Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/25/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Called them for warranty check on equipt.purchased.waited for 2 weeks for response.did not work on warranty issue instead performed maintenance on aerator.not requested.after 45 min.looked at problem went to junction box inserted screwdriver in junction box shorting out system. Had to turn system tech said he was not an electrician .not qualified to work on my problem.had to turn system off while I found electrician to fix sustem.their tech spent next 30 min.in truck then gave me bill for $405.00 .did not fix warranty problem.pasr board member from 2000to2002.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/03/2024

  To whom it may concern, 

  I am responding to the complaint filed by ****** ******* at the address **** ** ***** ST, Smithville, MO 64089.  ****** installed his own onsite wastewater treatment system at his home in August 2005 and purchased the equipment from our company. The onsite wastewater system installed at *******s home is an advance treatment system.  These systems are typically installed by a licensed onsite wastewater installer.  Licensed installers installing this type of system must attend a 3-day course and pass an exam giving them a license to install advanced treatment systems in the State of Missouri.  To maintain this license in the State of Missouri, you must complete 13 hours of continuing education with approved courses on onsite wastewater systems every 3 years.    A master plumber is not approved to install onsite wastewater systems in the State of Missouri with the exception of the City of Kansas City.  The only exception to this rule, is if the homeowner decides to install the system on their own.  This is not recommended but is the right of the homeowner. We (Residential Sewage Treatment Company) installed the internal components in the aerobic treatment system and in the dosing tank as well as the control panels for both units after ****** installed the tanks and an either an electrician or ****** himself, ran power wires and supply wires to the location the panels were to be mounted.  This installation occurred mid-September 2005.  Upon installation, the system receives two years of maintenance at no additional cost to the homeowner.  It is up to the homeowner beyond the first two years if they would like to renew the service agreement.  ****** did not continue service after the first two years of service were completed.  His service contract expired in December of 2007.  In November of 2022, ****** contacted our office with problems with his onsite system.  In December of 2022, he decided to get under a service contract for a year.  Over the course of that year (December 2022 to December 2023), many of the mechanical components, such as the pump, aerator, and control panel parts were replaced.  Most of them replaced in December 2022 and January and February 2023.  This is to be expected after 15 years of usage without routine service in six-month intervals.  Our warranty periods vary based on the manufacture.  Our warranty on labor is 1 year from installation or replacement of a part. ****** chose not to renew the service contract when it expired in December 2023. ****** called our office and spoke with a customer service representative on September 30th, 2024 around 9:00 AM.  He stated that after a storm that had occurred the week before, his dosing tank started alarming.  He was able to get the pump to work, but the alarm light stayed on and the alarm light on the treatment plant portion of the system was also on.  All customers are given two options if they would like us to work on their system.  The first option is a one time visit.  This is billed at our labor rate of $135 per hour for labor onsite and $135 per hour for drivetime.  The second option is to purchase a service contract at the rate for their system based on the type of components being serviced and the city they live in.  If they choose this option, there is still a labor rate for the initial visit at $135 per hour but there is no drivetime charged and they receive the two service visits they would get for the service contract.  One six-months after the initial visit made and the second a year after the initial visit.  ****** decided to purchase the service contract and the visit was scheduled as such.  For ******'s system, this would have been $405 for the service contract plus the labor of the time onsite toto do the initial service and address the alarm issues.  Since the components ****** was describing as alarming began with the pump tank and these components were beyond the one-year labor warranty, there was a labor charge regardless for us to come out.  If any of the components under a manufacture warranty would have needed to be replaced, the part would have been replaced at no charge as long as it fit the parameters of the manufacture warranty. The agreed upon date for the requested visit was October 14, 2024.  Our service technician, *****, arrived at the property and began to troubleshoot the cause of the alarms.  ***** found the LB box located on the outside of the home had pulled away from the side of the house most likely due to settling.  He opened the LB box with his screwdriver and found a short in the LB from the box pulling away from the house and also pulling the wires.  This was the cause of the intermittent issues with the pump and the alarm.  ***** explained to ******, that we do not work on, install, or replace electrical wires.  This would require an electrician as was the case when the original installation was performed.  All components we replaced in 2022-2023 were working.  ***** continued to perform the maintenance based on the phone conversation that ****** had with our customer service representative stating this is what he wanted.  ****** never approached ***** and asked him to not perform the maintenance.  ***** then went to his truck and entered all of the information regarding the visit and calculated the bill.  When he approached ****** to collect for the service contract and the labor, ****** stated that he did not feel he should have to pay for anything because he only wanted a "warranty check".  ***** explained to ****** that the visit was set up as him wanting the service contract and so we performed the visit as such and that the problem with the system had nothing to do the with components that were under warranty, but rather the 19 year old wiring.  ***** collected the $405 for the visit which was for 1 hour of drive time and two hours for diagnosing the problem and the maintenance performed on the aerator, bio kenetic filter basket, the pump, the filter in the pump tank, flushing the lines in the field, and setting the pressures.  ****** did not state he did not want this work performed until the work was already done.  I spoke to ****** twice myself regarding this matter.  I explained all of this to him and he asked me if I was going to refund the $405 or he was going to report me to the BBB.  I told ****** to do what he felt was appropriate and that I would as well.  I feel we performed the work we were contacted to do.  We diagnosed the issue and performed the maintenance he said he wanted when he set up the appointment.  My employees are paid hourly and do not make a commission.  They simply set up the appointments and do what is requested and their wage is the same regardless of what the customer decides to do.  ****** could have saved himself an hour of labor had he told ***** he changed his mind and did not want the service he was performing but he chose to allow him to continue cleaning filters and other components after the problem with the system had been found and discussed. I feel the fee he was charged was appropriate for what was performed.

  Sincerely,

  ******* ****, Vice President of Operations