Need Advice for Furnace Dispute

[Master Ed]

My mother (I guess considered elderly...) contacted Airstream Heating in Calgary to fix her furnace. She reached the owner who sent out a technician who told her she needed a new furnace. She received a written quote for a Carrier two-stage furnace and agreed to the install after he knocked a couple of hundred bucks off the cost.

Fast forward to after the install when she realized the furnace that was installed was not a Carrier, but a sister company Payne. After research, the furnace is only a one-stage and a lower-quality model. She was charged the same amount as the written quote without any discussion about a different model being installed.

She has repeatedly tried to contact the owner, but every time he gets upset, hangs up on her, says he's on a job in Kelowna, and won't listen to her concerns.

I tried calling the owner today and the exact same thing happened. He swore, get verbally abusive, called my mother a liar, and then hung up on me.

My mother had Fagnan furnace over to get a second opinion on the installation and they uncovered about 8 deficiencies that are not up to code, including not pulling a permit for the install.

My question is what is the best course of action? Go to the media for a consumer affairs story? Legal action? She is on a fixed income and not able to navigate the legal system without a lawyer though. Credit card dispute? Consumer complaint with a government agency?

I have sent the quote to the owner along with the deficiencies noted by Fagnan's with no reply. My second call to him this afternoon was hung up again.

Any advice?

[CaptainCrunch]

I think you do need to contact a lawyer, I doubt a news report is going to do all that much. Sue the bastard.

[justkidding]

If the credit card dispute is an option I would try that.

[Jason14h]

If you paid with a credit card charge it back for good and services not rendered. If you have a written contract and what was provided it will be easy.

It will then be up to the furnace company to challenge the chargeback with Visa/MC/Issuing bank and prove that the service they provide was what they charged for

I would email the Furnace company/owner and tell them you are going to be initiating a chargeback this week if they do not remedy the situation - That usually gets people to be more civil and to listen

[8 Ball]

Also call 311 and tell them no permit was pulled. That’s usually a fine.

[Master Ed]

Thanks for the opinions so far. Would love to sue him for the hassle but unless she can find a free legal service I don't think that's an option.

I'll probably send an email as suggested about the chargeback.

I didn't know the city could give fines for failure to pull a permit. Good angle to take for sure!

[Madman]

Originally Posted by Master Ed

Thanks for the opinions so far. Would love to sue him for the hassle but unless she can find a free legal service I don't think that's an option.

I'll probably send an email as suggested about the chargeback.

I didn't know the city could give fines for failure to pull a permit. Good angle to take for sure!

The guy sounds like a total deadbeat, do you really want him back in the house? If it were my mom I'd start the process instantly and turf that loser.

Don't know where your mom is located, but if its the Calgary area then only next call is Keith.

[Knightslayer]

They have pretty bad reviews online so doubt they'd remedy the situation on their own.

I would try the charge back option but depending on which credit card you're with might be hard. Some credit card companies like Capital One are a pain to deal with but others actually seem to wanna help their customers.

[Master Ed]

Originally Posted by Madman

The guy sounds like a total deadbeat, do you really want him back in the house? If it were my mom I'd start the process instantly and turf that loser.

Don't know where your mom is located, but if its the Calgary area then only next call is Keith.

We do not want him in the house. He gives off unstable vibes. However, if the chargeback happens I assume they would have to remove the furnace that they installed?

Keith? Details please! She is in Calgary.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Master Ed

We do not want him in the house. He gives off unstable vibes. However, if the chargeback happens I assume they would have to remove the furnace that they installed?

Keith? Details please! She is in Calgary.

I'd arrange to have the new company you choose remove the furnace and buddy can come pick it up from your driveway if he wants it back. Just make sure the new company does it respectfully without damage so he has no recourse.

[Master Ed]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I think you do need to contact a lawyer, I doubt a news report is going to do all that much. Sue the bastard.

Definitely at the top of my list. Any legal services in Calgary for elderly or people on a fixed income?

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by Master Ed

We do not want him in the house. He gives off unstable vibes. However, if the chargeback happens I assume they would have to remove the furnace that they installed?

Keith? Details please! She is in Calgary.

I’m sure someone here will post Keith’s (EVERLAST) info . When I needed urgent service on mine last winter, Keith was too busy so he recommended I call Chestermere Heating & Cooling and they were excellent. https://iheatchestermere.com

I’d do the chargeback angle too, but not give him the opportunity to fix it first. He’s already passed up that opportunity by hanging up and being a jerk. He sounds like the type to make getting it resolved a huge hassle, and I would want to deal with that, and get stuck with the correct furnace poorly installed.

[GGG]

When it’s all done I would do a lean check on your property. I assume that would be the end game for this guy if he doesn’t care about repeat business.

[Calgary14]

Step 1 is a chargeback on the credit card, that should be relatively simple since you can prove you paid for one thing and got a different one. Your credit card company will ask for the documentation so make sure you keep the original quote and take pictures of the installed furnace.

After that I would reach out to a reputable company like Chestermere Heating to try and fix that mess. I've dealt with them and they do good work.

[wireframe]

Originally Posted by Master Ed

We do not want him in the house. He gives off unstable vibes. However, if the chargeback happens I assume they would have to remove the furnace that they installed?

Keith? Details please! She is in Calgary.

Keith is a CP'er who does excellent furnace work. He cleaned my furnace last year and gave me a long lesson about what I needed to do for maintenance. For me, the lesson was probably more valuable than the cleaning.


https://homestars.com/companies/2808...my-furnace-guy

[RichieRich]

One of my parents had some furnace company in about ~3-4 years back to replace their ~25yr old failing unit, sorry can't remember the name. After 2 seasons it just didn't seem to be working quite right so they called a reputable furnace company in. They came in and left within a short time - their reason? Prior one had not pulled a gas permit; had not done good duct work; had many leaking high CO2 points; in general a crap job. That explained my parents headaches, lethargy, and other health issues. Anyways, short story is it got fixed and tuned properly, but a cr@p furnace job is literally putting that home-occupants life at risk.

Also via Keith we had him/Chestermere come in and do some work on our home furnace, and similarly friendly guy and aimed to educate me on better furnace operation and service. I'd recommend them.

[Shazam]

Hmm, I'd keep the one stage furnace though.

[Ahuch]

Originally Posted by RichieRich

One of my parents had some furnace company in about ~3-4 years back to replace their ~25yr old failing unit, sorry can't remember the name. After 2 seasons it just didn't seem to be working quite right so they called a reputable furnace company in. They came in and left within a short time - their reason? Prior one had not pulled a gas permit; had not done good duct work; had many leaking high CO2 points; in general a crap job. That explained my parents headaches, lethargy, and other health issues. Anyways, short story is it got fixed and tuned properly, but a cr@p furnace job is literally putting that home-occupants life at risk.

Also via Keith we had him/Chestermere come in and do some work on our home furnace, and similarly friendly guy and aimed to educate me on better furnace operation and service. I'd recommend them.

I actually partially blame the City for some of this, they do a really bad job with transparency for homeowners to be able to check on permits that tradespeople pull for you.

[Flames_Gimp]

definitely just do the charge back if a cc was used, i wouldn't warn them, it sounds likthe loser was already emailed. This was a complete scam imo, I'm not sure if this qualifies as criminal offense, but maybe a call to the police might be in order.
Its basically theft!

[Master Ed]

Originally Posted by Shazam

Hmm, I'd keep the one stage furnace though.

What makes you say this? I was under the impression the two stage is more efficient. Not worth the upcharge?