ComplaintsforMascot Mechanical, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  09/20/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Mascot HVAC charged mark up and other hidden and undisclosed fees for air conditioning maintenance. Based upon the work order sent to me by the technician (after the appointment) and the verbal estimate or charges provided (before the appointment), the charge for the appointment should have been around $500 to $550. Mascot called me for payment after the appointment becuase I was in **** visiting my son but my dog sitter was at our home for the appointment. I requested an itemized invoice and payment link but was told Mascot does not provide invoices and could send a payment link. I then asked for the amount of the charges. When I was told it was 704, I said that I absolutely must see an invoice. Thats when the technician sent a work order. Nowhere did the workorder authorize a 30-100% markup for parts and material. I talked to the technician who informed me that he spent ~$78.00 for a sealant and insulation needed to complete the job. He said he gave the office the receipt. I spoke to a woman I now believe to be ***** ******. She then stated they include a mark up and did not care that it was not in the workorder or otherwise shared and that they add another fee (which isnt disclosed in advance). After I emailed ***** asking for an invoice, she demanded immediate payment or she threatened to put a lien on my house and to take me to small claims court. I paid under protest, sent a ********** letter and demanded a refund for the undisclosed charges and for any padding of the technicians time. The tech told me that the office might have charged more time than he was present our rounded up his time. I am unsure of this, but I am sure that Mascot was dishonest and charged undisclosed fees, and made threats to get payment. Mascot refused to provide receipts for materials too. They should not have an A+ rating and should adjust the invoice to remove hidden and unapproved items on the invoice.

  Business response

  09/23/2024

  The call came in as A/C having issues- drip pan under the unit and drain lines need to be purged.  Upon arrival the technician insulated condensate lines, blew out the blockages and had to leave the premises to go get some materials.  He glued back fittings and used other material he had on truck along with what he had picked up to complete the job.  I have enclosed our work order that says the first hour is $205.00 along with pictures of the repair.  When the office added up the time he spent on the call  he was on the call 3.5 hours, we addid all materials purchased and used from our truck and that totalled $162.25 for material.  She then demanded an itemized of our cost breakdown of what we spent without mark ********* This is not customary to give to any client because everyone in this industry marks up material.  I refused to give this to her and she said she would not pay.  I did say that if she didn't pay I would lien her house and take her to small claims court.  We had completed the work and she was refusing to pay.  If she wanted a quote up front she should have asked for a quote.  

   

  On another note, ******* ****** has not worked for us for over 8 years.  Mascot Mechanical has been merged to a new company name of Mascot ********************** and our address is not on *********, It is **********************************************

  Customer response

  09/23/2024

  I am rejecting this response because it includes at least one blatantly false statement.  Ms. ****** states that I had refused to pay.  This is absolutely false.  I stated that I would, in fact, pay for the reasonable, necessary and disclosed up-front costs.  I also asked for a payment link multiple times before Mascot sent a link.  I did ask for an itemized invoice, but I did not ask for the mark up amount to be specified in the invoice.  I asked for the actual cost of materials used at my home because I was aware that the service technician had purchased insulation to use in my attic for the job and told me he sent his receipt to the office. 

   

  After the mocked-up invoice was sent, I again said that I would pay under protest while I considered my options, including with the BBB and under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practice Code.  I immediately paid upon receipt of the payment link.  Please let me know if you'd like screen shots that corroborate this.

  I included in my original documents screen shots of two separate emails where I stated I would pay.  If you would like the complete sequence of emails--including several where I asked for a payment link, I can also send screen shots of those emails.  

  In my opinion, Ms. ****** has made this worse by lying by the sequence of events -- particularly when there is a written record to show she is not being truthful.

   

  Business response

  09/23/2024

  I have attached my correspondence to the client in hopes of preventing he said she said scenrio.  She was refusing to pay without our cost breakdown which is proprietary information.  So yes I did say if she refused to pay the invoice then I would lien her house and take her to small claims court. I was not going to give her our cost on materials and truck stock NO company does that.  The invoice that she would have received when we sent her the link to pay does not look like our accounting invoice but says the basic same things as what she received and what she was emailed.   This has never been a problem with her in the past.  We have not changed any of our practices.  We have a central dispatcher ****** that is not responsible for ********.  ******* prices the items that she gets off the invoice and when she gave her the price items from truck stock were left off.  The bill for truck stock should have been ******, the techs time sheet actually showed 4.5 hours and she was only billed for 3.5 hours.  The invoice we requested her to pay was actually less than it should have been because she wouldn't pay the tech prior to leaving and then the office needed to get in touch with him to get all the materials he used.  He had only sent us a receipt for what he bought, not what he used off of his truck.  She is stating I sent you the *** invoice which I did because we can don't  get a copy of the invoice submitted to her on simple swipe until the invoice has been paid, which is then entered into our accounting system which I provided as backup.  She kept asking for backup to the amount purchased by our tech, which we were not willing to provide our raw cost so I felt that she was not going to pay for the work that had been completed.

  Customer response

  09/23/2024

  I am rejecting this response because Mascot continues to suggest that I stated I would not pay. As you can see from the correspondence Mascot has included, this is not true.  Ms. ****** was content to bend the truth until she I called her out.  That is truly disappointing behavior for the CEO of a woman owned business (or any business for that matter). 

  It looks like Mascot attached some of the correspondence, but did not include everything, unless I missed something.  There are other emails where I just said "please send payment link" or please send receipt for materials technician said he purchased.   There is also an email where I questioned Ms. ******* ability to charge both technician time and a service fee to pick up materials as double counting.  I did not see that correspondence in her/Mascot's latest submission.

  As to the markup issue, the work order states I will be charged for "materials".  It specifies the trip charge too. However, the work order says nothing about any markup.  I did not expect to get a materials markup in addition to technician time at 135/hour.  The "fix" for Mascot is simple: state up front you are charging materials and a markup of x percent. Plenty of businesses do this.  Mascot has chosen not to do so for whatever reason. 

  Unfortunately, Mascot's most recent communication to the BBB and to me raise another issue.  The time sheet Mascot attached to Ms. ******* email to me is not accurate or Mascot tacked an hour onto the time.  I spoke by phone with the technician last Friday on a couple of occasions.  **** (the tech) said that he calls in his time but does not know what Mascot does with it and noted that Mascot might add extra time, but he was not certain of that. However, I do know when the tech was at my home based upon his call to me letting me know he had arrived and when my dog sitter told me he left.  It was not a 4.5-hour service call.  

  ****, the technician, called me at 8:57 a.m. to let me know he had arrived at my home. My dog sitter, who was here the entire time, said that the tech left here before 12:30.  That does not equal 4.5 hours. Moreover, during part of that time, the tech had gone to a store to buy insulation (based upon what the tech told me last Friday).  I am not sure how long he was gone to shop, but that time is included in the 8:57 a.m. arrival to before 12:30 departure.  Plus, I spoke to the technician and at no time did he say he was at my home for 4.5 hours.  **** did warn me, however, that Mascot might round up his hours, noting that he was not sure because he had not seen an invoice and that he "had nothing to do with that" or any mark up for materials.

  Please let me know if the BBB needs additional information from me.  I can send screen shots of the phone call from **** as well as screen shots from additional calls to and from Mascot during the day --when I asked for a payment link and invoice.  I can also supplement with the remainder of my emails once I convert them to PDF.  

  Thank you,

  ******* ****

   

   

   

   

  Customer response

  09/23/2024

  I looked again at Mascot's submission of emails I sent last Friday about the invoice, my commitment to pay and the questions I had raised.  Ms. ****** or someone at Mascot represented that they had submitted all emails to avoid a "he said she said" scenario.  Upon quick review, I note that the following additional emails were not included with Mascot's submission.  

  The following points now appear clear:

  1. Mascot does not and did not tell me it was charging a markup on materials until I questioned its charges.

  2. Mascot's CEO ***** ****** threatened -- in writing -- to file a lien on my home and sue me in small claims court -- even after I stated I would pay pursuant to an invoice.

  3. I did, in fact, pay the entire ****** and change invoice under protest and notified Mascot that I demanded that it refund undisclosed charges and was making a Texas DTPA demand.

  4.  I asked for an itemized invoice multiple times before getting an email with invoice-style entries.

  5. Mascot's technician arrived at my home just before 9 a.m. (when he called me) and left just before or around 12:30.  That is 3.5 hours, not 4.5 hours.  I therefore now question the validity of Mascot's time-keeping practices but will address that if I am forced to bring a DTPA action.

  6. Mascot's CEO was not completely truthful in her first response--where she said I refused to pay.  I pointed this out to her.  Only then did she attempt to correct the record. 

  7. However, the CEO then appears to have submitted a portion of my communications, claiming that these represented all communications.  I have separately alerted Ms. ****** about this omission.

  Please let me know if the BBB needs additional information from me, including screen shots from the phone calls on Friday to/from Mascot or its technician.

   

   

  Customer response

  10/28/2024

  I sent an email to your general delivery that can be largely ignored.  I just read your helpful summary. My only remaining question is when will this complaint be reflected on the BBB portal?  Even  though my complaint  wasnt resolved, it is helpful to have a forum to attempt to clear up a dispute  short of litigation. And I hope my experience will either give Mascot a wake up call or warn other consumers.  Thank you for providing this service. 
  
  

   

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