George H C.
02/09/2022 12:00:00 SA
We returned to our home in Tucson after an extended out-of-State trip to find our builder-installed, 7-year-old (plus) water softener leaking. Based upon internet reviews, we called Plumber of Tucson. When Josh from Plumber of Tucson came out on Monday, we explained we needed to have the problem fixed within the current week as we were planning another trip. Only our adult children would be left at home and we did not want either of them to have to deal with an existing plumbing issue.
Josh spent right at a half-hour inspecting, speaking with us about, and photographing our existing water softener and its installation. He suggested a significantly more expensive upgraded system than we originally were planning to purchase, gave us a ballpark estimate for the system and installation, and told us Plumber of Tucson ...would take care of everything at the stated price point estimate. My wife and I discussed our options and decided to go with the upgraded replacement system Josh suggested. We contacted the Plumber of Tucson office to relay our decision and pretty quickly received an email from Don Paz, Owner of the company. Don quoted an all-inclusive (new water softener system andall incidental materials, installation, and haul away of the old system) price and an appointment was set up for Wednesday morning between 9:00 AM and 12:00 Noon. Not knowing anything about the installation of water softeners (as I am pretty certain Don Paz knows little or nothing about my professional practice), we took them at their word and assumed the folks at Plumber of Tucson knew what they were doing and that which they were telling us. We quickly learned that was an incorrect assumption.
The first problem came when my phone rang at 8:00 AM and the Plumber of Tucson installer said he (and his partner) were in front of our home. Having worked through the better part of the night, that phone call got us out of bed. Despite being an hour early, we allowed the installers to begin working. The primary installer handed me his smart phone and told me I needed to sign within the displayed signature block (the only thing visible on the screen) so they could begin the work. No contract was ever given or even shown to me. The only document I had seen to that point was the email sent to me on Monday by Don, quoting the all-inclusive price.
The first thing the installers did was to cut the copper water lines attached to the old unit, disconnect the plastic drain tubing, and pull the old unit away from the wall. At 8:18 AM, my phone rang again. This time it was Chris (apparently the co-owner of Plumber of Tucson), who told me, The guys are here at the office with me getting their things ready to come out to your home. It will take them a few more minutes to get ready and then another 20 minutes to get out to your home. Is it OK if they arrive a little early? I told Chris, Really? Your guys actually arrived 20 minutes ago and are standing in front of me. I expressed my displeasure with the one-hour early arrival and his overt lying to me, and then ended the call. At 8:24 AM, Chris called back and told me he was reducing the total cost for the work to be done by $100.00 because of Plumber of Tucson's lack of punctuality. Chris never mentioned his outright lie, but apparently felt a $100.00 reduction in the total cost for the work to be done would absolve him of his intentional and blatant dishonesty.
About two or three minutes later, the installers told me I would either need an electrician to come out and install an electrical outlet before they could install the new water softener system or they would need to run an extension cord the full length of our garage because the old system had been hardwired by the builder. They told me this was my problem to resolve. I would remind the reader that Josh spent a full half-hour inspecting and photographing our existing water softener installation. I told the installers they were really putting us in a bind because we needed the work completed this week (it was now Wednesday morning), we did not want to installation to be jury-rigged, and there was no way we could get an electrician to come out right now or maybe even in a day or two. I asked the installers why Josh did not say anything about this issue on Monday when he spent a half-hour inspecting the old system. They said they didn't know the answer to that.
The primary installer called the Plumber of Tucson Office and then handed me his phone, telling me Don wanted to speak to me. As I was trying to explain to Don everything that was going wrong, he repeatedly interrupted me as I was trying to speak. I told Don to stop interrupting me and to listen to what I was trying to tell him. At that, Don began screaming at me over the phone and telling me, No, you are going to listen to what I am saying. You are going to do what I say. The contract says the electrical is your problem.
TO BE CONTINUED