Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/22/2025

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On January 8, 2025 I authorized Peterman Brothers to install a new ****** BTU furnace in my home. the new furnace appeared to work fine several days until the temperature dipped into the single digits and the furnace could not produce sufficient heat to properly heat my home. The system was running but the home temperature would not get higher than 65 even though the system was running 24 hours a day. On January 20th, I called and was pleased that a tech came out tat day. He said he'd downloaded an update to the system computer which "fixed the problem. He questioned why the download wasn't applied at the installation. Within 30 minutes of the tech's departure I called back to let them know the system was still not heating sufficiently. They said they couldn't get anyone out for 3 days. I no longer trust that the system is functioning properly and have asked Peterman to come and uninstall the obviously faulty system and advised them I was going to have a different company install a different unit. I have had nothing but run-around from Peterman people, threatening me that they won't be able to refund all of the cost of the new system and they'd have to schedule the appointment to uninstall the faulty system. They could not give me a date or time for that uninstall appointment. I do not trust Peterman Brothers to plant my grass, yet alone treat me professionally and provide reliable service.

  

  Business response

  01/27/2025

  Peterman Brothers performed an HVAC installation for the customer on 1/9/25 (see attached invoice *******. ********************************************* was notified that the customer was having issues with the system keeping up on 1/21/25. A Peterman Brothers field professional visited the home that same day and determined that the system needed a system update, which resulted in the system being able to go from a temperature differential of 40 degrees to 56 degrees (see invoice ******). A short time after that job was completed, the customer notified ********************************************* that they were still experiencing issues with the system not reaching the set temperature. Because of the extreme weather temperatures at the time, Peterman Brothers was experiencing significant service demand, so the earliest available service was on 1/23/25. A complaint was logged due to the customer's dissatisfaction with the service wait time. The customer was informed by the Customer Experience manager and **** ********************** that we did not have any earlier appointments available. Peterman Brothers informed the customer that there would have to be labor charged if they opted to have the system removed and that the equipment portion of the installation would be the only refundable amount. Customer opted to allow ********************************************* to continue with the warranty call on 1/23/25. 

  On 1/23/25, Peterman Brothers' install manager and supervisor returned to perform further evaluation and adjustments on the system. It was determined after making some adjustments that they would need to return the following day to make some adjustments to ductwork in the home (see attached invoice ******). Later on the evening of 1/23/25, the customer informed ********************************************* that they were still having the same issues even after the adjustments that were made. Peterman Brothers install manager opted to proceed with replacing the 60k BTU furnace with an 80k BTU furnace on 1/24/25. This was completed on 1/24/25 and Peterman Brothers believes this should resolve the customer's issues moving forward. ********************************************* is happy to say that we were able to assist in this matter and provide a resolution that improved the heating of the home. 

  Customer response

  01/27/2025

  Better Business Bureau:

  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this response/resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  
  

  Regards,

  **** *******

• Initial Complaint

  12/02/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  After a bad pipe leak, Peterman came to install ductwork and reinstall the ***** Since they installed ductwork, half the vents in my house are cold and no longer blow hot heat. They also said they would begin the work on a Monday, but didn't start until Tuesday which put my contractor behind and caused him to have to rethink the whole week's workflow. When I called to complain about the shoddy ductwork and the delay, I was supposedly connected to a customer complaint specialist (or something) who called me twice and then ghosted me and won't return my calls. When I called the main office, they said he was out for personal reasons. Fine, appoint someone else to my case. No, Peterman wouldn't do that. I want them to come back, properly install the ductwork, and connect me to someone who will actually help me.

  

  Business response

  12/06/2024

  Peterman Brothers was notified of the customer's complaint on 11/11/24. One of our Customer Experience team members made multiple attempts to contact during the week of 11/11-11/15 with no success. Customer then reached out and was unable to get in contact with the assigned customer experience team member. Notes were added to the assigned complaint task, however we unfortunately had not gotten back with customer yet. 
  
  On 12/2/24, the customer experience team member was able to connect with the customer and scheduled a warranty call for 12/4/24 to have a field supervisor come back out and re-evaluate the issues the customer is having with the work that was completed. On 12/4/24, field supervisor identified a supply run that needed to be ran to a bathroom and an additional supply run that seemed to be clogged. Return was built for 12/6/24 to perform these repairs under warranty. Peterman Brothers customer experience team will monitor this job and continue to work with the customer to bring this situation to a resolution. 

• Initial Complaint

  11/06/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On September 17, 2024, this Company allegedly checked the house I purchased to ensure the heating worked after the inspection came back that it did not. The service technician was clearly friends with the prior homeowner because it mentions his name several times and makes it seem like they are friends. The report is not incorrect in saying that the heating system turned on, because it did, however it did not produce heat. Less than one month later, we go to turn the heat on and no heat comes out. Their service person comes back and tells us we need a $1400 fix. The prior owner had a membership with this company that was still active during this time. All we are doing is asking them to agree to waive their fee ($95) to come to our house when in reality it was their negligence that missed this problem that should have been fixed by the prior owners. They keep telling us they are looking into it but have no notes on our invoice and have hung up on us when we ask actual questions.

  

  Business response

  11/14/2024

  A member of the Peterman Brothers customer experience was able to communicate with ******* and reviewed the situation with the service manager in charge of that department. Peterman Brothers was able to remove the diagnostic fee from this visit and did not end up charging the customer for this. ********************************************* communicated this with the customer on 11/7/24. 

• Initial Complaint

  10/11/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Poor install burnt up furnace after new install. Multiple times to contact, just make a ticket, no response. I paid 8k for new outside unit but they hooked it up so poorly it burned up my furnace and luckily not my house

  

  Business response

  10/23/2024

  Homeowner had system installed in June of 2022. Shortly after, Peterman Brothers stopped servicing the homeowner's area, but maintained a presence in the area for systems covered under a labor warranty. This system was covered by a labor warranty for 1 year post-installation, as seen in attached invoice. The labor warranty for this unit expired on 6/28/2023. Customer reported a part failure taking place in August of 2023. Part warranties can be supported by any licensed HVAC professional, and do not need to be serviced by the original installing company. 
  
  We have attempted to contact the homeowner to request the homeowner to send documentation from a licensed HVAC professional indicating that the failure occurred prior to June 28, 2023 or from a licensed professional indicating that the part failure was due to poor installation workmanship, but have not yet received any supporting documentation. 
  
  At this time, equipment failure occurred after the expiration of the Peterman Brothers labor warranty. Any failures of the equipment beyond that fall to the manufacturer and repair work can be performed by any licensed ************ provider in the area. Unfortunately, Peterman Brothers no longer operates in the area and cannot be that service provider.

  Thank you, 

  **** ****

  Customer Retention Manager

  Customer response

  11/03/2024

  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. 
  
  This unit was not installed properly initially on 6/22/22. The house got warm again in under a month. The second installation was on 7/8/22 and workers were here all day redoing the unit. Even though this new furnace I had to buy was out of the labor warranty, due to poor installation was the failure of the furnace and costing thousands of dollars. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ******* ******
  

• Initial Complaint

  10/09/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On October 7, 2024 I had Peterman Brothers *** ******* give me an estimate to replace my gas furnace which currently works and is 13 years old and my ac unit which does not. I wanted to know if it would be best to buy the ac unit and keep my existing furnace or replace them both. He asked me to give him a few minutes while he looked things over. During that time I had went upstairs. After about 5 minutes I heard a lot of what sounded like metal falling. I was tending to my granddaughter so I was unable to go back downstairs at that time. After a couple minutes he came back upstairs and showed me a picture and said well you have a duct separated and showed me a picture and said it looks like somebody just replaced your old system and left that stuff in your crawlspace then he continued to give me an estimate. I did not realize the picture was of my current duct work and somehow he pulled the duct work from the back of my furnace which caused it to separate from my intake vent and he needs to put it back onto my intake vent. I contacted Peterman Brothers and they had him call me today October 9, 2024 He is denying that he caused that. My duct work was fine until he came to give me an estimate. I want to warn anyone else who is about to use them that *** ******* is not an honest person & to not even fix what he caused! I do know that its probably not that hard to put the duct work back on the intake vent but to lie about it and not own up to it or to even try and make it right is very upsetting. If that is how Peterman Brothers does business buyers beware.

  

  Business response

  10/22/2024

  After careful review of job photos and discussion with the field professional that was in the home, Peterman Brothers has determined that the ductwork was already previously damaged prior to our arrival.  The noise that the customer heard during our evaluation was the furnace door falling to the ground accidentally. While Peterman Brothers feels it is not at fault for the current ductwork issues, we have been in communication with the customer and scheduled a return visit on 10/23/24 to re-evaluate ductwork issues and offer repair options to the customer. Photos of the damaged ductwork has been attached to this response. 

  Customer response

  10/23/2024

  Peterman Brothers reached out to me in regards to my complaint. They sent ****** out to my home on October 23, 2024 to connect my ductwork where it became knocked loose from my intake vent by *** *******. I am very happy that they fixed what was caused by one of their representatives. However I do not think I would ever hire them to do any work for me based on *** ******* lying about what had happened. If he lied about that I can only imagine what else he would lie about. I think that is something the company should definitely talk with the employees about. 

  Customer response

  10/28/2024

  Better Business Bureau:

  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this response/resolution is satisfactory to me. 

  Peterman Brothers reached out to me in regards to my complaint. They sent ****** out to my home on October 23, 2024 to connect my ductwork where it became knocked loose from my intake vent by *** *******. I am very happy that they fixed what was caused by one of their representatives. However I do not think I would ever hire them to do any work for me based on *** ******* lying about what had happened. If he lied about that I can only imagine what else he would lie about. I think that is something the company should definitely talk with the employees about. 
  
  
  

  Regards,

  ****** *****

• Initial Complaint

  10/01/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with the service I received from Peterman Brothers Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing regarding my heating and cooling systems.I purchased a ****** dollar **/furnace from Peterman Brothers that is still under warranty. On February 23, 2022, during extreme cold weather with outside temperatures at -9 degrees, I contacted them for urgent assistance because my home temperature had dropped to 50 degrees. I was informed that the earliest they could send someone was December 29, 2022almost a week later. Given their advertised 24-hour guarantee and my warranty, I expected much better service. My two small children were left freezing and shivering during this time. I had to pay another company to fix the issue which they did the same day.More recently, they came out October 1, 2024 about my 3-year-old ** unit, which I paid $****** for (including the furnace) and which came with a 10-year warranty. I was concerned about the humidity levels in my home, which had risen to 70%. During the visit, the technician, ****, adjusted the fan speed to help with the humidity but then attempted to sell me a $7,000 humidifier. I expressed that I did not want a humidifier; instead, I wanted the ** unit to operate correctly as it should. **** suggested that the unit I purchased was mediocre and that to effectively cool and manage humidity, I should have chosen a premium model. It is disappointing to realize that I was not informed that the system would not adequately meet my needs for both cooling and humidity control when I made such a significant investment. The humidity level is still at 69% in my home, after Even supposedly fixed it, and he charged me $85.00.Overall, I feel that Peterman Brothers has failed to provide adequate service and support for the products they sell, and I am seeking a resolution to these ongoing issues.I would like for Peterman to refund my money and fix the 15K **.Thank you for your attention to this matter.

  

  Business response

  10/02/2024

  Mr. Surratt,
   We thank you for your thoughts, the storm that has gone through the area this past weekend has caused many delays for many people with the outages and damages that have been done from the winds and rain. Our Customer Experience Coordinator and our scheduling department had reached out to you on 9/30 to help you with this unfortunate situation to work with you on this, the job was then canceled by you. We wish you the best. Peterman Brothers

  Customer response

  10/02/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 22367201, and have determined the response would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below. 
  
  The Peterman Brother representative referenced a Mr. Surratt. That is not my name. The winds and rain had nothing to do with the issue in my home. The issue is that the 15K AC unit that Peterman Brothers sold to me 3 years ago, along with a 10 year warranty, is not removing the humidity from my own, most likely due to it being oversized.

  The original AC in my home was 3 tons. Peterman Brothers installed a 3.5 ton AC unit. On Tuesday, October 1, 2024, Evan visited my home to examine the AC unit and candidly stated that the "blunt truth" (his words) was that the $15,000 AC system I purchased just three years is not very effective for removing humidity. He suggested that I should have opted for their premium system instead (which was never offered). Why would they sell me a $15,000 AC unit that does not adequately remove humidity? To later upsell me a $7,000 humidifier? Additionally, Evan repeatedly tried to sell me a $7,000 humidifier and their monthly service plan.
  
  It feels as though Peterman Brothers intentionally sold me a unit that is inadequate for humidity removal, only to later attempt to sell me a humidifier, despite my having a 10-year warranty on the AC unit. This raises significant concerns about the company's practices, especially considering the stark contrast between their 4.9/5 star reviews on Google and the 2/5 ratings on Yelp.
  
  Currently, the humidity in my home still rises to 70%, and I was charged $85 for Evan’s visit, which resulted in the suggestion to buy a $7,000 humidifier to resolve the issues caused by the subpar AC system I purchased for $15,000. Additionally, Evan's advice to simply lower the temperature in my home to freezing levels to combat the humidity seems impractical.

  
  Thank you for your attention to this matter.
  

  

  Business response

  10/03/2024

   We are terribly sorry to hear that you had an issue with your furnace on 12/23/22. At Peterman Brothers we value all our customers thus our appointments are first come, first served. We apologize that due to the severity of the winter storm, the number of people affected, and the fact that this hit right before the holidays we were not able to get you scheduled until 12/29/22. We are glad to hear that you were able to get back up and running before this date to keep your family warm. Per the notes on file, you were reimbursed for the labor costs when you had someone else come to the home sooner than we were able to, we are under the impression that this time frame was resolved to your satisfaction. There has been a call made to you on 10/1/24 to schedule a time to come out and repair the capacitor and a voice mail was left. Since you have a 5-year warranty that will be honored by us, the visit won’t cost anything to you. Please call our office to make this appointment. Peterman Brothers

• Initial Complaint

  09/20/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was charged and paid $17000 to Peterman Brothers. This price supposedly included a "free" AC Unit and yearly maintenance in a contract signed in March of 2023.The company and I scheduled a PM's appointment for a Saturday and I was told that they would be there (like the cable companies) between 9AM and 5PM. Peterman Bros cancelled three weeks in a row after I waited my whole Saturday afternoon. Then when they did decide to show, it was 6PM and I was already out and about with my family. Their contract is broken at this point by their actions. Then, I started doing the math for labor and products provided. I went online and look for the products and even found the most expense choices that they might have installed. I have found that they over charged me by at least $4500, knowing that they have a warehouse full of these products that are at least 30% less by standard mark up. They also included labor costs for four techs. I was at the house during the whole installation and only two techs were present.Peterman Brothers is blatantly robbing people by overcharging and not fulfilling their contracts.

  

  Business response

  09/25/2024

  Mr. ****************** you for your thoughts. On 3/9/23 you chose a full system to be installed at your home and part of this was the promotion to include a free AC unit, a savings of $3,121.0. Also, part of this contract you had chosen to pay extra for a 15/15 warranty and a Reme Halo UV light. (see attached invoice)
  Your installation did include many people from Peterman,most of them were not added to your invoice since they work behind the scenes,scheduling, CSR, parts department and others. However, we did send the CA to discuss your options, and the Service Professionals that did the installation. (see attached invoice from **)
  Our contract with you does include a free 24-month preventative maintenance membership, 3 visits a year, 1 furnace check, 1 AC check and 1 plumbing check. There is no guarantee that we can accommodate weekend visits, but we do try to make this work.
  Since we do business in the **** industry, it would be a disservice not to have stock in our warehouses. We have made it possible for the customers that we service to have these systems and parts on hand when needed.
  By todays industry standards, we are very competitive with other premium companies. However, if you compare us to a smaller company, you are going to find differences but that is what makes us unique.
  We want to thank you for choosing Peterman Brothers.

  Customer response

  09/25/2024

  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. 
  
  As you can see from the invoices that Petermen Brothers has included, they refuse to release a detailed invoice containing the pricing of the individual components supposedly used in this installation.  I took it upon myself to look up the different items used, and made sure that I found the highest prices listed.  When tallying this items up (I did send the Peterman company this list in an email), the costs do not add up.  Especially considering that Peterman Brothers has a warehouse full of these parts sold to them most likely below a standard 30% retail cost.  The fact remains that they overcharges me approximately $4500 within this "free" AC "deal".  And yet, they still refuse to release this invoicing, and rather keep submitting a vague contract.

  And the fact still remains that this all started because they are not holding up their end and "Peterman promise" by cancelling service appointments.  Three Saturdays in a row, Peterman Brothers wasted my time by scheduling their appts between 9am and 5PM only to cancel, reschedule and cancel again.  And/ or show up after 5PM.

  Here's an example of Peterman Brothers.  They called me to schedule a water heater servicing.  I asked if Saturday was available that week.  I was given the reply "no, all the service techs were busy", and they wouldn't be available for months.  Then, I said I might be interested in a tankless unit to be installed.  Almost instantly, I was given an appointment for that same Saturday.  

  I did get a quote of over $7000 for that installation.  The unit I ended up buying myself at Lowes for $1500.  I had a friend of the family install it and he told me that labor would cost probably $1500.  SO WHERE WAS THAT OTHER $4000 FOR???

  This company is blatantly ripping people off 
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** ********

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  09/17/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I switched jobs with 40 hrs PTO owed to me.

  

  Business response

  09/18/2024

  
  ****,
  When you were hired at Peterman Brothers, you were given a handbook for guidance while employed. (see attached acknowledgement) In the handbook it talks about the guidelines for giving notice when leaving the company, please see second attachment.

  Since there was no notice from you until the day you left the company, you are not eligible for the *** balance to be paid to you.

  Best Wishes, Peterman Brothers

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  09/17/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I had them come out to service (clean) my furnace and air conditioner. I was told I needed 2 parts on my furnace replaced . There was water sitting in my furnace. I was told a part needed replacement. Also was told air conditioner needed refrigerant (which turned out be only TRUE statement) parts were covered under warranty. Then he says it will cost me 900 dollars.. supposedly he cleaned the air conditioner. He did not !! He didnt even clean the water out of the furnace. Got a second opinion from the guy that installed it !! I was lied to by Peterman. He also had to reclean the air conditioner as peterman did a horrible job and didnt even clean the water upon the furnace ! I paid 118 dollars to be lied to and scammed. I would like my money back as I had to pay twice before because service was not performed properly and I also believe I was being scammed for $900 dollars for parts that are fine. I feel like this is a scam as I am senior citizen. I will never ever trust them again.The water in the furnace turned out to be ice buildup due to low refrigerant..

  

  Business response

  09/18/2024

  Ms. **************** you for speaking with our Customer Experience Coordinator.We are thankful we have customers like yourself that help us train our Service Professionals to be their best for our customers. We appreciate you accepting the resolution that was offered. We wish you the best. Peterman Brothers

• Initial Complaint

  08/30/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Our air conditioning system that we bought 4 years ago breaks about 3-4 times a year. We bought the extra coverage as a gold member to get service quicker than normal. The company is eating a week at a time to help get our air conditioning up and running even though we paid extra as a gold member. They are not at all concerned of those without air conditioning in 100 degree weather. They give excuse after excuse and do not have employees working the holidays. I have a child that is a heart patient and cannot be in a house that is 100 degrees at night. I want a refund so I plan on taking them to court.

  

  Business response

  09/03/2024

  *** and *****************,
   We received a very polite and professional call from **************** on Friday 8/30 at 8:11 pm. This was the first time we had heard of any problems at your home. According to our records, we do have you scheduled today for a visit. A Customer Experience Coordinator has been assigned to help you with any other concerns that may arise. Thank you for being a valuable customer.
  *********************************************

*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. ↩