ComplaintsforEnviroCare Comfort Solutions

• Initial Complaint

  02/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 2/6/23, ***** agreed to diagnose an issue with a furnace. Prior to his arrival he texted me to advise that his ETA would be 12:15pm. Upon arrival at 12:15pm, ***** appeared cordial, professional and quickly diagnosed the issue with the furnace in less than 15 minutes. He advised that he would prepare an invoice which would include a quote for the replacement of the furnace. The invoice indicated a total service fee of $702.82. When I questioned the fee, ***** advised that he needed to be compensated for his travel time (per the invoice the travel time was 11:45am and the arrival time was 12:10pm) and labor. I advised that no work had been done on the furnace and only a diagnosis and quote had been given. ***** conceded that no work had been done on the furnace, however, he needed to be compensated for the time spent on the phone with ****** to get information regarding my options for repair or replacement of the furnace. ***** then agreed to reduce his fee to $495.00. I advised that the fee was still too high as no work had been done on the furnace, the diagnosis was performed in less than 15 minutes and the trip was less than 30 minutes, as the invoice indicated he is local. He then advised that he would take the $495.00 fee off the $9,900.00 fee it would cost to replace the furnace. I advised ***** that I had not yet decided whether to replace the furnace, so I did not feel comfortable with that option. ***** then advised me that if I refused to pay the $495.00, he would place me on the "do not service list." I paid ***** and advised him that I would get back to him as to whether I would be moving forward with the replacement of the furnace. As of 2/10/23, I elected not to move forward with the replacement of the furnace. I am now seeking a refund of the $495.00. Thank you.

  Business response

  02/11/2023

  Thank you for bringing this matter to my attention. A service call was initiated by *********************** located at **************************************************************************************. The service requested was performed at her home on 2/6/23 from 11:45am to 2:30pm = **** hours. Services performed was as follows: 1) Diagnostic on inoperable natural gas furnace M#***AAV048080ACSA S#****A06263. Findings were a bad secondary heat exchanger. The manufacturer was contacted by phone while on site to find out that the customers furnace is included in a heat exchanger recall by the manufacturer. The manufacturer recommended replacement of furnace due to some parts being on back order and will not be available until the end of March and customer currently being without heat. The customer was given the options provided by the manufacturer, repair vs replacement and approximate pricing was given to customer. 2) Diagnostic on natural gas fireplace M#DV3732SBI S#**********. Findings were bad ignition control module. The customer approved the cost and repairs to be made on the fireplace, which was completed, making the fireplace operational again. When the final invoice was presented to the customer she refused to pay. At this time a mutual agreement was made between EnviroCare and the homeowner to remove the $175 part that was installed on the fireplace in addition to EnviroCare would take an additional $110 off on labor charges, making the invoice total $495.00. The customer paid the $495 and signed the Invoice stating, "that the work had been satisfactorily completed, that she was informed of the approximate costs, that she consented for the work to be done, that she will pay in full, and that she was 100% satisfied with the services provided (please see attached copy of invoice). If you have any other questions, please let myself or office know and we will be more then happy to assist.

  Thank You

  Customer response

  02/25/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined the response would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below. 
  On 2/6/23, ***** responded to a call to diagnose an inoperable furnace. The diagnosis took approximately 15 minutes and no repairs were performed on the furnace. After ***** advised me of his recommendations, he demanded a fee of $495. At no time prior to demanding the $495 fee did ***** disclose the cost of the visit, which would not be expected to be $495 based on the invoice that ***** prepared. ***** claims that **** hours of service were performed, however, there is discrepant information in the invoice ***** prepared. First, the invoice does not indicate any services performed that equate to $495. The purpose of the visit was to address issues with the furnace. No furnace repair or replacement was done on 2/6/23, which is why the invoice does not reference any furnace repair or replacement completed on 2/6/23. Second, the section that says "Work to Be Performed" says "No heat", which further confirms the purpose of *****'s visit was to address why there was "No heat." Third, the invoice indicates *****'s diagnosis in the "Description of Work Performed" section and *****'s recommendations appear in the "Recommendations" section of the invoice. Fourth, in the "Service Call/Labor" section it states, "9" in the hours section, "$55.00" in the rate section, and $495" for the amount ($55 x 9 = $495). ***** claims that **** hours were performed, however, *****'s invoice indicates in the ******************** Call" section a fee of $495. ***** did not perform 9 hours of labor. No labor pertaining to the furnace was performed other than the 15 minute diagnosis. Fifth, at the top of the invoice under "This Work Is To Be" section, "C.O.D" is checked. This means that no payment was to be collected until the goods were delivered (new furnace) and services performed (furnace installation). ***** merely provided recommendations, provided a quote for services to be rendered and performed a diagnosis that took approximately 15 minutes. My desired settlement is as follows: An explanation of charges, a refund, and contact by the business to resolve this issue. Thank you.
  

  Regards,
  
  ***********************

  
  

  Business response

  02/28/2023

  Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention once again filed by ************************
  Though much of what *************** included in her rebuttal from the original complaint filed by her has already been addressed in the company's response, which I have included a copy of (see below), I will elaborate on a couple of statements and/or concerns again that the customer is in reference to in her rebuttal.
  Everything is clearly spelled out on the invoice that was signed by and given to the customer (see Attached copy). In the customers complaints she still has failed to mention that she also requested fireplace diagnostic and repairs to an inoperable fireplace in her home as well and that diagnostics and repairs were made to it on 2/6/23 as well,which took additional time and was billable to the homeowner. The DESCRIPTION OF WORK PERFORMED on the hand written invoice only allows so much room, so in addition to what is shown on the invoice,the following should complete the description of work performed;add...Furnace is not repairable at time of diagnostic, contacted manufacturer regarding customers furnace and its current recall status, options presented to Homeowner from furnace manufacturer,instructions and steps given to homeowner that must be followed per manufacturer, parts lookup and availability of necessary parts required to resolve problems found with furnace under the recall campaign, diagnosed inoperable fireplace per customers request and repaired fireplace with prior approval of customer....end. The customer also refers to the labor times on the invoice being incorrect? As shown on invoice, billing time started at 11:45am and ended at 2:30pm making **** total billable hours or as stated on invoice that the labor was billed "Per quarter" making 11 billable quarters. At the time of service the customer was comped $110 in labor and was only billed for 9 quarters instead of the original 11 quarters. An additional credit of $175 was also taken off the bill for the part the customer approved to have installed on her fireplace to get it operational. The customer and I came to an agreement on site to the deductions given and the customer paid the remaining balance of $495 and signed off on the invoice accepting those terms and that she was 100% satisfied (see attached invoice).
  The customer, ***********************, initiated the service call, everything the customer asked for was professionally and accurately performed by EnviroCare Comfort Solutions. It's unfortunate that the customer is in the position that she is in with her furnace, with the manufacturer, the current recall status, and being without heat.EnviroCare understands the customers frustration and why she isn't happy with the diagnosis given and the expenses she has and is going to occur, but EnviroCare did not install the furnace 12 years ago and our hands are tied by the manufacturer under the recall campaign,thus the reason most customers decide to have a new furnace installed from a different manufacturer. Even though none of the problems diagnosed or found was of any fault of EnviroCare Comfort Solutions,EnviroCare agreed to give the customer a discount at the time of services. A mutual agreement was reached with the customer and a total of $297.25 was not charged at the time of completion of services. The customer paid and signed off on the invoice stating as follows "the work had been satisfactorily completed, that she was informed of the approximate costs, that she consented for the work to be done, that she will pay in full, and that she was 100%satisfied with the services provided. I hope this clears this matter up.

  Sincerely,
  ***********************
  EnviroCare Comfort Solutions
  ******,**
  
  
  
  COPY:Thank you for bringing this matter to my attention. A service call was initiated by *********************** located at *************************************************************************************. The service requested was performed at her home on 2/6/23 from 11:45am to 2:30pm = **** hours. Services performed was as follows: 1) Diagnostic on inoperable natural gas furnace M#***AAV048080ACSA S#****A06263. Findings were a bad secondary heat exchanger. The manufacturer was contacted by phone while on site to find out that the customers furnace is included in a heat exchanger recall by the manufacturer. The manufacturer recommended replacement of furnace due to some parts being on back order and will not be available until the end of March and customer currently being without heat. The customer was given the options provided by the manufacturer, repair vs replacement and approximate pricing was given to customer. 2) Diagnostic on natural gas fireplace M#DV3732SBI S#**********. Findings were bad ignition control module. The customer approved the cost and repairs to be made on the fireplace, which was completed, making the fireplace operational again. When the final invoice was presented to the customer she refused to pay. At this time a mutual agreement was made between EnviroCare and the homeowner to remove the $175 part that was installed on the fireplace in addition to EnviroCare would take an additional $110 off on labor charges, making the invoice total $495.00. The customer paid the $495 and signed the Invoice stating, "that the work had been satisfactorily completed, that she was informed of the approximate costs, that she consented for the work to be done, that she will pay in full, and that she was 100% satisfied with the services provided (please see attached copy of invoice). If you have any other questions, please let myself or office know and we will be more then happy to assist.
  
  

  Customer response

  03/01/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined the response would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below. 
  
  No work was performed on the furnace at the time of the visit. Only a diagnosis and a quote were given. At the time of the visit ***** stated that the $495 would be applied towards any future furnace services, which were outlined on the invoice. However, ***** did not return to replace the furnace. If ***** is seeking payment at a rate of $55 per hour and claims **** hours of work then the fee would be $151.25 (**** hours x $55 per hour). ***** has failed to explain the $495 fee and ***** has failed to explain why he believed that he was entitled to collect a fee greater than $495 when only a diagnosis and a quote were done at the time of the visit. It is unconscionable to expect a consumer to pay $702.82 or $495, which would be deemed exorbitant prices, exceeding the fair market rate for merely performing a diagnosis, making recommendations, and preparing a quote for a furnace repair or replacement.  
  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************
  

  Business response

  03/06/2023

  *******, per our conversation via phone, these are the same issues already addressed and we keep going around in circles. Everything mentioned by *********************** in this complaint and in the previous complaint filed by this consumer has already been addressed and is  hereby "Mute" at this point. Everything is clearly spelled out on signed invoice (see previous copies submitted). Fireplace diagnostic and repairs are also included on the same invoice. Company charges per quarter on service, not per hour.

  ~Thank You 

  Customer response

  03/08/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined the response would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below. 
  
  

  The company failed to address the issue of the dispute and has failed to explain the relationship between the fee and the services provided. 

  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************

  
  

*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. ↩