Complain about a product or service

American Home Shield - Heating

American Home Shield •Plumbing •Air Conditioning •Heat •Appliances •Water Heaters •Electrical Problems

Tony of Evanston, IL 11/23/05)
I have an active contract with American Home Shield (AHS). The policy was purchased with the house in 1992. The previous owner had had the policy for 15 years. Between July and October 2005 I called AHS on 3 different occasions to service my furnace. The first two times had to do with the AC coil. AHS agreed to pay for the service, however when the technician mentioned the sheet metal would have to be removed and probably could not be reused, AHS declined the repair.

On 10/23/05 AHS dispatched a plumber because my basement flooded when the water heater leaked. The serviceman said the water heater needed to be replaced and the existing plumbing had to be replaced since it did not meet current building codes, at a cost of $380. AHS said it was an upgrade and they would not cover it.

I paid for the work, along with a $50 service fee, for a total of $430.00.

On 11/10/2005 I contacted another company and they also concluded the furnace will not survive the extensive plumbing job and the removal of the furnace's sheet metal. They provided AHS with two estimates - one for plumbing and one for the furnace. When I had not heard from AHS by 11/22/05, I decided to proceed to pay for the work.

I strongly believe American Home Shield should not continue to do business in Illinois

Damages: I had a loss of income ($900) when AHS told me to wait for service that never showed up on three different occasions and $7,800 out of pocket expense.

PC of Tampa (2/9/03):
AHS has sent an Air Zone (local) contractor to repair our heat pump more than 5 times over the past 2 years. Each time, minor repair have been made, but the unit continued to break down. Each time, we paid the $35 service fee. Not once in all those visits had the contractor looked at the air handler in our attic, merely added freon and once replaced a motor.

On the most recent visit, just before the wintry 20-degree temperatures several weeks ago, the heat pump once again needed repair as it was blowing only cold air. Air Zone again responded to the AHS call and came out. The Air Zone contractor determined he needed to see the air handler (finally!) and checked the unit in our attic. He explained that the unit was dirty and should have been cleaned, but that if he cleaned the unit, it would disintegrate from rust and age.

He left without repairing anything, but did tell us that we would have to cut a new opening in the ceiling to bring down the old handler and install a new one. We then had a second opinion contractor look at the system. This contractor said the unit was indeed dirty, but that cleaning it would do no damage. He said that a secondary heat strip was not properly attached and that the outside unit had been broken by a loose strap. No freon was in the system; in fact, a vacuum was created in measuring the amount of freon.

We are still (4 weeks later) stuck with no heat and no air conditioning since AHS refuses to honor their warranty and replace a heat pump that cannot be repaired. Of course, they have been hounding us by mail and phone to renew our policy with them -- which we will NEVER do if this is the best service they offer.

We have paid $200 to speak with a lawyer who advised us to write to AHS asking for them to honor their warranty, rather than spend $2500 to retain the law firm. From the numerous complaints found online here and on other sites, it seems a letter will do nothing other than cause more delay and frustration. We are now out $45 for the second opinion and $200 for the lawyer, and still no heat or AC. We have also spent $80 for two small space heaters so we don't freeze during the cold spells.

Eric of Knoxville TN (2/8/03):
Part of the purchase price of a home I bought was an American Home Shield (AHS) home warranty (cost $399). The warranty was to cover all major systems in the home. A week after I moved in, there was a problem with the furnace and I called AHS. The weather was the coldest it had been in many years (since the house was built).

They sent out a local HVAC repair company, Stooksbury Appliance Service (SAS), to examine the furnace. SAS notified AHS of the repair charge and was told to not make the repairs until AHS could get a second opinion (I found this out later). Several days after the service call, AHS called me and said the technician said the furnace was not covered because it had problems when the house was purchased and they would not cover this. However, I had a home inspection of the house (including the furnace) in which the inspector (who is a registered professional engineer) ran a performance test and carbon monoxide monitoring tests on the furnace and said it was in "normal operating condition." Further, I was in the home 6-7 times before purchase and the furnace worked normally every time.

I spoke with SAS and they said the problem with the furnace was not unusual for furnaces in the subdivision (all the homes are similar) and was normal wear and tear of the unit (which IS covered by the AHS plan). I spoke with the prior owner of the home, and he said he had never had this type problem before, and there were no problems disclosed in the home settlement papers. I complained to an AHS supervisor who said SAS said the unit was in poor condition. When contacted, the SAS representative denied he said this and said AHS had never asked him to comment on the unit's condition at the time of purchase. He said that since the unit was only 6 years old, it needed some work but was not considered to be in a state of disrepair.

AHS refuses to pay for the repairs, and contrary to their promise, did not send out another technician. When I called, them they claimed to have contacted another local HVAC company. When I called that company, they denied being contacted by AHS and claimed this "happened all the time with AHS." At this point, the temperature was dropping to around 5 F so I contacted another contractor to have the furnace fixed. I paid that contractor myself. AHS refuses any responsibility for anything, including reimbursing me for the covered repairs. It appears their tactics are to delay until the homeowner has no choice but to fix the problems themselves, and then claim no responsibility. I wish I had my $399 back!

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