Water Heater Replacement

You need to first call the home warranty company and request another plumber. I'm also sure they would like to know that their plumber is gouging customers.

havasu said:

You need to first call the home warranty company and request another plumber. I'm also sure they would like to know that their plumber is gouging customers.

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Last Friday I talked with someone from the warranty company and was told I could get a second opinion. If the opinion came back the same, I would just pay the $75 service fee and if it came back different I would not pay anything. The person I talked with today said that wasn't an option. They alsosaid it's not their problem. I told her I wanted to cancel the warranty and said someone would contact me within 48 hours. Maybe I can get some resolution with another person from the warranty company. I just can't beleive the warranty company does not have a process for situations like this. I know they can't possibly know every code across the country, but by the same token if one of their customers feel they are being lied to by a contractor (which the warranty company hired ) there must be some sort of process. I mean think about it. I could set up a company with a licensed plumber and work thru this warranty company. Go out and collect the $75 service fee and give the homeowner an inflated estimate, never really expecting to actually do the work. I pocket $75 for ten minutes work and I'm done.

Maybe its time to call them back and speak to their manager? How about calling another home warranty company to see what they would cover and how they would handle your situation?

I personally only had one experience where I called them to repair a cracked toilet bowl in my home. They came out, charged me my $75, then commenced to install a used toilet bowl, in another color (Ivory vs. bisque) and thought that would make me happy. Hell no, I screamed at everyone I could get on the phone, and sent pics asking if this warranty company would be satisfied if a plumber did that in THEIR own home. Yeah, they finally replaced both the bowl and the tank with a similar model. Also, they didn't charge me for the second response.

Good luck. Remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease!

I may not have seen the post, but did you contact the Authority Having Jurisdiction to confirm whether or not this is necessary? Also, did you confirm the credentials of the plumber and the plumbing company?

DavidT said:

I may not have seen the post, but did you contact the Authority Having Jurisdiction to confirm whether or not this is necessary? Also, did you confirm the credentials of the plumber and the plumbing company?

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I contacted the county inspector (who monitors state code) and she confirmed there is no code requiring the valve. The plumber is certified by the state. I went ahead and had another plumber install a heater. Unfortunately, I had it done when I was out of town and he installed a 30 gallon instead of a 40 gallon without my approval. He said there was not enough room, with the increased insulation requirements. I'm skeptical, as the new heater is only 1.25" taller than the previous.