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California - 5/02 (AHS-9). I have a problem with American Home Shield. We have extreme sediment build-up in our hot water heater. AHS identifies this as a limitation of liablity in Section E, Item 6, and thus contradicts what is said to be covered in Section C, Item 2. They charge $35 per visit and tell you the problem is yours not theirs to correct. They also just sent out a request for me to renew with them when the policy expires in July. I won’t renew, but I will let as many people as I can know about the type of warranty AHS offers. You pay $750 for a year’s coverage and pay $35 for any service call you request, then they say it’s not covered. That’s about it -- bait and switch. One section says you’re covered, the other section says you’re not. Essentially, I bought a piece of paper filled with contradictions. I would not recommend AHS.
Texas - 4/02 (AHS-8). I’ve had trouble with American Home Shield also. I called customer service to get a plumber to my home for a leak within my crawlspace, under one of my bathrooms. I told the customer service rep, amd I called the plumber to let them know my crawlspace had standing water in it. The plumber came to my house, all 5 feet, 300 lbs. of him, looked in my crawlspace, and told me what I’d already told him and American Home Shield. He wouldn’t fix it because he didn’t have “access.” I suppose I should saw the floor out of a room so he could get into the crawlspace? After that, I called them again about my air conditioner. I grilled the customer service rep for at least twenty minutes to determine if I really had coverage for my air conditioner. She gave me an “across the board” run down, which would have seemed to cover just about everything in an air-conditioning system. I’ve been without air conditioning for about a week while a switch had to be ordered. This is Texas, and air conditioning is not a luxury. I got a call yesterday to tell me don’t cover freon. I wish someone could tell me when freon no longer became part of an air-condition system. It would appear the contractors they use are defined as “lowest-cost” contractors. A home warranty from American Home Shield is a cost you will never realize a benefit from.
? - 4/02 (AHS-7). I am forwarding this e-mail in reference to an employee of American Home Shield in the hopes of getting some type of response from a customer advocate:
I have just had the most frustrating, the most infuriating interaction with one of your supervisors, a Ms. Beverly Reynolds. I have not been treated in this fashion by a “Customer Service” representative in my memory. She was rude, uncaring, and belligerent. She consistently shouted me down and refused, literally refused, to allow me to speak. When I tried to call back to reach the voice mail of someone within the company hierarchy, she intercepted the call from the representative, stated there was no one else I could talk to, then refused to return me to the rep who was attempting to connect me with the appropriate resource within your company. The fact you have someone of this nature in your employ, let alone as a “supervisor,” leads me to have serious concerns as to the quality and philosophy of your company. Clearly, I will be communicating my reservations with my mortgage company that initially sponsored this relationship, as well as any consumer advocate entities if this issue and the inciting cause of my telephone call, my environment control system, are not addressed.
? - 3/02 (AHS-6). I, too, am having a nightmare. I called American Home Shield (a division of ServiceMaster) to report a problem with my furnace on March 6, 2002. They sent a service repairman out on March 7. The service repair company they sent was Home Care Services - ARS (a division of ServiceMaster). After a long conversation with the service repairman I met with, he informed me it was going to cost me $1,290 out of pocket to repair the covered item. He also informed me the company American Home Shield was a rip off. This coming from a man who works for ServiceMaster, which owns both companies. They arrived and said the sytem would have to be replaced, they were not sure if they could find a system like the one I had to replace it with, I would have to have some remodeling done to fit a new system, and they were going to have to research and see what they could find out. After repeated calling over the next few days, I re-called AHS on March 11 to complain about not having any heat. They upgraded the call to an emergency and sent a new company, Jones Plumbing - Heating and Air, which came out, looked at the system, and also said it had to be replaced. They said they would call AHS to see if they could find a unit to replace it with. On March 13, I called AHS to get an update. They said they were still waiting to hear back from Jones Plumbing. I called them myself to inquire what was going on. I was given the owner’s cell phone number and told to call him. I talked to the owner, and he said he was on the other line and would call me back. I did not hear back from him the rest of the day. I called him the next day and was told the same thing. On March 15, I called AHS and complained about what was going on with this company. The AHS rep tried to call to get the information herself. When she came back on the line, she said they hung up on her three times then told her to call the owner. She talked to the owner and was informed the system would be installed Monday, and they would call to set up the time. I never received a call. On March 18, I called to complain again to AHS. They informed me they would research the problem and call me back. A couple of days later, I got a message on my answering machine offering me a buy out on the furnace. When I called on March 22 regarding the buy out, they said okay and transferred me to another department. The lady I talked to told me I could not take a buy out on the furnace and there were no notes of anyone offering me one. On March 26, I found I had forgotten to delete the voice mail from Christ stating that AHS was offering me a buy out and to call them. When I called them back, they again stated there were no notes on anyone offering me a buy out on the furnace. I then informed her the person who called was Chris, and I have a copy of the message on voice mail that is dated and time stamped. Now they are trying to research how much they are going to pay for the buy out. The total cost of installing the system, including my out-of-pocket expense and what AHS was going to pay was $2,200. I contacted a local heating and air company and was told he would install a Coleman forced-air furnace for $1,300 parts and labor with a five-year parts warranty.
Update: AHS never replaced the furnace. I had to have someone come in and do the work. The total cost was $1300 -- $10 more than AHS over cost -- plus, I received a 5-year warranty with the one I purchased instead of a 30-day warranty for the one AHS was wanting to install. Come to find out, AHS never could find a heater that would work. The did, however, offer me a buy out of $575.11. Now, they are calling me on a daily basis because my warranty is up for renewal. I told them I was advised by an employee of ARS not to renew my contract because AHS is a rip off. They did not like to hear that, but I found out the hard way it is true.
Web Mistress Note: The following was posted on Yahoo’s ServiceMaster Message Board: AHS can’t afford ARS 04/15/02 08:34 pm
by: adam463 Msg: 28039 of 28050 Went on a service call today for an A/C repair at a home that was covered by an AHS post-purchase homeowner protection warranty. While on the phone with the AHS service rep, I asked why they don’t use ARS (my former employer) for their service calls on air conditioners. The answer: “ARS costs too much.” I am not kidding! I guess each division has to look out for their own numbers.
? - 1/02 (AHS-5). I have some serious complaints about American Home Shield. I feel they are not only unprofessional and uncaring about their work, but in some cases dealing with me I have felt they were deliberately fraudulent. Without exception, dealing with AHS has been stressful, unsuccessful, unproductive, and expensive with no return when one calls for “service.” The last episode involved waiting nine days for a plumbing stoppage unclogged and kitchen pipes under the sink to be fixed. I am still waiting for “service.” All I get are excuses. I have an 83-year- old mother and a 10-month-old granddaughter living in my house, and we have been without kitchen water for nine days now. We have to have food delivered because we have no way to wash dishes or access water. Every time we have to deal with AHS, we have a service nightmare. My company’s business is working with major corporations in terms of helping them provide the best sales and service. If we used AHS as a case study, it would be the all-time worst negative model. I don’t know how these people sleep at night. So unprofessional and, in many cases, unethical.
North Carolina - 10/01 (AHS-4). My husband and I are embarking on what could be a drawn-out battle with this company to replace the furnace in our house. I’ve just begun exploring our options, and your site is a great place to start. What really bothers me is that I bought the company’s line and paid for their policy at closing. I was “buying peace of mind.” All major systems are covered. Yet I have a malfunctioning furnace that isn’t covered because of the deceptive, ambiguous language they use in the fine print of their coverage contract.
Tennessee - 2/00 (AHS-3). We, too, found termite damage in our home after closing (and a clear-of-termites letter). This company was Chief Termite Service out of Memphis. I have also had a terrible time making American Home Shield live up to their contract and canceled it. This type of consumer fraud can be stopped, and I will never deal with any of the companies owned by ServiceMaster.
Arizona - 12/99 (AHS-2). I have been having difficulty with American Home Shield Warranty Co., a subsidiary of ServiceMaster regarding air conditioning, heating, evap cooler, and ductwork for the past five years. I basically have no heating or cooling. I have called, written the company, BBB, Attorney General’s Office, Dept. of Insurance, Registrar of Contractors to no avail. An attorney is very expensive. The $5,000 to $10,000 for an attorney would fix my air conditioner.
Tennessee - 12/99 (AHS). We’ve had a bad experience with ServiceMaster as well. We had a “batch-style” garbage disposal (you wash the food down, then insert a metal turnstop which activates the motor). It was a 1/2 hp system and stopped working. We called in AHS [American Home Shield] who responded to the call with a less-than-worthy service technician. The only available batch model was a 3/4 hp. They stated they would replace it with a switch model that was 1/2 hp (“matching” the existing); but since the contract does not cover ancillary items such as electrical, we were SOL. We were around and around with them that they were not replacing the like item. We had a batch system and could not accommodate a switch system without electrical work. They stated they were replacing a like item in features with the 1/2 hp. We went so far that we threatened to sue, and they cut us a check for $88. This was a second incident and certainly our last in dealing with the company.
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