Complaint Review: Homesure Of Virginia

November 19, 2008

I am writing to file a formal complaint against Homesure of Virginia, Inc. in regards to my complete dissatisfaction concerning the resolution of a broken furnace. I called Homesure on October 24, 2008 to report that my furnace, a Goodman built in 1992, was no longer functioning. The terms of the contract state:

We will provide you with a referral to an independent contractor. We will use reasonable efforts to provide a referral to an independent contractor within two (2) hours after the service request is received during normal business hours and within twenty-four (24) hours for requests received after normal business hours and on weekends or holidays. In the event that we determine, at our sole discretion, that there is an emergency situation requiring expedited service, we will make reasonable efforts to expedite service. We will determine, at our sole discretion, which repairs constitute an emergency and will give consideration to covered mechanical failures that affect the habitability of the dwelling.

At the time when I reported the mechanical failure of the furnace, it was 50 F in my home and I was suffering from the flu. While waiting for Homesure to return my call, I contacted an electrician who I have worked with in the past to come by and take a look at the furnace and possibly diagnose the problem so I could further assist Homesure in processing my claim.

My electrician came by at 6:00pm and told me that the furnace's motor heater blower was broken. He then proceeded to call the manufacturer to find a replacement part at which point he was notified that Goodman no longer has parts for a unit as old as the one in my home. With this information, I called Homesure and notified them of my electrician's findings.

After waiting to hear back from Homesure until Monday (10/27), I called their customer service number to determine what the problem was in finding a contractor to come by and look at the furnace. I was informed that they could not find anyone local to the Charlottesville area and the contractor they had found was going to charge a travel fee and Homesure was trying to determine if they were going to pay the fee. This went on for two more days until I called back and told them that my home was still at 50 F and I was concerned that the pipes in the home may freeze. I was told that Homesure was still negotiating the travel fee.

At this point I told them that my electrician was willing to work with them in order to get heat back into my home. I was given the authorization number and told to give it to my electrician so he could provide Homesure with the information he had gathered up to this point and work out the pricing for replacing the furnace.

Over the next three (3) weeks, I remained without heat while Homesure and my electrician worked to determine the pricing for a new furnace. John actually had a replacement furnace he could put in my home sitting in a warehouse waiting for Homesure to approve the claim. At no point was either my electrician or myself informed that Homesure was seeking a replacement part. Homesure asked that my electrician provide a pricing list breaking down the cost of replacing the furnace in the crawlspace, where the broken furnace currently sits, versus putting a new furnace in the dwelling itself. My electrician did this and provided the information via e-mail, fax and an hour-long telephone conversation with Homesure. During this time, I would call Homesure almost daily asking for the status of the furnace replacement since I had no heat in my home and the average temperature in the dwelling hovered around 50 F.

On Friday November 7, 2008 I contacted Homesure customer service and explained the situation, yet again, and asked that the claim be expedited since it had been three (3) weeks since I placed the claim and I still had no heat. I was assured that the claim was being expedited and an emergency order status had been placed on the account. Furthermore, I was told that a representative would contact me before 5:00pm that day to let me know if the work order for a new furnace had been approved. 5:00pm came and went without a phone call.

The following week I called Homesure almost daily. Each time I was told that my electrician had failed to supply the requested information regarding the pricing breakdown. Having just spoken to my electrician myself, I know that this statement was, in fact, a lie. Once again, at this point Homesure had never mentioned that they were currently seeking a replacement part but were trying to get the claim through to be approved to replace the furnace. This went on until November 14, 2008.

I called Homesure on the morning on the 14th to determine when, if ever, Homesure was going to approve the order for the new furnace. Again, I was told that my electrician had not supplied the necessary price breakdown (again, a lie) and that I would have an answer by 5:00pm. At 4:00pm I called back to customer service and they gave me the runaround again. Having been repeatedly lied to and frustrated beyond measure, I decided to call the authorization number myself since I was getting nowhere by talking with customer service.

I spoke with Mike, who told me that homeowners were not supposed to be calling the authorization number, only contractors. I explained the situation almost in tears and I believe he took pity on me and looked at my file and then spoke with a supervisor. Imagine my surprise when he told me that they were not, in fact, looking to replace the furnace but instead had been trying to track down a replacement part the entire time. He also told me that the part was being shipped on that Friday and I should have it within two (2) business days. Today is Wednesday, November 19, 2008 and I have not received the replacement part and I still have no heat. It snowed two nights ago and today the expected high is 39 F and tonight it is expected to be 31 F.

Today, November 19, 2008, I received a phone call from Homesure asking if I was interested in taking the sum of $471.00 to fix the furnace myself, or continue to wait for the replacement part. As I was of the understanding that the part was going to be delivered yesterday, I opted to continue to wait for the replacement part. It was only later, when I discussed my problems with a representative from the Virginia Bureau of Insurance that I was to discover yet another lie propagated by Homesure. The estimated time for delivery of the replacement part was not two days as originally discussed, but actually a minimum of five days. This would put the replacement part delivery on Monday November 24th at the earliest, leaving me without heat for yet another five days. I was also to learn that the two day promise was actually the time it would take the part order to make it to purchasing for approval. On Monday, November 17th, Homesure contacted the company that distributes the part, located in the country of India, and as it turns out, they were out of stock.

At this point, it appears as though I will not have heat for yet another five days and the nights have below-freezing temperatures. To say that I am frustrated does not even come close. I have resigned myself to the belief that Homesure will keep me waiting indefinitely, without heat, while trying to track down a part that may not even exist so as to not fulfill their contractual obligation to fix and/or replace my furnace. I so firmly believe this that I am willing to bet that they will try and wait until the contract expires so as not to spend a single cent trying to help me and my situation. If there is no statute of limitations on how long a home warranty company can keep a customer waiting for a replacement for a broken item that is under warranty, then what is the point of having a home warranty contract?

I have gone out of my way to be both accommodating and patient, but sleeping every night in a home with no heat is unacceptable. I spend my hours at home wearing a hat, gloves and a scarf. I even sleep in this attire since my space heater, which I paid for myself, can only adequately heat one room at a time.

ColdIncharlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
U.S.A.