I engaged FAHW to arrange fixing my furnace that was no longer blowing hot air. FAHW arranged to have a contractor come out. The contractor showed up and told my tenant that he could not do the job because the furnace was on the roof of my two-story townhome. The contractor just left. Still without heat - two days later I called the contractor to collect a status and they told me that they would have to let FAHW know that they could not perform the job.
Then I called FAHW - after waiting on hold unsuccessfully 3 different times for 35 minutes, the forth time I waited 65 minutes before a CSR answered my call. The CSR told me if I waited on hold he would call other contractors on their list to find someone with a tall enough ladder reach my roof. After another 30 minutes on hold the CSR returned to tell me that they could not help me because no one could reach my roof and that there was a California Code that requires the owner to have a ladder leading down from the second story down to the first. The call ended and I did some research and found that there was no such "code" and then opened up the phone book and the first two heating contractors I called said they could surely do the job - stating they do that all the time!
The next day I called FAHW again with this news and the different CSR said she'd again call the other contractors on her list to see if they could find any one that could do it — but said that it would take a few hours and that she would call me back by 10AM. Well 10AM came and went (with no call back) so I called FAHW again and I had to go over the whole situation again with the new CSR.
At this stage I suggested that I use one of the contractors I found and pay for it up front and just submit the bill to FAHW. She said we could no do that because the contractors I found were not on her list of approved contractors. She eventually found a contractor on her list to do the job. What happed to the CA code the first CSR described???
Before we got of the phone the CSR asked if there was anything else she could do for me. I asked her to search on my name to see if they had ever received a letter that I had sent in three month previous requesting reimbursement on another property I had work done on. She searched and found what I was referring to. Although FAHW never responded - they did have my letter and copy of a paid invoice.
The letter described that I had some covered plumbing work done on a rental but did not know I had the FAHW coverage because they sent the policy coverage notice to the rental address instead of my residence (as stated on escrow papers at the time the coverage policy was purchased). I was sending the letter and statement to them to request reimbursement as the CSR had recommended.
The CSR helping me told me that in order to request the reimbursement they had to open a new work order which cost $55. I told her I already paid $193 for the service and was not going to pay another $55 unless I was going to get reimbursed. She said she would check with her supervisor and give me a call back.
Two hours later she called me and asked for my home address so she could send my reimbursement check. I gave it to her and then agreed to open the new work ticket and pay the $55. Done deal right? Three days later on a Saturday, I received a call on my cell from the same CSR telling my that my claim was denied! Yet I had to pay the $55 for the opened ticket for a job that I already had done and paid for three month earlier. True Rip-off!!!
I would never recommend First American Home Warranty to anyone.
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