Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  08/19/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Unethical conduct, inaccurate estimate and unreliable and unprofessional staff. Plus our generator was still not fixed although basic labor cost was prepaid and then added excessive labor cost including the handyman taking instructions on the phone 2-3h since he didnt know what he was doing as well as the cost of the piece ( controller) they suggested to change ( 1100$). Generator still did not work even after changing the controller . Asking for a refund- no response from the company. I contacted another company, they came and repaired the existing generator within 2 hours.They also said controller was not the issue.I had already paid Oakwood electric several hours of labor for their technician to consult with generac on the phone trying to figure out the problem, on top of ordering and replacing the controller.Then they advised to replace the generator bc there is no point spending more money repairing ( would cost another 4-5h of labor and there was no guarantee it would fix the problem), also they promised to refund the money for the controller if we replace it, yet not deducted that amount from the estimate( also you sent me somebody elses invoice with a full price anyway). I know it controller was not refunded, bc I got estimate from another company and with all line installations included, price was just what you quoted for.I used their service and did not even question a single thing for several years, but how they handled this is a complete failure and unethical on so many levels. And now I am asking full refund ,as soon as possible, for everything I paid so far, including the controller. I can provide also an image of completed payments if needed.

  

  Business response

  08/20/2024

  Customer stated that they never received a response from our company.  Below is the email I sent to communicate and address their concerns.
  
  Good Afternoon -
  
  My initial email was to gather more information in order to provide a response.  We are not unethical at all and have a wonderful reputation in the community.  I apologize that your generator was not working properly, and I understand how frustrating that can be. Our goal was to help you get your generator back on track.  Your generator is almost 13 years old and in our experience, some of these older models are starting to need repairs.
  
  We spoke with the technician who was at your house to troubleshoot the generator.  At the first troubleshoot appointment, the generator was shutting down in 10 seconds.  His troubleshooting tests indicated he should replace the controller and he called Generac and they verified that he should replace the controller.  When he came back to replace the controller, the generator was now shutting down in 4 minutes.  This indicates there was an additional issue with the generator.  He verified that the controller was working properly. He reached out to Generac again and they recommended that he should clean the brushes and slip rings.  Before he started to do that, he knew it would take about 1-2 hours of additional troubleshooting, so we checked with you first to be sure that was the route you wanted to take.  I double checked with him again, after your email (saying he quoted 5 hours) and he mentioned he told you 1-2 hours.  He wanted to make you aware that even with that additional repair, you could have further issues.  In my opinion, that is not at all unethical, but in fact very transparent, to make sure you are aware of what could still be an issue. 
  
  We were told you didn't want us to proceed because of the cost, so we asked you if you wanted an estimate on a new generator.  Your generator is 13 years old and as time goes on parts start to break so we thought that would be the best route for you.  
  
  When the other company came out, the new controller was installed and working properly, so that is why they said it wasn't the issue.  They had no opportunity to test the old controller because it wasn't in your generator.  Controllers are computers and they are one of the most frequently replaced parts on a generator.  If you had contacted the other company first, they would have had to replace the controller as well.  And if you would have had us do the repair on the brushes and slip rings, we may have repaired the generator as well.
  
  We indicated that if we replaced the generator, we would give you a credit for the repair of the controller.  That was taken into account when *** completed the estimate, and we sent a response indicating that via email for your records.  We never stated we would refund the cost of the controller.
  
  Unfortunately, we cannot refund the cost of the controller as it is installed in your generator.  I am sorry you are disappointed, but we didn't do anything unethical or wrong.  We communicated with you throughout the process and asked for your approval every step of the way. As generators age, things start to break and go wrong, just like an aging car.  I know it can be frustrating, but nothing mechanical works forever.
  
  Additional response: 
  There is a lot of inaccurate information in the customer complaint.  I will list any item below not already addressed in the initial email response above.
  
  Inaccurate estimate: We sent the estimate with the wrong customer name.  When they brought our mistake to their attention, we resent it with the correct customer name.  Unfortunately, no matter how hard we try, we are humans and mistakes can happen.  We again, corrected our error.
  
  Unreliable: Our technician and estimator were at each appointment.  We confirmed the appointments ahead of time.
  
  Unprofessional staff:  Our staff was very professional in all communications with the customer. 
  
  Excessive Labor: We ask for the first service appts hour of labor to be paid upfront.  We apply that payment to the initial invoice.  We charged an additional hour for the first call and 1.5 hours for the second service call.  The customer agreed to the second visit as we sent them an estimate to approve the work. We wouldnt have proceeded with the repair without their approval.
  
  Handyman:  Our technician is not a handyman and the customer was aware of that as they heard them discussing the issue with Generac.  He is a retired Marine mechanic who is a certified technician for Generac.  They have to supply their tech ID in order to consult with Generac on a repair. We have our team always confirm their diagnosis with Generac.  Listed below are the results of the testing he conducted to complete the diagnosis.  They record them in our equipment records for every generator they visit.
  
  ***-6/24/24: troubleshoot under voltage; Generator shuts down right after starting,
  field boost diode test;results: wire4-56 OL
  Wire 4-0 13.6
  FB4 test: wire 56 and 4ohms=OL
  Wire 56 and 4  diode test=.487vdc
  Wire 4 and 56 ohms=OL
  Wire 4 and 56 diode test=OL
  Test for fixed excitation amp draw test results: Wires 2/6 = 0
  Wires 11/44 = 0
  Static = A0
  Running = A0
  Continuity between wire 4 and 0 = 13.6 ohms indicate rotor/stator are good per ****** @ Generac. Recommend replacing controller and field flash diode.
  
  ***-7/15/24: replaced controller and generator now runs for four minutes and shut down for undervoltage. Previously, the generator shut down immediately after start up.
  Test for preliminary output voltage test
  Results: zero VAC at MLCB
  WIRE 2/6=0vac
  Wire 11/22=0vac
  Static rotor amp and running rotor amp draw=0.00
  Test 8 stator resistance
  Results: wire 4/0= 119 ohms
  Wire 4 to ground=122 ohms
  Spoke to **** at Generac who recommended disassembling the generator and cleaning brushes/slip rings and further testing with the possibility of replacing additional parts
  
  The customer sent me a copy of the complaint they submitted above to the BBB and in their email they stated Please see our complaint to BBB to collect full amount you owe.  Please await our last step which will be small claim court which include also any other related added expenses if any regarding this issue
  As a company owner, I believe we have done all we can to explain all the items they are bringing up in their past emails and complaint.  I understand they are upset that it was an expensive repair. As I stated in the above email, the other company could not have verified that the controller was working as the old controller was not in their generator for the technician to test.  As you can see in the test log, we tested the controller and Generac (the manufacturer)recommended that we replace it.  The customer agreed to the repair and prepaid for the controller and replacement.  After the controller was replaced and there was still an issue, we consulted Generac and knew what the potential solution could be (as stated in the repair log above), but the customer didnt want to pay additional labor for the repair.  If they didnt want to repair it, we offered to schedule an appointment for an estimate. They agreed to the appointment, we came back to their home and gave them an estimate.  All of these are choices that they are making.  We do not pressure customers in any way.  Everything we did was spelled out and approved by the customer. Lastly, we told them if they decided to go ahead with the generator repair, we would credit the generator project for the controller repair.  This is what was emailed to confirm that to the customer It is the same estimate, with the $1,100 already deducted from the total, the customer information was incorrect when we sent it the first time.
  I apologize for the length of this response.  My husband and I have worked very hard to build this business.  We have a fantastic team of employees that we are grateful to have working with us.  Unfortunately, no matter how organized we try to be, how transparent with customers, how communicative we try to be, we sometimes experience this gap of understanding.  We absolutely hate it when things end up like this.  These types of reviews and complaints damage our reputation that we have worked so hard to curate. We believe we have provided all of the relevant information that we have at our disposal.  We appreciate your consideration and review.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

*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. ↩