ComplaintsforThe A/C Guy of Tampa Bay, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  10/29/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  This complaint is about business practice, extreme overcharging (just my opinion), and taking advantage of customers. My outside heat pump would not run and called The ** Guy of Tampa Bay for service. They were the original installer in 2017. Service was performed on 10/29/24. Technicians were great and quickly diagnosed the problem and found it to be a Hard Start Kit which is essentially a capacitor/relay to help protect the control circuit card upon start up. I was advised that this was not installed by the manufacturer but by the company at time of original install so not covered by my 10 year extended warranty. My problem is a charge of $539 for the part. Researching same part from an internet retailer can be purchased for $51 + $7 shipping. I understand there is overhead and expense for the company to stock parts. But 1000% over retail cost is gouging at best. I'm sure company pays wholesale. In my case I'd like a refund $400 on the invoice I paid, which totaled $638 including service call. I think that is fair and would entertain a counter offer. I haven't contacted the company because I'm so livid mad I wouldn't handle the conversation very well. Let me add, this is the second time I have been taken advantage of by the company and is the impetus to file now. The reason? In September of 2022, my unit quit. It took this company three visits on three separate days (lost wages for me) and $1000 to find a refrigerant leak and recharge. Won't go into the whole story detail but on the second day the ********** found the leak 5 minutes after arriving but wouldn't fix the leak. Said another ********** would come the next day to fix. He said he didn't have time at that moment. On the third day the next ********** fixed the leak in about 10 minutes. The first ********** was a disaster. Three days and $1000 for what should have been 2 or 3 hours worth of work. Wow!

  

  Business response

  10/30/2024

  Thank you for sharing your feedback; we take it seriously and want to address your concerns openly and transparently. We understand your frustration regarding the pricing, and wed like to clarify the details to provide a fair perspective on the charges.

  To address your recent service, it costs the company around $150 to even go out to a customer on an emergency service callmuch like an ambulance versus a standard doctors visit. The part itself, while more costly than what you might find online, is closer to $100 in our costs due to warranties and stocking availability. The time at the job is also billed hourly to cover overhead, amounting to around $250.Please also understand that while wholesale prices online may seem lower, there is a significant difference between those prices and the costs we maintain to ensure a high standard of service, trained technicians, and readily available stock. This means that our profit on this service was only $138. However, we are willing to refund you $200, which goes beyond our profit and even cuts into our direct costs.

  For your experience in 2022, its unfortunate that you didnt reach out to us at that time, as we could have discussed any concerns and potentially addressed them to your satisfaction. We aim to provide transparent, valuable service to all our customers.

  Thank you for reaching out and allowing us the opportunity to address your concerns. We hope this resolution provides clarity and closes the matter amicably. We will issue the refund shortly and you should see it within 3-5 business days.

  Customer response

  10/30/2024

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

  Thank you for your explanation and I respect the prompt reply. I wish your industry would breakout these costs on the invoice because everyone I talk to agrees that they feel they are taken by unscrupulous contractors, which I know your company is not one. Your resolution is as good as a 5 star review on the BBB website if I could write one now but BBB rules prohibit that once a complaint is filed.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **** ******

• Initial Complaint

  06/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Date of transaction: May 5, 2023 Topic: Install of Energy Recovery Ventilation System (ERV)Issue: Installed system incorrect with accordance to manufacturers install manual. My fresh air intake is going into the supply duct and causing issues with it not being filtered. It should be going into the return. I've called the manufacturer and confirmed it's wrong. AC company also tried charging me more money that initially discussed but then later gave me refund for the deposit I put down of $1200. Either way, very unhappy with this company and not sure if I can trust them to correct my application. Would like my money back and I can possibly have someone else to fix this issue. I've contacted them to fix this but they are not responding as well. I have pollutants coming into my home and we are not feeling good in the home. I wanted something that would ventilate my home, not put pollutants into my home from the outside. Please help resolve asap and my kids especially don't feel good. They also sent me permits paperwork but it's for a HVAC system install which they didn't do. They did an ERV install. I called the town and they are not even registered with the town of ********** to do any work in the town. This company is not truthful and have even gone further to install something to worsen our air quality especially in the times we have now.

  

  Business response

  06/27/2023

  We have been in contact with this customer since the date of install and have not been ignoring them.  The original contract (see attached) was for $6895. We collected a $**** deposit and started work.  Normally we would not go 70 miles south so far out of our service area but *************** begged and went on an on about how she couldn't find anyone in her area to do the work.  Because her home doesn't have a ducted central return and is instead what in the industry is called "Free Return" we had to use alternative installation methods to connect the *** to her system but the method we used is fully approved by the manufacturer as an alternative method.  After work was completed *************** complained that she could "Smell the Trees" from outside.  It's an *** (fresh air ventilation machine) its designed to bring in outside air much like opening windows.  If their is a smell of trees outside it will bring it inside.  We advised that to remove that sensitive of a smell would require a more sophisticated filtering system for the Fresh air coming in than just the carbon filters that the manufacturer provides in the ***.  She didn't want to do that and then started claiming we overcharged her and that she only ever agreed to **** and insisted the **** should be credited back.  We agreed to do this in an attempt to resolve this but advised that if we did this we could no longer service her.  But then it just got even more hostile.  We offered her two options.  She could have us come back and fix /change whatever she didn't like about the original install to complete the work of the original contract to her satisfaction.  Or We could remove the unit and refund 100% of her money.  After this offer was made she wanted us to come back and install a more sophisticated filtration system for the fresh air at no cost which we informed her we could not do.  It was becoming clear that this customer was unreasonable and that doing that would probably still result in us giving back all her money and then we would have done even more work beyond the scope of our original contract, If we were so terrible why did she want us to do more work for her?.  That's when this complaint was filed.  Since then we have offered her the two original options but this time offered that we would refund her money and leave the *** in place and she could get someone else to do whatever she felt needed to be done with it.  Who else gives a 100% refund and lets you keep the product?  Maybe on a coffee or low dollar food at a restaurant item but show me where anyone else will do that on a $6800 product.  We offered this to *************** on Friday June 23rd.  It took her till today 6/27 to give us an answer but after she gave us her decision she was issued a credit back to her credit card for the remaining difference of $**** so that she has now paid us nothing and still has our ***.  ****** learned, if someone cant find someone to do the work for them there is probably a very good reason.

  Customer response

  07/14/2023

   
  Complaint: 20206632
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I haven't received my money back yet.  *********** actually sent me an email saying they will refund me although that I put a dispute into my credit card that they can't at the moment until the dispute is taken off.  I called my card already and they said that's not true.  Today I am calling the dispute department directly. But in the meantime, I need this case reopened until I get my money back.  I have huge issues that they did in my home and the attached permit they also provided is for an HVAC which they never installed. They installed an ERV (Energy Recovery Ventilator).  They are pure scammers honestly. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

  

  Business response

  07/26/2023

  Yes we have not been able to issue credit for this because ************* has entered a dispute with her credit card company.  The minute she did so we were locked out of being able to issue a credit as the funds were withdrawn from our account and are being held be the merchant processor pending the result of the dispute.  I had attempted to reverse this and issue a credit but my processor would not let me do so until the dispute has been resolved.   Like wise ************* should not have had to pay her credit card until the dispute is resolved as this is the standard practice for credit card disputes.  When the dispute is removed or resolved and I am able to I will issue a refund but until one of those things occurs I'm not able to do anything.

  Customer response

  07/27/2023

   
  Complaint: 20206632
  
  I am rejecting this response because: the attached is not a permit for ERV. It's a permit that they created on a document of theirs for an HVAC system which this company didn't even install.  The attachment isn't even an actual permit from the town, let alone documentation for something they didn't even install.  This has nothing to do with the job being done incorrectly as well. The contractor hooked up my ducts in the wrong supply/return, can't open the **** fresh air duct wasn't ran out to the outside, etc....  On top of it they didn't take out a permit but I was advised by the town that it's not mandatory. It's a matter of the fact that the job was incorrectly done.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

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