Theresa Winters owes her son-in-law big time. He saved the 79-year-old registered nurse more than $7,800 on air-conditioning work she didn’t need.
Winters has paid at least $15,000 on air conditioner service over the last 13 years to two companies – the now-defunct Affordable Heating and Cooling and Action Cooling & Heating, which purchased Affordable’s customer base.
Lee County permit data for the property shows that:
•In late 2002, Affordable put in a new A/C condenser
• In August 2006, Affordable installed an air handler.
• In August 2009, Action changed out the condenser.
• In June 2013, Action changed out the condenser and air handler.
Then late last month Action pulled a permit to replace ductwork in Winters’ 1,000-square-foot Fort Myers Shores home.
When I asked Winters why she got a new piece of air-conditioning equipment every few years, she said it was because the company recommended it. She has a maintenance agreement with Action that expires in June 2017. In 2013, when they were at her home to service the A/C, she was told the SEER rating on the condenser and air handler didn’t match, making the system inefficient and costing her money.
“By chance they had some unit that was going back to the manufacturer. Rather than have the unit sent back, they could put it in for X dollars,” Winters said she was told by the technician. The final price was $6,500. “Hindsight is 20/20 but at the time what they told me made sense to me.”
Winters said the company gave her good service. They came quickly when she called them one evening last month after her air conditioner suddenly stopped working. The technician came around 9 p.m. clearing a clogged drain line to get the system cooling.
A few days later a technician and supervisor came by to “follow up on night calls,” Winters said. The younger man went into her attic to check her ductwork. He emerged with a picture showing the terrible condition of her duct work.
The damage was likely from “critters up there” Winters was told. It couldn’t be repaired and she needed new work right away.
Winters said she balked at the $7,845 quote. But she said she was told she needed it done right away. “If I didn’t have it done it would compromise my 2-year-old unit and I would have to pay more for not having the work done,” she recalled being told.
While the two men were at Winters’ house one noticed she had a trailer and asked if it was for sale. She told him she would see.
Winters’ son-in-law, James Johnson, owns the trailer. He lives in Cape Coral and parked the trailer at her home. When she called to ask how much he wanted for it, he asked who had inquired about it. That’s when she told him about the men from Action.
Suspicious about why his mother-in-law urgently needed ductwork, Johnnson called his wife, who convinced her mother to get a second opinion.
That inspection showed “no major problems” although a couple connections needed to be sealed, Johnson said. There was no evidence of rodents or squirrels in the attic. And the bid to replace the ductwork, when Winters decides to do it, was $3,500, less than half Action’s quote.
The photo Action’s tech showed Winters didn’t seem to jibe with the condition of the insulation and duct work.
I spoke with William Aron Stross, the owner of Action Cooling & Heating, who said he would look into the matter. Action voided the permit after Winters called to cancel and her payment wasn’t put through on her credit card.
Winters said she feels betrayed by Action.
“No one from the company has called to say how is your unit working? Are you sure you don’t want the work done? They obviously know they tried to hoodwink me.” Winters said.
Winters said she’s angry at herself for being gullible. But she also feels lucky, “If that fella had not asked about the trailer for sale, I would have been out $7,800 bucks.”
