If I could rename this company, I'd call them "Dishonesty Mechanical."
What makes this experience even more disappointing is that I had previously trusted this company and spent approximately $1,300 on plumbing work. Based on that experience, I expected an honest assessment.
Instead, Mike came to my home for a warranty claim through AHS and immediately told me my leak wasn't covered because my water pressure was too high and I didn't have a pressure reducing valve (PRV). The interesting part? He reached that conclusion without actually determining whether I had one.
I specifically asked him, "Are you sure I don't have a PRV?" His response was yes; older homes like mine typically don't have them, so there was no need to look. After I insisted, he went into the crawl space, shined a flashlight at one section of pipe for a few seconds, and declared, "If you had one, it would be right here." He then explained how difficult and risky it would be to install one because my pipes might crumble during the work.
For context, my crawl space isn't some tiny, impossible area to access. It's approximately 4 feet high, has lighting and a fan installed, and is easy to move around in. A more thorough inspection would have taken very little additional effort.
I was then quoted $650 to install this supposedly nonexistent PRV, plus another $650 to replace my kitchen faucet.
Something didn't sit right with me, so I contacted another plumber for an estimate. Within minutes, he located the PRV that Mike had insisted wasn't there. It had simply failed and needed to be replaced.
I then contacted AHS and requested a second opinion. They assigned a different plumbing company, whose technician also located the existing PRV, confirmed that it had failed, and replaced it under my home warranty.
So, to recap: I was told I didn't have a PRV, quoted hundreds of dollars to install one, and then two separate plumbers confirmed that the PRV was there all along and simply needed to be replaced.
Everyone has to earn a living, but customers deserve an accurate diagnosis before being told their warranty doesn't apply or being handed expensive estimates. I expected much better from a company I had already trusted with over $1,300 worth of work. Based on my experience, I DO NOT recommend Honesty Mechanical. read more
