Culligan of Newburgh charged my elderly parents over $10,000 for $2,400 worth of equipment that they "serviced" twice in 14 years. In 2005 my parents signed up to lease a Culligan brand water softening system at a price of $57.00/month which increased yearly and is now over $60.00/month. The real cost of identical equipment is about $2400 but Culligan puts their name plate on the tanks and calls it's value $3000. Regardless, my parents were sold a "system" that included the water softener on lease, and a whole house filter that they had to purchase for $350. They were also charged $265 for installation. They already had a softener system, so the installation consisted or swapping the tanks and about 11" of copper pipe. In the 14 years they've had the equipment, Culligan performed 2 services which they even note in their paperwork as ANNUAL services. Once in 2007 and once in 2019. Everything you read online states that softener systems should be serviced and cleaned yearly. And again....the 2 times Culligan serviced the system in 14 years, it even stated on the invoice that it was an "Annual" service. Management claims that they send out "postcard" reminders. This is an all out lie. The only correspondence my parents received from Culligan was to solicit equipment upgrades or salt purchases. I called Culligan corporate and spoke to Scott. I was told that Culligan water softener leases are supposed to include salt delivery. Brian, the manager at Culigan of Newburgh told me that Culligan dealers are independently owned and basically make their own rules, so no salt. He also told me that softener systems dont need maintenance. And finally, Brian told me that people spend alot of money on leasing all the time such as cars and houses. There's just one problem with that Brian. Houses and cars are leased because #1, a lease payment is always lower than a purchase payment, and #2, you lease because you can't afford to purchase. A person that rents a house, or leases a car never comes close to reaching the purchase price which is why they rent or lease. Culligan of Newburgh charged my parents $10,000 for $2,400 worth of equipment that they never maintained, upgraded or serviced. For what they have been charged over the past 14 years, they could have purchased a water softener system 5 times over. When I took Brian's explanations back to Culligan Corp, I got a new story from Scott, the same customer service rep I spoke with originally. This time, Scott changed his story and said that yes, the local dealers make their own rules and set their own prices. All they have to do is use the Culligan brand equipment. Avoid Culligan of Newburgh and be ready for a cute response from manager, Brian on this thread. He'll have explanations and answers for everything I've said here. Just like his sales staff, he's a fast talker with an answer for everything. My advice is to do your own research, get the facts and always get a 2nd and even a 3rd opinion. There is better, less expensive equipment out there and companies that actually care enough about their customers to regularly service the equipment you pay your hard earned money for. Also.....ask why Culligan of Newburgh here on Yelp is now named Culligan of the Hudson Valley and have also been under the name Culligan Water Conditioning with a "C" rating from the Better Business Bureau. All 3 business names, exact same address: 131 Little Britain Rd, Newburgh. My parents have sold their house and once ready to move out, will have the equipment removed and contract cancelled. The process of selling the house is the only reason I found out about this situation. My parents have had only their Social Security and one small retirement for income. So for Culligan of Newburgh to take from them $750 every year and $10,000 over the course of 14 years is absolutely disgusting. Shame on them. read more
