As veterans, and with me being a retired law enforcement officer, my husband and I would not…read morerecommend this company based on our experience.
My husband called Eco Electric because two outlets in our kitchen were not working. We expected to pay the standard service call fee, which was around $60 and possibly, if needed, $289 diagnostic fee. The electrician, Andrew "Drew", arrived and my husband explained the problem. Andrew gestured toward an area of the kitchen and said the issue was probably there, referring to where the GFCI outlet was located. However, before performing any diagnostic work or even checking the outlet, he had my husband sign an agreement authorizing a $289 diagnostic charge.
Andrew then stepped outside, came back in, walked directly to the area he had pointed out earlier, moved a medicine box that was blocking a GFCI outlet we didn't even realize was there, and simply pressed the reset button. The outlets immediately started working.
At that point, my husband asked if the diagnostic charge was still necessary since the problem had already been resolved. Andrew told him the charge still applied because he had already signed the paperwork, even though the issue had been fixed before any actual diagnostic work had taken place.
That is what left us feeling misled. Our concern has never been about paying for honest work or a legitimate diagnostic. Our concern is that we were asked to authorize a $289 diagnostic fee before basic troubleshooting was performed, and once the simplest possible fix restored power, we were still expected to pay the full diagnostic charge simply because the paperwork had already been signed.
Andrew seemed like a nice person, but that doesn't change how the process was handled. I don't know whether the technicians are paid on commission or another type of incentive, but as a customer, the process felt dishonest and misleading.
My husband later spoke with Bill, who I believe was the manager or someone in a supervisory role. Unfortunately, my husband found him dismissive and defensive of the complaint. He didn't seem interested in truly listening and even interrupted my husband before he had finished explaining what had happened. To Bill's credit, he said he would speak with Andrew to hear his side of the story and call my husband back.
When Bill called back, he did agree to reduce the charge by $100, which we appreciated. During that conversation, my husband explained that, going forward, their technicians should provide a more thorough explanation and perform basic troubleshooting before asking customers to authorize expensive diagnostic charges. Otherwise, the process can leave customers feeling misled and can come across as deceptive.
What was especially disappointing was reading the comments Andrew entered on our invoice afterward. He (Bill or Andrew) wrote that the customer "was not happy with having to pay for the diagnostic" and that he "wouldn't be able to work with him again." That is simply not an accurate representation of what happened.
Our complaint was never about paying a fair diagnostic fee. Our concern was the lack of communication, the order in which things were handled, and the misleading process. We were asked to authorize a $289 diagnostic charge before the most basic troubleshooting step--checking and resetting the GFCI outlet--was even attempted. Once that button was pressed, the outlets worked immediately.
We appreciated the $100 reduction, but that doesn't change how this experience was handled or how our concerns were documented afterward. As veterans, my husband and I expect honesty, transparency, and integrity from the companies we hire. Unfortunately, this experience fell far short of those expectations, and we will not be using or recommending Eco Electric in the future.
