On April 15th I purchased a comprehensive home warranty from Empire Home Warranty for $408 with a deductible amount of $49 per claim visit. This was to cover all of our major appliances (clothes dryer, clothes washer, dish washer, HVAC, oven, range, refrigerator, septic system, water heater).
In late June our AC stopped working, so I called the claims department. Amazingly they were able to get a proper technician onsite within only a couple days. I paid my $49 deductible and the 3rd party technician fixed the problem. All seemed OK.
A few months later in August our range/oven and refrigerator stopped working. So I emailed the claims department and waited one week for a response. I then called the claims department and asked if they had received my requests. They stated that their "system was offline".
A claim was created and several days later an appointment was setup with Trustworthy Appliance Service. Several days after that one of their technicians came to my house and inspected range/oven and refrigerator. The technician stated that it would be a couple days to get the information to the warranty company. I waited one week and then called the claims department regarding the status of my claim. They stated that no one from Trustworthy Appliance Service had provided them with the necessary information to proceed. I turned around and called the service company only to find that they had provided the necessary information to Empire Home Warranty two days after being at my home.
Another call to Empire Home Warranty with this new information got me a new answer. Now they stated they had something from Trustworthy Appliance Service, but their system was down and they could not access the information. The individual at Empire Home Warranty promised that they would be in touch in a couple days with an answer as to the direction to resolve the claim.
So another week passed, and no one from Empire Home Warranty ever called. When I called them back, the individual I spoke with said it would be a few more days. The issue was under review and theyd have an answer early next week.
This went on for several weeks. I then switched to email communications with Empire Home Warranty as I was getting absolutely no where with the phone calls. After numerous emails between myself and Empire Home Warranty, I finally got a settlement offer because they decided that it wasnt worth fixing our appliances.
So the offer was $100 for the range/oven and $200 for the refrigerator. I told Empire Home Warranty that I could not find any range/oven for $100, and they then offered $200 as the settlement amount. I asked Empire Home Warranty where I was suppose to be able to purchase a new range/oven and refrigerator for $200 each. They stated that was the amount for a builder grade unit, but would not provide any specifics on where these could be found. Obviously you cannot get a new range/oven or refrigerator for $200 anywhere except of the back of a truck in a dark alley.
So now a new game was to ensue. Empire Home Warranty emailed me two settlement claim documents that I was to sign and return. I emailed and faxed the signed copies of these documents on the same day they were received. I then waited the required 21 days, but no checks. When I emailed them again, they stated that they had never received my documents. I then got very angry with them and demanded them to send my settlement claim immediately.
Were now five (5) months into this ridiculous ordeal and I still have not received my settlement checks. Ive emailed the claims department of Empire Home Warranty too many times to count, but keep getting generic responses or blatant lies. Id finally had enough and have submitted complaints to the BBB, FTC, Online Business Bureau and the Indiana Attorney Generals office.
To date, Empire Home Warranty has lied to me on the phone and in email dozens of times. Theyve promised that my settlement checks have been sent multiple times and even provided me with check number when probed.
While I wont get my money any time soon, in the end Empire Home Warranty will be held accountable for their deceit by the agencies that Ive filed complaints with. Im not going to let this go... Eventually I will get what Im owed by these jokers.
If youve had a similar issue with Empire Home Warranty or any other home warranty company, please make sure to file complaints with the BBB, FTC and your states Attorney General office. Companies like this need to be held accountable for their blatant deceit.
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