CONTACT

Janice L. Friddle
Telephone: 720-947-5305
Email: JFriddle@aarp.org

Rachel is 87 and lives alone. Last October, she decided it was time to purchase a new heating and cooling system for her home. She found a contractor through an advertisement in a community newspaper. She purchased the unit and had it installed through Mile High Heating and Cooling in Wheatridge, Colorado. She paid $3356.

From the beginning, the system didn’t work right. She was cold all last winter and hot most of this summer. She made multiple calls to the installer and in spite of regular promises to check and correct the system, no one ever came back to help her. In August, her son Dan was visiting on a particularly hot Sunday and asked why the air conditioning wasn’t working. He went down to the basement and discovered ice on all the pipes. The following Monday he called Mile High Heating and Cooling. The telephone was disconnected. He researched them on the Internet and found an address. The building was vacant. He contacted Jefferson County and learned that no permits or licenses were ever pulled for the Company or for the installation of his mother’s system. Frustrated, he contacted the Office of the Colorado Attorney General who in turn referred him to AARP ElderWatch.

After investigating the situation, AARP ElderWatch decided to take a shot at helping Rachel. Since the system was less than a year old there was hope that the manufacturer might stand behind a warranty and assist her in fixing the problem. Staff contacted International Comfort Products (ICP;) the manufacturer of Rachel’s heating and cooling system. After explaining the circumstances, the company offered to contact a licensed local contractor to go to Rachel’s home and diagnose the problem at no charge. AARK, Inc. discovered that the unit had been installed without an air filter and that there were damaged coils due to poor installation which were causing the system to malfunction. They estimated that it would cost $290 to repair but the problem was not covered under the warranty. The good news was that there was not any major damage to the unit.

AARK, Inc. made the repairs and Rachel can now face both Indian summer and winter with greater confidence. ICP requested that AARP ElderWatch mail them copies of the repair receipt. On Friday September 24, International Comfort Products notified AARP ElderWatch that they are reimbursing Rachel for the repair costs.

Home repair complaints are consistently among the top areas of concern filed by clients with AARP ElderWatch. In 2003, 93 consumers reported over $280,000 in losses and potential losses. Before having any work done, every consumer should verify that they are working with licensed professionals and that the contractor files the appropriate permits required by their respective counties. To check out a business before deciding to utilize them call AARP ElderWatch at 1-800-222-4444, option 2 or select the option for the appropriate Better Business Bureau.