ComplaintsforUptown Heating and Cooling LLC

• Initial Complaint

  02/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Uptown Heating & Cooling was contracted to do the following: 1. Replace existing Trane furnace with brand NEW Bryant two stage variable speed furnace, work completed 7/20/2021 2. Replace existing AC with brand NEW Bryant 2.5 tons one stage AC, work completed 7/20/2021 3. Install 3 brand NEW Mitsubishi mini splits, 9K BTU, 24.6 SEER, work completed 10/26/2021 Total cost was $17,000 for everything listed above. Uptown Heating was paid in full immediately upon completion of individual jobs, as per contract. Also, per contract (bottom of page 3), Uptown was required to fully comply with local code and permits. Unfortunately, Uptown failed HVAC inspection conducted by the Grove City Building Division for the entire project (as described above) on 10/27/2021 because Uptown had failed to pull the required electric permit for the job. Uptown had completed all the electric work associated with this project without a licensed electrician in their team. This was a willful breach of professional work practices by a licensed HVAC contractor, violation of contractual agreements, total disregard of customer expectations, and blatant negligence of professional conduct. Frankly, I am surprised how Uptown has been in business for so long with such obvious disregard for standard work practices. As a result of Uptown's inactions, my house remains in danger of electric/fire hazard. None of the new HVAC equipment installed has ever been inspected even after 4 months since final installation. I have made several attempts to contact Uptown Heating & Cooling to resolve this. They keep promising to look into this but nothing has changed. The new HVAC installations remains unapproved and uninspected by Grove City since the initial failed inspection in October 2021. Please look into this to bring the matter to an early resolution. Thanks

  

  Business response

  03/16/2022

  We were contracted to install several pieces of equipment as described in the complaint by the consumer.  Everything was installed as contracted and in good working order.

  The confusion is in the electrical versus the HVAC. According to the city of Grove City, HVAC did not "fail" inspection as it was not able to be inspected since there was not an electrical permit pulled for the job. We installed the electrical (for the mini splits only) so that the customer would be able to use his system and we were able to test what we installed. We are NOT a licensed electrical company and we did not portray ourselves as such. We do not know of any HVAC company that has a licensed electrician (that can pull permits) on staff. We did tell the customer that we would "look into it" and see what we can do to help find an electrician so that the permit can be pulled and then the HVAC can be inspected. We have not been able to find an electrician who will take the job in Grove City. We called the electrician who was contracted to install the customers electrical when the add on was built, hoping he would add it to his permit, but he refused to do any more work for this customer. I am not aware of the circumstance under which he would not complete the electrical for the addition. We have pulled out HVAC permit and the HVAC can be inspected as soon as the electrical is inspected. 

  If the customer is concerned with electrical/fire, our recommendation would be to not use the system (that he has been using all winter, 5 months) until a licensed electrician can inspect, pull a permit, and the system is inspected by the city. There is not anything stopping the customer from hiring an electrician, having them signoff on our work and pull a permit. If the customer would rather, we can remove the electrical that we already installed and they can start over and pay for the electrical that we already did to be redone. 

  Pulling an electrical permit is not "standard work practice". 

  Again, to reiterate, the HVAC has not been inspected due to no fault of ours. The permit has been pulled and can be inspected after the electrical permit is pulled and inspected. We are confident that the HVAC system will not have any issues in passing inspection. 

   

  Customer response

  03/22/2022

  Uptown installed the electrical for the three new mini splits as well as a for a brand new furnace and AC unit. This comprises all the HVAC units in my house. Uptown has acknowledged that they are "NOT a licensed electrical company" and that they "did not portray" themselves as such. Then why did Uptown do the electric work if they do NOT possess the necessary professional credentials of an electrician? If pulling an electrical permit is not "standard work practice" for Uptown, is working on the electric system without a professional license compliant with standard work practices? Uptown knew fully well that an electric permit would be required prior to HVAC inspection and that they are not licensed to pull an electric permit. The reality is that Uptown has pushed me into this hole that they have dug. Now they are suggesting that my family live without heat through this winter. Since Uptown has installed the electric for all the HVAC in the house, shouldn’t they be responsible for pulling the electric permit and getting the electrical inspected? It is preposterous that even after close to five months Uptown has been unable to find a licensed electrician to signoff on their work and pull a permit. It is even more absurd for Uptown to suggest that the homeowner should be responsible for finding an electrician (who would be unrelated to this project) to sign off on electric work done by Uptown! To top it all, Uptown is making a complete mockery by offering to dismantle the electrical that they put in, as if doing the electric the first time without an electric license is not bad enough.  
  
  The electrician who worked on the room additions is the only electrician I know that Uptown has contacted. This electrician was hired by the builder who managed the room addition project and as such I have had NO contractual agreement with that electrician for the work he performed. All electric work for the rooms have been completed to my satisfaction and this project was entirely managed by the builder. This detail is wholly irrelevant to this issue with Uptown. I am simply clarifying the reference that Uptown has made in their response.  
  
  

  Regards,
  

  ****** ****

  

  Business response

  03/23/2022

  It is clear that the customer does not understand the difference between hvac and electrical when it comes to licensing and permits. A company has a license. The workers are not licensed. We have an hvac license and have pulled the necessary hvac permit. We ran the electrical but can not pull the electrical permit. It was not in our original scope of work. It was ran for us to be able to test the system and provide heat for the customer in the winter months. He was not concerned with fire hazard then or doing the last 5 months he has ben running his heating system. 

  According to the city manager in the building department in the City of Grove City, there is not anything further we can do. We have completed everything within our scope. 

  Just as it is preposterous that we suggest the customer not run his hvac system if he is concerned with fire, it is preposterous that we install a system without electrical and leave the consumer without heat and be unable to test the system we installed. The electrical is not in our scope of work. 

  We have contacted SEVERAL electricians and have been unable to help the consumer find someone to pull a permit to complete the job. Again, that includes the electrician who performed the electrical on the original project. We are a Westerville based company and do not have relationships with electricians in Grove City. 

  Again, the only compromise is hiring an electrician and we will pay for them to remove the work we have already done. Or the can keep the electrical in place, check it, and pull a permit for it to be checked and that is a gift. 

  Customer response

  03/28/2022

  Uptown has a long experience in the HVAC industry. I am not their first customer to have had them install HVAC equipment. Also, I am presuming that they have had their HVAC work inspected by respective building departments of their residential customers before. If they have, they should be fully aware of the need for both electric and HVAC permits to complete HVAC inspection.

  Unfortunately, paying a licensed electrician is not Uptown’s priority as Doug (owner of Uptown) has confessed to me in private conversations. Uptown was hoping that Grove City would overlook the lack of electric permit and go through with the HVAC inspection. This way Uptown could sneak this job past the inspectors saving themselves from the extra cost of hiring an electrician. We patiently waited for them (after several reminders) to do the job right and comply with the rules in Grove City but they put no effort to fix or even bother to finish the job according to the city requirements although they were fully aware they had failed inspections way back in October 2021. And Uptown kept up their charade of attempting to find an electrician for almost 5 months now.

  Uptown’s cost estimate/proposal did not mention that the customer is responsible for either the electric or the HVAC permits. In fact Uptown has indicated on the proposal that they will comply with all codes and regulations. Then why is Uptown suddenly acting surprised about the requirement for the electric permit after they called in for the HVAC inspection? Uptown is engaged with HVAC jobs daily, and they know very well that an electric permit is required. So why this charade?  I am beginning to suspect that this might have been Uptown's plan right from the beginning to deliberately stall the HVAC inspection or not have it at all. 

  In conclusion, if Uptown is willing to pay for the services of a licensed electrician to remove the electric work that they have installed, why not pay the same electrician to inspect Uptown's work and pull the electric permit! This is the solution to this impasse which Uptown should do now, and ought to have done many months ago. Uptown works closely with electricians almost daily to complete their HVAC jobs. Therefore, finding an electrician to do what I have recommended should not be a difficult task at all.    
  Regards,

  ****** ****

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