ComplaintsforF.H. Furr Plumbing, Heating, Air Conditioning & Electrical, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  06/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I paid this company thousands of dollars to install their products. when I need them to come out to service them or take a look they always cancel their appointments. they also don’t give you an arrival window until the day of. My dehumifier recently crapped out (less than a year since they installed it) and they’ve cancelled two appointments for repair. I honestly understand it when your company is over worked but in that scenario you hire more workers to compensate. The dehumifier cost $4k. If it stops working 8 months later and you cancel two appointments to comae take a look, this should be a red flag. I reached out to a manager and was ignored. I tried reaching out to their customer service and got a voicemail. Still don’t have anyone contacting me to find a solution. Meanwhile I’m in a humid house rolling from room to room with a $100 mobile dehumifier while a $4k piece of junk hangs in my laundry room.

  

  Business response

  06/27/2023

  ******************, I am sorry for any difficulties you may have had with getting a service technician out to your home.  I did see an appointment that was scheduled for 6/2 and that it had been placed on hold.  I can see that we sent a text notification that a technician was ready to dispatch and then sent a second text to say that we could not keep the appointment.  We then scheduled another appointment for 6/8 and were able to get out to the home and address the issues.  I also see that the issues with your dehumidifier were addressed and the unit was operating per the manufacturer's specifications.  I am sorry that you have had any issues with our service and products.  If you should want to have any further discussion regarding your complaint, you may reach out to our Client Relations department.  ***********************, Client Relations Mgr.

• Initial Complaint

  05/22/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  1. Tech never provided me with a dollar amount on the phone. I never, on the phone or text gave authorization to charge my credit card for a specific dollar amount nor did I give explicit permission to replace/perform services other than the filters. Tech never told me what was actually completed on the phone. Please go back to voice recordings and play back. I am not liable for payment for something I never authorized.2. Unit is from October 2021 (or so). The report lists it being 4 years old from 2019. That is incorrect.3. I am not going to pay for coil cleaning, adding refrigerant and other mistakes made from original installation. You should have sent QA/QC to look at this. If the distance is too far between unit and roof, your playbook should address a check up visit to calibrate/tune pressure accordingly, as opposed to getting hit now with these problems. Looks like a process problem. A total miss.

  

  Business response

  05/22/2023

  ****************, upon review of your account and having the opportunity to clarify things with you over the phone, I apologize for this experience.  Our technicians are trained to provide pricing and written estimates prior to any customer's authorization to proceed with work.  It is clear that this was not done.  I have initiated a refund of charges for work that was not fully authorized (you asked the technician to speak with his manager prior to completing a cleaning/degreasing of the indoor coil and adding refrigerant).  I appreciate your feedback and will explore additional, secure, ways of obtaining authorizations for work.  This is especially a concern for remote transactions, as this is not the only time we will ever experience this scenario.  Thank you for being a valued customer of F.H. Furr, and we look forward to continuing to serve you in the future.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager

  Customer response

  06/02/2023

  BBB - I would like to thank you for providing this capability to help get matters like this resolved.  This is the 2nd time you have helped me. Thank you very much.

  This issue can be resolved.

• Initial Complaint

  05/15/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I am going to start out by saying, I know my husband is at fault as well because he signed the invoice agreeing to the work without reading what he was being charged for. However, I think the actions of the service individual to include items in the invoice that he was repeatedly told we did not want completed is a larger problem. Today, May 15, 2023, we had FH Furr out to repair a couple of small pin hole leaks in copper pipes. We knew what the issue was and only needed someone to repair it. I understand that the service individuals are going to try and sell you on things that you do not need but what occurred today was beyond that. The service tech tried to get us to not only replace additional piping and a valve that had no issues simply because he thought it was not the best out there, but he repeatedly tried to sell a one year service membership. My husband repeatedly told him no to this and also the additional work. The quote that was given initially was for additional pipe work that did not need to be done and when the service individual was asked for a quote for just the work that needed to be done, he quoted a price of $508 and change. What he neglected to say was that that quote included the year service membership even though my husband had told him repeatedly he did not want it. My husband agreed to that price and the work was completed. After receiving the receipt, I see that the year membership was included in that receipt and I would be charged $15.00 a month for a year now. At no time was my husband ever told that the $508.00 price included the membership. I am disappointed that a company will try to deceive a consumer like this. I will never work with this company again. I understand that my husband should of paid better attention to what he was agreeing to but when you are told numerous times by a customer that they are not interested in something, a company should not sneak it in in hopes they get away with it.

  

  Business response

  05/15/2023

  ************ and *****************, I am sorry that you had this experience with our technician.  It is our practice and responsibility to disclose everything we are billing for and ensure we receive written authorization prior to commencing with any work.  Our communication always needs to be clear.  I have begun the process of refunding you for the Preferred Partner Plan membership fee of $13.95, and ensuring that you retain the discounts that you were promised for today's visit.  It is my hope that you might reconsider doing business with us in the future.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager.

• Initial Complaint

  05/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  In the Spring of 2021, I had F.H. Furr completely replace and install a new ****** HVAC (furnace as well as heat pump) in my townhome in South Riding, VA. Total cost was nearly $25,000. In the two and a half years since owning the equipment, I have spent nearly $3,000 on 'immediate needs' and 'preventive maintenance.' This Spring, a technician once again came out for my semi-annual inspection and quoted me $2800 'immediate needs' maintenance. I have trusted F.H. Furr in the meantime to do multiple jobs in my house, including electrical as well as plumbing work. I have spent over $10,000 with the company on a new hot water heater, an electric car charger, etc. I have come to believe that F.H. Furr's business practices are predatory in nature. They 'warranty' their HVAC work with a 10 year parts and labor, but yet I am spending thousands every year to 'maintain' the equipment. This is a win-win for Furr - if I pay these outrageous maintenance prices every year, the chance of them having to honor ANY warranty is lessened, and I continue to fall for this gimmick. The technician that recently visited my home told me (QUOTE): 'The upstairs unit appears to be pulling air from the attic, due to a bad tape job / installation. That needs to be fixed.' He then wrote me a quote for hundreds of dollars to 'fix' the installation job that Furr did two and a half years ago. This is absolutely wrong. Furr should stand by their work and actually honor their warranties. I am filing this BBB report in addition to speaking directly with the business in the hopes that future customers will be wary of dealing with Furr. I am requesting a full repair of all system deficiencies and addressing of my warranty, or full replacement of my HVAC system.

  

  Business response

  05/11/2023

  ****************, I appreciate having had the opportunity to work with you and resolve the issues with your system.  Should you require anything further, please feel free to reach out to me.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager.

  Customer response

  05/17/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. 
  

  My comments regarding predatory pricing and recommendations from the company are unchanged - but I cannot in good faith keep my 'complaint' open as the business was communicative in 'resolving' issues as they saw them.

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

• Initial Complaint

  04/24/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  April 8, 2023 F H Furr sent a repair man to fix furnace not working. April 17, Easter Sunday they sent out two repairmen to install an igniter. They could not get the furnace to work. On Monday, April 18 they sent two repairmen, one who was an expert. He found the previous repairmen had bent a vent which needed to be replaced. That part would not be available until May 4. We have been without heat since April 8. Contacted customer service rep at F. H. Furr-no response. My wife has ********** Disease and is confined to her bedroom during the cold evenings and mornings-we use a space heater. We would like F.H. Furr to be more responsive to our request for service and fix the damage to the furnace.

  

  Business response

  05/11/2023

  **********************, I am sorry that we have had issues remedying your system and the impacts this has had to your wife's health.  Since our conversation on 5/9, we have been able to apply a temporary fix and receive the part as of last night.  We are working to schedule the permanent fix to your system as soon as we can.  Your patience while we are working towards a permanent resolution is greatly appreciated.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager.

• Initial Complaint

  04/22/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On April 18, 2023 a technician from FH Furr came out to my house to flush my hot water heater as part of a FH Furr promotion. Included in that promotion was a FREE plumbing inspection. During the inspection the technician uncovered several items which were going to need attention in the future. He listed the items (4 of them ) and gave us an estimate of what each one would cost based on doing each one as separate service calls since not all of them needed to be done immediately. He went over each with us. He told us he had all the material on his truck to do these while he was here, saving us time and money. Especially since he was already doing the hot water heater flush which drained the hot water heater. Based on this we told him to go ahead and do these items. When he was done doing all the work he submitted his information to FH Furr for billing. He told us we would receive a new invoice. When we received the new invoice we discovered that we were being billed for each item as if it were a new service call instead of work that was done by the technician when he was already here. Especially the replacement of the hot water expansion tank. This item, had it been a new service call would have required the draining of the hot water tank, which had already been done as part of the hot water heater flush. Since this was done it took the technician less than ten minutes to replace a $ 50 expansion tank. Yet I am being charged $ 695.33 !! for this. I don't understand how this billing is correct since none of this was done as separate service calls. I feel like I was scammed, conned, mislead and taken advantage of with false information

  

  Business response

  05/10/2023

  ****************, I am sorry that there was miscommunication regarding your billing.  Our plumbing service visits are free to have the technician come to your home.  However, once you are given an estimate, all the services billed are at flat rate pricing.  No matter how many visits, you would always be charged the same price.  The only caveat to this is that the estimate would have only been honored for 30 days.  If any of these recommendations were followed up with beyond that, then the pricing would have been re-evaluated to be sure it was current.  Per our conversation on 4/25, you were refunded the purchase price for your Preferred Partner Membership while retaining your membership benefits.  I also initiated a refund of $218 for the services that were provided by our plumber.  I apologize for the delay in receiving the refund as this was due to a clerical error on our part.  The error has been corrected and the refund should be received by 5/16 at the latest.  Again, I apologize for any misunderstanding we may have caused and appreciate the opportunity to serve you.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager.

  Customer response

  05/16/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************
  

• Initial Complaint

  03/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  FH Furr was a reputable family-owned business until July 2022 when the family sold the company to **** ******* ********, a private equity firm that is not located in Virginia but in California or Florida. I believe it is wholly misleading to continue to advertise and purport to be a "family-owned" local business when private equity investors are the owners. I have noticed a deterioration in service e.g. it is impossible to speak with anyone at the company without going through a call center which cannot get the company too respond. I've also noticed an uptick in advertising by FH Furr as a family owned business - I see they are even advertising on BBB! Customers should not be misled about the ownership status of the company. Yes, to me, "private equity" is bad news: they capture rather than create value. The young technician who came today was not the technician who was scheduled and so I have to reschedule so he can return with the technician who knows my system. Lack of attention to detail in support of customer service are hallmarks of private equity. I believe the BBB should look into why FH Furr public still advertises as a family-owned business serving the DMV area of Washington DC, Virginia and Maryland. The local staff are unable to respond to customer concerns as the ownership is remote and resides in another part of the country. BBB should stand for improving business, not allowing the the little guy be taken over by hidden interests.

  

  Business response

  05/05/2023

  *******************, I thank you for taking the time to document your concerns.  In this case, we have no intention of misleading our customers.  We have retained the same core values that ******************* established when this company was founded.  With our recent expansion, we have been addressing our advertising and infrastructure to ensure we continue to accurately describe our business and maintain our reputation.  We are hiring, training, and retooling our organization to better handle the increased workload and apologize if we have not gotten to all these issues in a more timely fashion.  I can assure you that we strive to continue to be Absolutely the Best in all aspects of our business.  As we have been serving you since 2016, we hope that you will continue to look to us for any service you may need in the short and long term.  ***********************, Client Relations Manager

  Customer response

  05/24/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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.  The company needs to drop the phrase family-owned.
  
  Regards,
  
  *******************************
  

• Initial Complaint

  03/13/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 2/22 I paid $965.92 to have a technician perform a repair at a rental condo where the tenant was experiencing inconsistent water temperatures. The technician replaced 2 shower cartridges based on a diagnosis he had made earlier that week. The following week the tenants informed me the issues persisted and so the same technician returned a third time to re-diagnose the problem. A voltage issue was identified in the upper thermostat element of the water heater and the technician provided me additional quotes and options to address the problem. I requested that the value of what I had paid already be applied towards those options. The technician escalated my request and the manager could only offer me a $500 discount. I felt this was not acceptable and requested a refund so my claim was escalated to customer relations who instructed me they would contact me within 1 business day with a response. The following week I made attempts to contact the staff in customer relations but no one answers my calls and no attempts to contact me have been made. I would like a refund due to the fact that I paid for parts and labor that I did not need. I only agreed to have that work performed on the basis of the report that the technician provided me. I had to pay a different company to come out to correctly diagnose the issue and remediate it due to the professional and technical negligence of F.H. Furr. The original verbal report that the technician provided to me made no mention of uncertainty in addressing the problem. I have no way of determining the cost for the diagnosis, labor, or parts because the invoice information is lumped into single sums which obfuscates the cost information which I felt was in excess of the $500 credit offer. I consider the business practices of F.H. Furr to be borderline fraudulent, predatory, and exploitive in nature despite being a returning customer.

  

  Business response

  04/07/2023

  **. *********** I am sorry that you had a poor experience with our plumber.  On 3/8 we spoke regarding your experience and agreed that a partial refund would be awarded.  On 3/20 you were refunded $483 - half of the charges for the repair.  It was explained that we charge a flat rate based on associated tasks for all the work we do.  We do not have any itemized billing codes that would separate labor and parts costs.  On the day of the visit, the plumber checked all the faucets and only found the showers to be slow to get hot water.  He assessed that the replacement of the shower cartridges would resolve the issue.  When the issue remained, the plumber returned and investigated the water heater - since there was hot water previously, this was not suspected as the primary cause of any issues.  There are logical steps in every troubleshooting effort based on the presented issue.  Even when those steps are followed, the fix is not 100% sure to resolve the issue.  During our conversation, I also offered a credit of this previous service toward any other repairs but you declined my offer.  I am sorry that you were not satisfied with this experience.  I can assure you that there was no attempt to defraud or exploit you - you were made aware of the cost of repairs and had the option not to move forward prior to work being done.  Predatory pricing is defined as a business deliberately setting prices unrealistically low to eliminate their competition.  This is not something that F.H. Furr is a party to.  We appreciate that you had utilized our services prior to this and that you sought us out again.  I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with the service and my efforts to remedy your dissatisfaction.  If you should ever consider using us again, we will look forward to having the opportunity to provide the best service possible.  ************************ Client Relations Manager.

• Initial Complaint

  03/13/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We’ve contacted FHFurr to resolve a failed inspection for an electrical box installed along with complying with my request to supply a previously unfinished basement with heating and cooling insulation that would be going under construction to be finished soon thereafter. Today, our basement is 50% complete and when my contractor scheduled the inspections for the plumbing and electrical work his company performed, the inspector failed the heating and cooling duct work installed stating that we needed a mechanical permit, in addition the newly installed electrical breaker box failed inspection. We called FH Furr on December 15, 2022 to advise of the issues. We were unable to receive a detailed copy of what failed because we did not request the permit. FH Furr claims that because they only installed duct work, a permit was not required. I am concerned that they recommended a solution that was not up to code for a finished space and now they are not returning calls or following up. Due to make numerous complaints involving the contracts department with ****** ******, ******* *******, and ***** *******, as of 3/12 we have only gotten as far is getting the permits reissued for the electrical and mechanical, three months later when permits only take a few days. Additionally, next steps are for FH Furr to obtain what needs to be fixed from **** ******* county, schedule a tech to complete the repairs, follow by the scheduling of a reinspecton that passes so that I can have my contractors move forward on the completion of the basement. This negligence has pushed the basement completion timeline back three months so far and I will be out of contract soon. FH Furr refuses to respond and promptly resolve this issue. We’ve consulted this company to complete a job and they have failed to deliver. We are requesting that they resolve this matter ASAP.

  

  Business response

  04/07/2023

  ***************, I have reviewed the situation per your complaint.  Our Contracts department has confirmed that we received a passing rough and final inspection of the electrical subpanel and breakers we installed as of 3/15/23.  The ductwork had a rough inspection completed and passed on the same day 3/15/23.  The final inspection was canceled by the county inspector.  We are in the process of communicating with **** ******* County to have this corrected.  I have called you today and left a voicemail with this information.  Should you require anything further from F.H. Furr, please feel free to contact me directly.  **** *******, Client Relations Mgr.

• Initial Complaint

  01/31/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I hired them to replace a shut-off valve in my home in 2022. The cost was $129.00 for the replacement less a coupon of $49.00. I hired them to replace the other outside valve on my home in January 2023. They charged me $522.00 for the same exact work and would not apply a coupon that was discussed during my scheduling communication. How does this kind of price increase occur with the same company and the same absolutely repair item?? A total rip off from this service.

  

  Business response

  02/27/2023

  *******************, I have reviewed your account and found that we performed two plumbing services for you: a water heater flush for $49 on 9/13/22 and a shut replacement for the leaking outdoor hose bib on 12/27/22.  During the visit for the water heater flush, you were qualified for a $50 savings card towards a future service.  I can see that it was not applied by our technician during his visit on 12/27/22.  I am happy to have that applied to the invoice and a refund issued to your original method of payment.  I have attached the invoices from those visits.  I have no record of an invoice or estimate to replace a shut off valve on your account.  If you have anything from us stating otherwise, please feel free to reach out to me directly and I can address the matter.  We do appreciate your business and I look forward to helping resolve this matter for you.  ***********************, Client Relations Mgr.

*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. ↩