Our ejector pump broke in our new house. An ejector pump is similar to a sump pump, but it pumps wastewater to the city sewer instead of storm water to the yard. I called HWA and was told I would get a call from a plumber at 9 a.m. the next day. I did not. I called again at 11 a.m. and was told the plumber would call that afternoon. I called him. He did not know what I was talking about because he was closed on Sunday. He only comes out for emergencies on Sundays, and this was not classified as an emergency. (What if it rained and our basement flooded? Not sure.)
The plumber did come out Monday morning. He noticed it was an "ejector pump" by function, though the installed pump is a sump pump. He called HWA, and they said it was not covered. Nice home warranty, it does not cover the basic elements of the house. The problem is that we had to pay the plumber $100 before he would set foot in the house.
I called HWA to discuss it. They said they would listen to the first call I made, and if I had said "sump pump," they were not at fault. A manager would listen to the call, and the customer service rep would call me back. I asked that the person who listens to the call be the one who calls me back. They reluctantly agreed and said it would take 24 to 48 hours.
Six days later I got the call back. After talking to the manager, it was explained to me that HWA's policy is to make NO attempt to clarify the problem over the phone, even when it is easy to tell a covered problem from one that is not covered. The reason given was that some people do not know how to tell the difference between pumps. I suggested that asking the question is easy, and that a warning that the caller may be paying $100 for no reason if the pump is not a "sump" pump would be appreciated. HWA made no admission and stands by its policy.
I said I understand your policy, I disagree with it, and I would like to cancel my policy. They offered a prorated refund with a $30 cancellation fee.
Overall, this was poor handling of a request. A simple question would have saved us the $100 payment. It is just bad business.
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