Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/17/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I do NOT recommend this company. I called them about my washing machine not spinning and they came out the same day (12/18) charging a $150 diagnostic fee. They diagnosed my washing machine with a weak motor and directed me to call ** as the motor was under 10 year warranty. I did that, they ordered the part and came back out on 1/2 to install new motor. The owner/tech replaced it within 15 min (I paid $175 labor cost), put the washing machine on a test cycle and left. Of course as soon as he left the washing machine wouldnt spin as my original problem. I called and called, hoping he would come back out immediately. Of course they did not and couldnt figure the problem. The following day they called back and said it must be the clutch and directed me to call ** again. I did and ** pretty much said the clutch was sent with the motor and A Appliance was trying to rip me off. I called A Appliance back told them this and they then ordered the clutch themselves. Of course it took over a week to come back to install the clutch. (1/10) when the owner/tech came out to install the clutch he said it wasnt the clutch, the tub had to be replaced. Due to that being over $500 to replaced, he recommended replacing. Which I agreed with. He said he had a few deals he could over. The first one was a smaller washing machine with a large dent for over $600. I said I have a family of 4 and needed something bigger so he sent me $2,000 washing machine. I said I couldnt afford it and asked for the $175 in labor back as a refund. Of course I didnt hear back so then I called about it again and its been a week and Ive heard nothing. I tried to give them the chance to do right but refunding me labor for a problem that never existed (the motor being weak) and was super patient over the month I didnt have a working machine. I highly recommended using another company for any appliance repairs.

  Business response

  01/23/2024

  ******************* had a bad motor that would not do anything. Just stayed in sensing mode never filling with water not agitating nothing I replaced. The bad motor started the cycle. The washer filled up started agitating which it did not do before because it had bad motor warranty under ** That sends the motor from ** I can provide the claim number to prove there was no clutch sent for Miss ******** job in ** also has paperwork on this job. She was never charged a second time she was charged $175 minimum labor to install the motor had I not installed and replaced a bad motor we wouldve never known it had a bent tub due to later her telling us she washed pillows before this problem occurred having a really bad that a balance load and bent the tub, we told her we would apply that to delivery and all the way which would make it free so it was applied but she didnt like anything we had same size washer she had wasnt what she wanted so we went to the best we had speed queen, she said she couldnt afford  I went above and beyond try to get her a washer the same day but she wasnt happy with anything we had including the same size washer. She currently had for $500 delivery and Haulaway is usually $200. Also Offered her same-day delivery

  Customer response

  01/23/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  This response was 100% a lie. This company is trying to justify their wrong. My motor was never bad. My washing machine did the same exact thing the first time they came out as it did the consecutive times it came out. They made up a lie that I put pillows in my washing machine. I literally have phone record proof of me calling them back to back after they so called fixed my machine. They never installed the clutch and they are claiming they did. ** has phone records of all this. They are also claiming they offered me the same size washing machine which I can prove they did not through text messages and also through proof in the model numbers of the machines. They did not go over and beyond because their only option was for me to buy a new machine after they couldnt diagnose my washing machine correctly. It is honestly a shame that a business can get away with this.

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

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  12/13/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Placed a service call with A Appliance Repair (AAR) for non-working hot water heater on 10/20/22. Technician *************************** stated that the propane gas unit had to be replaced. Signed contract for the replacement of 40-gallon hot water heater (Rheem) which was installed on 10/24/22. Total cost was $1,148 for service call and replacement.On 11/22/22, the hot water heater quit working. I called AAR the morning of 11/23/22 and same technician returned but was unable to get the pilot to re-light. He told me (an 83-year old woman) that I needed to contact ***** to find out why this unit wouldn't work. When I talked to ***** and gave them the model information of the unit AAR installed, ***** told me that AAR had installed a natural gas hot water heater instead of the required propane heater. I relayed information to ***'s technician and he stated he was going to call ***** back to discuss and contact me with the plan to correct - no hot water over the holiday.Contacted AAR on 11/28/22 and woman stated that they understood that they made an error and needed to replace the unit and that the technician was looking for a replacement but didn't think I really needed a 40-gallon tank. I stated that the contract was for a 40-gallon replacement. The woman stated she completely understood, it was their error and the heater would be replaced on 12/5/22.AAR did not show up to replace the heater on 12/5/22 and has not contacted me since that date after numerous messages went unanswered. My son contacted technician on 12/6/22 and technician answered the phone as he did not recognize my son's number. Technican stated he had the replacement and was going to fix it but would not commit to a timeline. He hung up on my son three separate times.After over two weeks of no hot water and no contact from AAR, I was forced to contract with another company to replace unit. The prior install was determined to have been unsafe (no venting, no drip pan in a 2nd floor install).

  Business response

  01/04/2023

  *********************************** called our office on 10/20/22 for service on her hot water heater.  My receptionist ***** spoke with ************************* and informed her we were booked out a week  for service.  ***** then reached out to me explaining that our long time customer ************************* was in need of service quickly,  I told ************ would get to her that day 10/20/22.  I went to Mrs. *************************** by 2:30 that day.  I found the pilot light was out so I relight it , unfortunately it went out the next day and Mrs. ********** called again on Thursday.  I took my personal day off Friday 10/22/22 and made it a priority ************************ had hot water ASAP. I ordered a hot water heater after confirming  with Mrs. *********** the gas type, saying it was Natural gas.  No where on the original hot water heater were there readable *************** .  The tank was so badly rusted the bottom fell off as I removed the old tank

  ****** offered to help with solutions for it being the wrong hot water heater type.  Mrs. ********************* got involved and became aggressive and rude to *************  His number is on the complaint to the BBB.  

  Customer response

  01/12/2023

  Good afternoon

   

  *************** on behalf of my mother, ***********************************, to the above referenced complaint that was registered with the Better Business Bureau of ********.  Please understand that my mother is 83 years old and depends on help from her family in cases such as the problem that she has had with A Appliance Repairs (AAR) recent installation of a hot water tank.  The following is additional information that we wish to provide as we do not agree with the response that was provided from AAR but are delayed in getting copies of proper permitting and an invoice from the second vendor,  ************, who has corrected the issues created by AAR (a cancelled check has been provided for PMK invoice copy is forthcoming as my mother is unable to scan this documentation electronically).  The second installation was paid for by myself as my mother was not able to financially cover the duplication of such costs.  I am forwarding below the additional information in response to the vendors claim on behalf of *********************************** that we would like considered for this complaint:

   

  I am rejecting the information provided by the appliance company as no resolution has been provided related to this complaint. 

   

  I hired A Appliance Repair (AAR) in October as they are advertised to be properly licensed to perform work under a Contractors license in the State of ******** that requires a Master in heating and ventilation.   The respondent to this complaint (the technician) does not appear to be the license holder or the owner of this company.   The license is held by *********************************** under ** license #**********.   This license holds a required experience level, by law, for work to be safely and accurately performed on my property for situations such as this one.    The technician states in his response that upon coming to the property and working with the equipment, he apparently did not know the difference between a natural gas line and a propane tank as the fuel source for this water heater replacement.   This is something that any properly trained technician would know.   AAR technician, *******, never asked me what the fuel source was for the water heater during his initial visit to diagnose the repair.   He did, however, state on his initial invoice (10/20/22) that maybe the gas tank was refilled causing the pilot light to go out.  A propane water heater is sourced by a tank that is refillable, but a natural gas water heater is not.   It is sourced by a gas line into the home from a natural gas supply company and is not refillable, therefore, it appears from his initial service notes that the technician was very much aware that this was sourced from a propane tank. 

   

  The State of ******** (and most states) require a gas fitters license and a gas permit to be pulled if work is being done on any type of equipment involving natural gas.   As technician, ***************************, believed that he was working on a natural gas water heater, please have AAR provide the copy of the gas permit which would have been required to be pulled for performance of and inspection of the work performed in the home and a copy of the proper credentials to perform work on gas equipment.  It is clear that AARs technician erroneously ordered and installed the wrong type of equipment.

   

  Additionally, when the technician returned to my home because the newly installed water heater failed to heat, AARs ****************** provided me with the information off of the installed tank and told me (his 83-year old customer) to call the manufacturer to find out what was wrong with the tank and get back to him with what they told me.  He should have made this call himself.   As stated earlier, the woman at the manufacturer immediately knew from the serial number information provided that the equipment was a natural gas water heater and stated that the installer had installed the wrong type of heater.   If the manufacturer knew this information from a two-minute phone call, why wouldnt a service professional know what type of water heater was required from the initial diagnostic service call when he determined it needed to be replaced. 

   

  My son reached out to AAR when they refused to answer any of my calls or return any of the many messages I had left with their office after finding out their installation was in error leaving me without hot water for several weeks.   AAR also refused to talk to my son once he identified himself as such and would not commit to any resolution of their error (at one point the AAR technician stated he hadnt made any money off of this job and I could go find another company to fix).  AAR has not refunded monies paid for the hot water heater installation so that I could have this improperly installed water heater replaced.    My son told the company that if they didnt provide a plan of how and when they would restore hot water to my home after numerous no-shows, he would be required to hire another company to re-do the work properly and with the required permits at AARs expense.   There was no response and has not been any subsequent communication whatsoever from AAR to myself or my son.

   

  The only acceptable resolution is the repayment of monies in the amount of $1,600 for the cost of replacing AARs improperly installed equipment.     Copies of cancelled checks are attached showing the replacement cost as well as pictures of the improperly installed equipment by AAR.  The work performed by *************************** was that of an improperly trained and unlicensed person under another persons license (perhaps a family member).  He did not pull the required permits, did not know how to diagnose the type of equipment required, and the equipment that he installed was not properly vented in the home causing a situation that could have caused damage to myself and to my home.  

   

  In addition, as the business licensee is not taking this problem seriously, I am also reaching out to file a formal complaint with Virginias *********************************************************** (****) as the workmanship and inability to meet licensing requirements on the work performed indicates that fines and oversight are required by the State of ******** licensing board. 

   

  I hope that this information will be taken into consideration regarding the status of my complaint to the Better Business Bureau.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if there is any additional information that can be provided.

   

  Sincerely,

   

  *************************** (son) on behalf of ***********************************

   

   

  Business response

  02/06/2023

  Company: A Appliance Repair
  Consumer: **********, Carolyn  
  
  This e-mail is to notify you that you currently have a new message with BBB in regards to complaint #******** 

  There are two sides to every story. I have pass this message on to my business attorney. He is going to take over from here and take it into civil matters being that he is declamation of character of myself and my company we have gone above and beyond and she had a budget of $1000 so we basically did the job for free for her at a professional level had the hot water heater installed the very next day off of what she said was natural gas as he attach the original invoice written natural gas with her signature because the original hot water heater was 30+ years old and did not have a label tag or anything to go off of, so any  Senior technician is going to ask the homeowner as I did and after she realized the mistake, I offered to supply the propane, hot water heater and only charge labor to put it in but he is taking this a little too far saying Im not the owner Im not licensed I have over 20 certificates and licenses so my attorney will be taking over this case from here. Thank you, BBB for trying to help with this matter. 

  
  

  A Appliance,

   

  ******

  Customer response

  02/09/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  A Appliance has not provided any proof of proper licensing required in the state of ******** under the respondent for the work performed in my home as requested to the BBB.
  
  The business has not provided an application or completed gas permit required by the state of ******** for the work performed in my home (removal of the propane heater).
  
  It is a fact that the technician removed a propane water heater from my home - it is completely irrelevant the age of the old tank.   In addition, their invoicing (attached) clearly states in his initial assessment that he believed the pilot may have gone out when the tank was filled so it is clear that he was aware that the gas source was propane a propane gas source is the only source with a 'tank.  Regardless, the company should be knowledgeable enough to know what equipment they are removing to take out a propane water heater and replace it with the same.   The technician is aware but refuses to admit that he took out a propane appliance and erroneously replaced it with the wrong equipment, and I am disputing that I provided any guidance to him.
  
  Any experienced and knowledgeable technician would easily know the type of equipment being removed and he never asked an 83 year old woman how to remove and install a water heater.   That is what they were paid to do.  He did discuss with me initially that the pilot light may have gone out when the propane gas source was recently refilled; this was written on the initial assessment invoice that is  attached and highlighted.
  
  I am disputing that anything was ever stated that the tank was natural gas and it was clear to see that a propane tank source was at the property and no natural gas lines were there to hook up the tank.   Again, It is outrageous to place this claim on an 83 year old woman.  Due to strict permitting requirements, any licensed technician clearly should have known what fuel source he was working with if he had a gas license and proper training.
  
  There was never a budget established to work within and would have no bearing on the fact that what was contracted was not performed properly.   I contracted for a properly licensed contractor to come to my home and replace a non-functioning hot water tank.  *********** provided the price to do this, it was agreed, and the contractor clearly did not perform the work properly to include installing equipment that was too tall and hitting the rafters.  In addition, the drain  pan was removed without a new drain pan installed.  Vent line was jammed in installation and crooked. 
  
  Once the error was found, A Appliance repeatedly stated they made a mistake to both myself and to my son and were working to replace the equipment but never returned calls or showed up at the scheduled appointments to fix the problem.   At that time, I was forced to get a second contractor to repair the damage done by A Appliance of which I am asking for reimbursement.   Those invoices are also attached again.
  
  Any offer beyond this to fix the matter is a complete fabrication by the respondent.  
  
  I am asking the BBB for the respondent to provide a copy of the 20+ licenses and certification stated in their possession, a copy of the license that they performed the work in my home (State of VA contractor master license and gas permitting license), a copy of the gas permit applied by A Appliance and a response from the actual licensee that A Appliance Repair is registered and owned by ***************************** (*****) **************************** father,not the son.    I believe that the owner may not even be aware of the dangerous situation that *************************** caused in my home under his fathers license. 
  
  I am filing with ******* to ensure that the licensee is properly charged and disciplinary proceedings against the licensed are requested.   ****************** can bring his attorney at that time.   
  
  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. ↩