AHS - Amwerican Home Shield Ripoff Dishonest liars don't care about their customers Carroll Iowa
I have a home warranty with this company. Plumbing is covered under this warranty. First, they send an apprentice to see about the problem with my sink but his company didn't have the knowledge to fix it. Next they sent out someone else who diagnoses that a pipe is leaking. He leaves our home and speaks to them privately then returns with his cell phone and has a lady at AHS inform us that they must deny our claim for fixing the leak because the guy said that we used drano too many times and ruined the pipe.
Truthfully, my family and I have never used drano on that sink -- ever! The guy then gave us his card and said he could still fix it privately for $335.00. Also, the other items to fix on the work order did not get done either because the guy said he was never told about any of that by AHS. AHS is dishonest. They want to get money from their customers but do not want to pay to fix anything. The warranty is useless because nothing they claim to cover in their contract is actually covered at all. They cover what they want to cover and deny the as they choose. This is not fair or right.
Ericka
Nashville, Tennessee
U.S.A.
6 Updates & Rebuttals
Cindy
OKC,Oklahoma,
U.S.A.
Have seen a site on AHS complaints threats & gag orders
#7Consumer Suggestion
Thu, October 14, 2004
There is/was a site on AHS complaints but I no longer have the link, and am not sure if it's been taken down like so many consumer sites due to threats or gag orders. You can contact me through hadd.com on the "contact" page, I'm the only Cindy on it. Thanks.
Mike
Benbrook,Texas,
U.S.A.
AHS Fraud
#7Consumer Suggestion
Wed, October 13, 2004
Thanks again Cindy...
AHS accepts consumers policy pmts. w/ no inspection of properity then denies claim on .not properly installed.Isn't this against the LAW???
Help me bring these crooks DOWN!!!!
Cindy
OKC,Oklahoma,
U.S.A.
Most people never use the warranty, never find out what they're about, but gag orders silence others
#7Consumer Suggestion
Tue, October 12, 2004
The real estate industry lobbyists vehemently oppose any regulation of the home warranty industry because it is such an effective sales tool for them on resale homes. They are not concerned with protecting buyers when they oppose regulation that would hold warranty co's to at least the same standards as insurance co's. Same for builders selling them with new homes. The home buyer is NOT the "insured," as they generally don't buy the policy, the seller does, so they are a third party and have little if any control, nor do they have a chance to view a REAL policy before closing. A typical HBW policy shown online was 10 pages of large type...the real one, that arrives after closing, is about 20 pages of TINY type, and obviously contains more exclusions, etc.
Naturally, SOME homeowners get a claim paid; if they never paid any they would probably be shut down eventually by the FTC. The problem is the policies have such exclusions and conditions as to be worthless, or nearly so, to begin with, and then they deny valid claims because they can squelch it in secret arbitration. The rules of court do not apply in arbitration, and many homeowners are misled by propaganda that claims it's cheaper and fair...it's often not. Arbitration clauses are in nearly everything now, but the home warranty industry has often used their own biased arbitrators, which makes it highly unlikely anyone could get a fair deal. Even if a person wins, they still have to collect..."good luck with that!"
Mike
Benbrook,Texas,
U.S.A.
AHS home warranty
#7Consumer Suggestion
Tue, October 12, 2004
Thanks CINDY...How can we get the word spread nation wide?????
I heard 90% of contracts are not renewed because of fraud, so real estate real estate co's are the biggest seller, in bed w/ AHS...
Cindy
OKC,Oklahoma,
U.S.A.
Warranty companies often completely unregulated
#7Consumer Suggestion
Tue, October 12, 2004
Most if not all home warranty co's are "risk retention groups," (RRG's), and the states' dept's of insurance may or may not regulate them or hold them to the same regulation that they do insurance co's. A law was passed in my state two yrs ago to regulate them and the state has still failed to DO anything regarding this problem and won't even make the complaints public info so people can learn the truth.
Home warranties are essentially unregulated, and because they almost all, if not all, have a mandatory arbitration clause in the policy--often with their own chosen arbitrator!--the complaints, disputes, and record of claims paid are confidential. They are getting away with things insurance co's can only dream of.
A scathing report on just one warranty co's abuse of arbitration and low claims pay out is on the home page of Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings: WWW.HADD.COM The company is 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty, (HBW), and their arbitration firm is Construction Arbitration Services, (CAS), which is owned by a disbarred attorney. The report was written by Public Citizen which investigated HBW. Being a homeowner with such a policy I can vouch for the report's absolute truthfulness and think, if anything, the report is an understatement of how these co's really operate.
IMO...warranty co's are mostly a scam, not worth the paper they're printed on, and only serve as a sales tool for the builders and real estate agents.
Mike
Benbrook,Texas,
U.S.A.
AHS reaction team
#7Consumer Suggestion
Thu, October 07, 2004
Check this site for thousands of us in the same shape....
Any way you could drive to Memphis and sit on the door of Scott Cromie,CEO?
His home address is:
2510 LENNEX DR.
GERMANTOWN,TN. 38138