Company information:
First American Home Warranty
Fort Worth, Texas
United States
Phone: 800-992-3400
firstam.com
In August 2009, I called First American Home Warranty regarding my air conditioner, which had gone out. That is when this nightmare began.
Every time you call First American Home Warranty, you are on hold for awhile and you listen to how First American "screens their vendors", selects only the vendors that meet their "Strict" requirements, how the "vendors are put on probation", and how First Am "calls the homeowner to ensure that the homeowner is satisfied with the vendor they send". Unfortunately for me, I actually believed all this. But nothing could be further from the truth.
First American sent a company named "Authorized Service Center" to my home. "Authorized Service Center" said the air conditioner needed replacing and told me that First American would authorize around $800 toward the cost. I needed a new Central heat/air, so since I knew FirstAm only did business with vendors who were "screened, on probation and approved by homeowners", I paid "Authorized Service Center" over $5, 000 to replace my central air/heat. The new a/c stopped working after a week or so. We called “Authorized Service Center”, they came out to fix it, it would work for an hour or two, go out again, we'd call again, etc., for a total of 6 times they came out to my home. "Authorized Service Center" let us swelter for an entire weekend and several days and evenings and were not at all concerned that I had paid them $5200 and had no a/c. I simply had to wait my turn. During all this, I also placed several calls to First American appealing to them for their help with this but each time, I was told there was nothing they would do. They did not care that their "approved" vendor was giving me a royal rip off. It was finally fixed in the 3rd week of September.
Unfortunately, the nightmare has reoccurred. Now that it's getting cold in Texas, I turn on my supposedly brand new heater, and we have no heat. I call FirstAm and they want to send this "Authorized Service Center" out AGAIN! And they want me to pay another $60 to the company that could care less that I had no a/c after they received $5000+ of my hard-earned money and had to come out 6 times to finally get the a/c working. To the company that should have installed it correctly back in August/September.
It goes without saying...I do not want to do business with "Authorized Service Center". I am not now nor have I ever been satisfied with anything they have done. In August, when I asked to speak to the owner, I was told he was not there on more than one occasion. I cannot understand why First American is doing business with a company like this. I am filing separate complaints on "Authorized Service Center". Is it that hard to get vendors for home warranty?
I told First American Home Warranty that I do not want "Authorized Service Center" to come back out to my home. First Am Home Warranty tells me that since I have not "filed a formal complaint" against that company, that is who they are sending. I guess many many phone calls to them informing them of the fact that I have paid $5200 for no air conditioning and asking for their help with their vendor does not count as a formal complaint? (Each time I called I had to suffer through that recording that says how much they CARE about their customers.) So I asked to speak to a supervisor and I spoke to Kathy Cotton in Van Nuys, California. I explained the situation and told her I have complained about this "company" numerous times back in August and September and asked her "What does it take to "file a formal complaint" against a company you have already complained about numerous times? I was not informed by anyone at FirstAm to do that or that I even could do that. She said that she would send another company and that I would need to pay $60 for the service call. This is what I object to. I do not feel I should have to pay for something that should have been done correctly back in August by a vendor sent to my home by First American.
So now I take it to the corporate level. I just finished speaking with someone named Nahun in Dan Langston's office. A more cold and unfeeling and unbudging person I have never spoken with. He was even worse than the others. An expert on telling you how wrong you are. Very adept at not feeling any of your pain. Good job Nahun! You're just another in a long line of First Am's that don't give a flying leap about your customers.
Does it surprise anyone that Dan Langston does not call? Even if he did, he's probably just as unsympathetic.
FirstAm, their "vendor screening/probation program" is bunk and at least one of their vendors is unscrupulous. Is American Home Shield any better? I see now that First American has loads of consumer complaints about it. How do companies like this stay in business? I will be contacting the local news stations about this as well.
As far as this awful company "Authorized Service Center", a street address for them cannot be located, but I believe they are in Garland. I live in Fort Worth. It would seem that if FirstAm had this huge network of vendors, a company a little closer could be found!
I am sooooo done with FirstAm. Everyone in the org is cold and unfeeling -- not one ounce of human compassion anywhere in the company. I would hate to work at a company whose corporate culture is to be cold and unfeeling towards their customers and tells their customers if you don't like it, cancel your contract. Which is what I have done. Pitiful. Just pitiful.
