- Report: #1257914
Complaint Review: HVAC Investigators - Nationwide
Reported By:
Factory Direct Heat and Air -
Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Submitted:
Updated:
-
Author Not Confirmed
Why?
HVAC Investigators
Nationwide, USA
Phone:
888.407.5224
Web:
www.hvacinvestigators.com
Categories:
Business Rating:
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HVAC Investigators; Blue Star Mechanical, Inc.; Bluestar Mechanical, Inc. A Deceptive Company That Uses Unlicensed and Unverified Results Charlotte, NC Nationwide
Imagine you are a small, licensed heating and air conditioning contractor working in the United States. You get a call from a company called HVAC Investigators where you are asked to go out and investigate an insurance claim on behalf of a major insurance company. You are promised that they have "thousands of claims" in your area and you can increase your business by $50,000 or more annually if you will do these inspections for them. They really butter you up too. They tell you that based on a short conversation that you are exactly what they are looking for, that you as a licensed contractor will make thousands and grow your customer base by hundreds of new customers. They in turn collect your insurance information, your license number and begin to send you claims. You are excited because you received several claims each day.
Almost immediately you notice they are extremely demanding. Service windows are 30 minutes and you can't be late no matter what you are doing before their appointment. They ask you to go out after business hours and don't pay overtime rates. Saturdays too. You end up spending over 4 hours collecting all the data they request and lots of photos on each claim you run. You call parts houses and distributors to formulate quotes on replacements and repairs thinking you will get the work. All in all, you have about 4 hours in the field and another hour or more completing their very intense diagnostic sheet that includes everything from ohmning the compressor, getting delta T's on air temps to testing the resistance heat. You climb in attics at 160 degrees, put off other customers, you give this company your best because that's what you do. You submit your claim and they send you a flat fee of $100.00 which probably doesn't cover your costs. But no matter - you will get the repair work and that will more than make up for it.
HVAC takes your detailed assessment, types it up into a nice report that includes your name and license information and turns it over to the insurance company. The insurance company reviews the repair estimate written up by a licensed, insured and reputable contractor and then authorizes the repair and or the replacement. Its important to not HVAC Investigators in NOT licensed.
YOU NEVER SEE THE REPAIR OR THE REPLACEMENT.
HVAC Investigators then siphons the work off to another company "Blue Star Mechanical" who hires cheap labor to go out and make the repairs for you. They buy their own parts from the same parts distributors (you made it easy for them by providing all the part numbers, model and serial information) and they send an unlicensed, unpermitted contract laborer who isn't even qualified to do the work out and they of course pocket the dollars you quoted for the work and sometimes they mark that up even higher! Insurance companies think a licensed company did the work. Its important to note that Blue Star Mechanical Inc. is not licensed either!
They make a fortune ripping off local contractors who are just getting started and willing to go the extra mile. They take advantage of smaller guys who delay or turn away better paying work in hopes of getting volume work that dries up as soon as another "sucker" (another contractor who is gullable enough to do the work) is found.
Its funny. I will call this a lesson in business - Not all customers are worth having. I have issued a complaint to the state and the licensing board. I truly believe the insurance companies think they are getting quality repairs and replacements from licensed technicians The problem is HVACi is growing rich off the backs of contractors who work hard but never get the credit or the income.
