.

  Now there is another drain pipe that needs repair.

  The home warranty will patch areas opened by the plumber to inspect or make repairs and I also offered to split the cost to have her sheetrock company come out and do aa finished patch.

  This was declined at first then never finalized but as of today, I am still as a gesture of good faith willing to pay half of the patch work.

  If there is still an issue, she can call in either a recall or new work order with her home warranty so it is documented on her policy and has a new warranty period which is 60 days with that home warranty.

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/06/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My hot water only stays hot for about 5 minutes, lukewarm for 2-3, then goes to freezing cold. City Plumbing received this work order in May 2021. Their technician came out to address this concern. He stated that the problem was the water heater and said I would not have this issue if I paid for a new water heater. We trusted the company, and their technician to fix the original stated issue: Unfortunately, after paying over $600 out of pocket for my portion of the remaining expenses for a new water heater (not including what my warranty covered), I have THE EXACT same problem I have had before they came out. I made several calls to their office staff throughout the year and she kept saying I would get a call back or someone would come back out. Nobody ever came and so I had my home warranty get a hold of their company, again. It was now December 2021. It is freezing cold and my family can no longer tolerate the cold showers. Office Staff said January 6, 2022 was the soonest someone would come out. Despite their technician making a bad call and not fully investigating my hot water situation; leaving us without hot water for months. James came out today 1/6/2022, and was extremely rude and disrespectful from the beginning. He treated me like I was lying, despite seeing the problem for himself. He then told me I should be happy I got a new water heater because the previous Staff from City Plumbing had "worded it in a way that would allow me to get a new water heater". I did not necessarily NEED a new water heater if that was not the ROOT OF THE PROBLEM. I paid over $600 to the company for something that did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to improve the temperature of our water. That is not a high quality level of service. It is entirely opposite. Some jobs are not just going to be an 'easy' fix. They took this as a money making opportunity and did not resolve my issue. They refused to run the shower water or sink to see the issue; firsthand.

  Business response

  01/07/2022

  Your old water heater was over 20 years old. Average life is 10.

  
  

  The reasonable next step is to replace the hot water heater since there was no other condition present at time of inspection. 

  
  

  Your home warranty provides a 60 day warranty on service provided. If you had contacted my office at any time after completion of service for a home warranty, you would have been instructed to contact your home warranty to issue a recall work order. This recall dispatch did not happen until December 30th.

  
  

  I suggested several times yesterday that you contact your water heater manufacturer. If there is an issue with the hot water heater, they could possibly be responsible for repairs or replacement. You repeatedly yelled at me refusing to do this.

  
  

  The thing you left out of your complaint was your actions toward the plumber, my office staff and to me not only yesterday but when the water heater was installed 8 months ago. my office staff remembered you right away after James called the office so I could hear you yelling at him. Those details are included in the police report that was filed yesterday.

  
  

  If you continue to harass my staff, my next step will be a restraining order.

  
  

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  12/05/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On September 18, 2021 I submitted a claim to First American Home Warranty regarding my water heater. Right away the warranty company sent my claim to the contractor City Plumbing. On October 2nd **** from City Plumbing contacted me saying that I had to pay $450 after warranty pays and if I agree to the service. I agreed to the service and she proceeded to ask if I would them them to start the Permit process. Oct 21 First American contacted me asking if the service has been completed and I said no that we were waiting for the permit. Well ***** from First American said in their notes it still said they were waiting from agreement from me, which I had already agreed to on October 2nd. Finally, Oct 13 Tiffany with city plumbing text me saying they were starting the permit process that day. I patiently waited and never heard anything back. After many phone calls, finally The week of November 22nd I received a call from **** again apologizing for the wait and stating they kept running into problems with the City of ******* and the Permit kept getting sent back but they were now ready to schedule an appt for December 2nd between 12-3. We’ll December 2nd comes around and no one came to do the service. I called them around 3:30 that day and they said they would contact the plumber and see where he was but they never called. I called again and was out on hold and was hung up on. Called again and was hung up on. Finally got ahold of **** again and she apologized AGAIN saying the water heater wasn’t in the truck this morning to be installed. Furious, I called First American again and they stated City Plumbing still had not picked up my unit from the supplier (which they have had for weeks). Called **** again and she said she had to check to make sure some serial numbers matched and she would give me a call December 3rd in the morning. Never received a call and when I would call I would get sent to voicemail. I am very upset, they have been very unprofessional.

  Business response

  12/06/2021

  Until a notification on 11/13 we have been limited as to how and when we could apply for, pay for and pick up permits in *******.

  
  

  The unit was tagged in our office on 11/23

  
  

  wh install/ wh tagged/ permit in office NCC $450 to be pd check

  By ****** ******** on 11/23/2021 @ 2:36pm

  
  

  Why there was a missed appointment for your installation date is when I need to find out.

  
  

  Our office has been closed for lunch for the past 2 weeks as we had one staff member with covid and a second that works out of the office due to other commitments until further notice so we were very short staffed.

  
  

  I will get more details as well as a committed installation date and follow through personally on that day to assure your job is completed as scheduled.

  
  

  I apologize for the issues be it those which we had no control over or inner office errors. No one should have to wait this long for this service.

  
  

  ****** ********, Owner

  City Plumbing

  ******@************.net my direct email contact
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/11/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  They have come to fix our water heater 5 times and it has finally stopped working for good. They are the sole contractor through our home owners insurance and will not answer our phone calls or emails now and we have been without hot water for over 2 weeks with no response.

  Business response

  11/18/2021

  This claim was submitted to your home warranty company through their portal for a recommendation to replace the hot water heater.

  Just like you, we are waiting for your home warranty company to review and approve further service.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  11/18/2021

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  I spoke with the home warranty company today and they said they have already sent over the request and approval to the company, yet I still have not had a phone call or any update from City Plumbing for what is going on in over 3 weeks. We have cancelled the order with them and have put them on our blacklist because their communication has been so bad and we found out they lied to us on 4 different occasions on what was wrong with our water heater. We had to buy a new water heater out of pocket because it has been almost a month with no hot water and we have children. When the new company came out, they fixed it with no problems, unlike City Plumbing that said our wiring was wrong, the pilot light was the issue and on another occasion they couldn’t fix it because the gas line was wrong; which wasn’t the case at all. They are a very untruthful company to work with and waste peoples time. 

  Business response

  11/18/2021

  You state that someone else came out and replaced your water heater yet you also say that they came out and fixed it with no problems and that we misdiagnosed.

  
  

  We followed your home warranty procedures and to date, we still have no authorization from your home warranty to move forward with the replacement which would include your accepting any non  covered costs per your home warranty coverage.

  
  

  If we don't do the work, we don't get paid so it is in our best interest to complete all jobs in a timely manner.

  
  

  I hope this helps you to understand that the delay was not with City Plumbing but with your home warranty company.

  Customer response

  11/18/2021

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  We would like this complaint to stay. Not answering the phone or returning calls for 3 weeks is unacceptable 

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩