I write this report only in the hope that many people may be spared the life endangerment, hurt, stress, and financial burden that was put upon me by the HicksGas Company, the Kankakee, IL. Branch.
Anyone working with as dangerous a substance as propane should take their job very serious as to prevent death and injury, and put their racial prejudices if any, aside.
This is going to be a long read, but a lot was done to me. I swear that every word is true, and is only put here to keep this from happening to anyone else, or if you're already (unfortunately) a customer of theirs you'll know what to watch for, and how to protect yourself from them. My best advise is to leave them alone altogether.
I thank usacomplaints.com for this site, it's a very important and needed tool.
This nightmare began as soon as my service was set up a little over a year ago. They brought a tank with a non working gas gauge and set it up at my home, with no mention of the non-functioning gauge.
Several weeks later I noticed it didn't work while trying to check my usage, and called them. The manager Matt, told me that someone would be out the next week to replace it.
It never happened! These phone calls to him went on for the rest of the fall and into the winter. Keep in mind, I can't tell how much gas I don't have in the dead of winter, I'm alone, with a disability, with no family or friends nearby, in the middle of nowhere!
Well, the worst finally happened. I ran out of gas at 1:00am in the coldest part of winter while asleep.
I woke up to a freezing house with no other source of heat. I got my 5 chihuahuas and we got into my car and spent the night. I called the HicksGas office in hope that they had an emergency line, and a young lady answered. I asked if this was an emergency line and she said no. I told her what happened and she told me to call back in the morning!
This can't be happening, I paid for gas service and I'm in a car freezing all night, because if I keep the car running all night, I'll run out of gas in the car. I called my mom, who lives in another town, and she said she'd get in touch with HicksGas first thing in the morning.
She called me as soon as she'd spoken to Matt the next morning and they told her someone would be right out with gas and they would change the gauge. Right out happened to be after noon that day, and the guy they sent refused to drive onto my driveway because it had snow on it. He was new!
I told him the driveway is asphalt and there wasn't even enough snow to get stuck in. He still refused. A neighbor's sister and his 19 year old son just happened to be walking down the road headed home and stopped to see why I was crying.
He told the driver the same thing I did, that there wasn't enough snow to get stuck, and the driveway was asphalt.
The driver still refused. I drove my little Ford Escort out and onto the road so he'd see if I didn't have a problem, that heavy truck surely wouldn't. He still refused.
Bo told me that he would shovel my driveway, and the driver said he'd do his other deliveries and come back.
I told him if you don't come back, HicksGas will be hit with one lawsuit they'll never forget, this wasn't my fault!
Bo shoveled the driveway, and the driver came back, got out of the truck and said he still wouldn't pull in and fill the tank. We looked at each other in disbelief because the drive was clean to the asphalt like a plow had gone through.
He wanted the little snow between the road edge and my gate cleaned!
I knew right then there was something wrong with him, and it wasn't the snow. Bo went ballistic asking him what the deal was with him. He finally got into the truck, backed in really fast, and knocked my big gate off and onto the ground! I walked over and looked at my gate and the whole frame was bent!
This guy got out and ran the hose to the tank without a word. When I figured he was almost done I got into my car to turn it around so I could pull in when he left. As I turned around I saw him come flying out of my driveway, and he left!
My gate's on the ground, he didn't give me the print out showing how much gas he'd put in (or not!), nor did he install a new gauge. So now I'm back to square one, only I don't know if he gave me all of my gas, or took part of what I'd paid for it to his own house, or sold it! This is unheard of!
I call Matt about the gauge and I'm told another lie, that someone else would be out to change it. So, what do they do next? They wait until spring and finally send someone to change the gauge, only he can't because it's not the gauge, it's the float. So now I need another tank!
They wait until the ground thaws to bring a big tank, on a big truck, with a crane, and get stuck in my yard. Then I heard them call the office for a medium sized tow truck, because the large one won't fit through my driveway. They send the BIG tow truck instead.
So now the big tow truck can't fit past my garage and pole light, so the driver locks this truck down on my brand new asphalt driveway cutting a big slice out of it.
Then he runs a cable to the stuck truck and pulls the truck all the way from my back yard, through the side yard, and to the side of my garage, as I watched in horror! I wish there was a way to put the pictures on here, because you could never in your wildest imagination know the damage that was done.
As they drove out of the asphalt driveway, they left chunks of sod going all the way up my long driveway to the road and beyond. Chunks of sod sitting anywhere from 8,9, 10 inches high all the way up my drive for me to clean up.
Then they left me with 2 tanks in my yard, the one with gas running through the one with the working gauge.
This is where it really gets bad. I called Matt in Kankakee the next day to find out what they were going to do about my yard. I should have known better than to call him.
The secretary put him on the phone, I told him why I was calling. He said someone would be out the next week, and hung up. Yes, he hung up!
No one showed up that week, nor that month, or the next month to repair it! A couple of his workers, John and I don't remember the other one's name, showed up to get some numbers off of a tank, and John told me to call someone named Steve at the main office. He told me the guy was Matt's boss.
I called and he wasn't there, but a really nice secretary told me to try back the next morning. When I called back he wasn't there, but she let me talk to the owner. He was a really nice and understanding guy, saying how they don't treat their customers like that, and not to worry my yard would be fixed.
About 30 minutes later I came in the house to hear Matt on my answering machine saying how they hadn't forgotten about me and that it would be taken care of within the next 2 weeks. Never happened!
My yard didn't get fixed until several months later. But, before my yard gets fixed, Matt has to have his revenge!
The guys come out, and go to the tank to disconnect the old tank, and take it, and guess what. I all of a sudden have a leak! Long story short, John disconnected my gas saying they couldn't leave my gas on with a leak, and left!
This was in March, I believe the 22nd. They said someone would probably be back the next day but it would be up to Matt, but no one showed up for several months! I had no hot water all of that time, nor could I use my stove.
I started making arrangements to switch gas companies and here they come. They come to the house and tell me it must be the regulator at the house that's leaking or it may be in the ground, and I'd better hope it wasn't in the ground.
This guy John comes to me and say's, well it's not in the ground, it must be the regulator. He said that the deck had been built over the regulator, and that it had to be moved out from under it, and moved a few inches over to the other side of the deck and attached back to the house.
I'm so disgusted with the whole thing because I can smell a rat, especially one that stinks like this does. I go into the house and come back out about five minutes later to catch this guy John on my deck with a saws-all.
I asked him what he was going to do with that. His reply was, "I'm going to cut a square out of the deck to get to the regulator." I said, oh no the hell you aren't! Would you cut a square out of your deck if you had one?
He starts belly aching about how he's not going to take the deck rail loose to get the side panel off and go under the deck.
I told him again he wasn't going to destroy my deck. I walked around to the deck side and told him to take the saw, and cut the lattice neatly, and it would go back up without any cuts being noticeable. That's how he got under, whoops! Back up, that's how he sent the new guy under there. He wasn't doing anything, but getting paid!
When they were done about 3 hours later, this John comes up to me and tells me they put a new regulator on and that I would have to pay for it. I asked him why he didn't tell me that before he did the work, and he said he thought they'd told me.
Who is they? Because I sure don't know! I asked him how much the charge is, and he said he didn't know. They told me the tank had 85% gas in it, turned the gas on, and were about to leave, and I went into the house. OMG! My house was full of gas!
I walked out to the gate and caught them before they left, and told him that the house was full of gas, that the regulator wasn't the problem. He yelled at me saying he checked the tank and there was no leak. He didn't want to test for a leak!
He kept saying he tested it at the tank, and there is no leak. I never saw him go to the tank when they finished tearing up my deck. I told him it was leaking, and I wanted him to check it, and he got out of the truck ticked off, and came into the house. He said that's sewer gas I smell, and I told him I've never had a sewer gas problem.
That's when he told me his nose is trained to know the difference between propane and sewer gas, and it was sewer gas. I told him if it's sewer gas, it came on at the same time he turned the gas tank back on! He then left. I then noticed he took my old regulator, so I called the office and told them I paid Amerigas for that regulator and I want it back.
The girl said they usually keep them, and I told her that I'd paid for mine, and then they'd charged me for the new one! She was very rude, said tell it to Matt and hung up!
The fumes were so bad in my house that I could hardly stay in there. I had all windows open in every room, and a fan in every room. Now that was the same John the turned my gas off before saying he couldn't leave my gas on with it showing a leak!
That didn't last long though, as the gas ran out a few days later! I knew that was propane! I called Matt and told him what had happened, and he said someone would be out to take a look at it.
Some time later a gas truck pulls up to put gas in my tank. I told the guy I didn't order any gas, and he said Matt told him to bring it so they could find the leak. He put the gas in and said another guy was already out here in Pembroke and would be here to find the leak.
He turned the gas on and came to the door. I opened the door and he said WHEW! That's a bad leak! Then he ran out to turn it off. I asked him was Matt going to replace the 85% gas that leaked out, and he said that he should, call him and talk to him about it. As soon as he left, another guy came to find the leak.
Now this is what blew me away! He walks in and goes straight to my island stove, removes the access panel from the back, lay's on the floor, and say's the leak is here.
The water heater and furnace are side by side, easy access, but he goes straight to the stove with panels to be removed and finds it within about 5 seconds.
Then he say's your gas line has a rusty pin hole in it. Now I know a little more than your average girl, and I know that stainless steel gas lines don't rust! I said to him let me see it, and he holds it up, and what I see looks like dried Ketchup on the side of it.
So I said to myself again, I smell a rat! I'll just send the line to Jenn Aire and have it looked at. Long story short, he fixes it, and leaves. I go back into the house and the first thing I notice is, he took my gas line off of the table and left with it!
This is the second time they stole my parts! I called and told them I want all of my parts back, they had no right to them, and was told they probably threw them away already. They probably have a nice SS scrap pile they throw them in! I know this is long, but this is the last thing, and the last straw. Now I owe them for a half tank of gas and winter is coming, so I'll need a full tank to start the winter with.
I'm going to need some help because HicksGas has doubled the prices. I hated to do it, but I applied for Energy Assistance because I needed help.
I can't work anymore because a doctor destroyed my balance. Two months later I get a letter telling me that I qualify and was awarded over $1000.00 to use for gas.
So, a little over half of that will pay for the gas they brought me, and I'd already paid them cash for the stove line repair.
When my gas starts getting low, I call Hicks to see how much credit I have left over, to see if our figures match. The girl told me I have no credit! I said that I had to have a credit, I only owed them for the last gas they'd delivered.
She told me I'd had an outstanding balance of over $400.00! I asked for what? She said in August that the guy's had come out and done 8 hours of work bringing me up to code! I said you mean they came out here and changed the wrong part, and I'm still owed the 85% gas that leaked out.
She said You'll have to talk to Matt, and I said put him on. She told me he wasn't there, but he was. I'd called the wrong office number and he answered, right before I called her. So I asked her about the doubled labor hours they charged me for, and she got aggravated and made a racial remark, to the effect of I'm tired of dealing with you (N word) in Pembroke and hung up in my face.
My mom called them about the 85% they owed me from the leak, and Matt lied to her and said that he had them to put extra in with the last gas they'd put in. If that was true then why did his guy tell me to talk to Matt about it right after he put the gas in???
Why would he send extra gas before I even mentioned it to him that I wanted it replaced? (That's not like Matt!)? Why would his secretary tell me I had to talk to him about the 85% they owed me. And finally, by Matt saying he gave me the 85% gas back, he's admitting that the regulator wasn't the problem, the worker John screwed up, and he still charged me over $400.00 for that job. I wasn't going to pay it, so he stole it from the Energy Assistance grant I was given for fuel.
Ok, that was the last straw! After going through all of this with these people, paying the high costs of propane, getting parts ripped-off, lied to, almost freezing to death, going months without hot water, letting the gas I paid for leak out, or possibly causing the leak, telling me it was sewer gas and endangering my life by being in my home breathing that stuff, not to mention I could have blown up, then you steal my money by making a bill up on me, and call me the N word!
I called back and she wouldn't answer the phone, so I left a message. I told her that wasn't very professional hanging up in my face, and that I wanted the number to the main office. I was going to tell them what she called me. I called back again and she still didn't answer, so I left another not so nice, message and then gave up on it.
I was later notified that HicksGas had terminated my account and were to pick up my tank when it is empty. At that time, it was during 30 below zero weather at the end of December and into January!
Conclusion
It is now the first week of February. I have a new set up with an honest company, that came out in this bad weather to set me up quickly, and the guys are just great.
They're kind and respectful and they take their work seriously. They were like a breath of fresh air to me, behind dealing with HicksGas. I was a good paying customer to Hicks and never owed them anything.
I would like to thank HicksGas for terminating my account, after they ripped me off so badly. I saved over $400.00 by leaving this price gouging company.
Hicks doubled the prices, and never lowered their prices when the fuel prices went down charging $1100.00 or $1200.00 for a tank of gas, verses my new gas companies price of $803.00.
I was also told by an old HicksGas employee to make sure I use all of my gas up, because Matt is so rotten that he would turn right around and pump the gas out of the tank and bill me $200.00 for a restocking fee, winding up with the gas and creating another bill for me.
Other gas companies I've heard, reimburse you for the gas left in your tank. He also told me that it's not just Matt that doesn't like Black people, it's his crew too. He said they're like a click, and all feel the same way.
I believe him, because I went through hell dealing with these people and sometimes you can just see it in their eyes, and you can feel it. The secretary at Hicks, confirmed it when she called me that awful name!
I've stated the facts, and leave it to you to decide if you want to deal with people like this or not. I know the people of Pembroke hate HicksGas because of Matt and cannot wait until they open the new propane distribution center here.
There was a big meeting here, and others had their own horror stories of having to deal with this Matt person and his crew. I will do everything in my power to expose this bunch for what they are. DIRTY & LOW DOWN!
Peace & Blessings
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