DEWEY, Okla. — Triple-digit temperatures mean our air conditioners are top of mind, especially if they break down. Sometimes trying to get service can mean a long, hot wait.
A family in Dewey found out a home warranty company only added to their frustration.
It didn't take long this summer for the Edmundsons to know the heat was on when their upstairs air conditioner couldn't take the heat and quit.
"It's like a furnace up there," Thomas Edmundson told the 2 News Oklahoma Problem Solvers.
Edmundson says temperatures were soaring above 90 degrees in their kids' bedrooms.
They had coverage from Select Home Warranty in case something like this happened. In fact, Edmundson says they recently paid nearly $2,300 upfront for five years of coverage.
"We bought the policy because it's an older house, we're trying to protect ourselves, it didn't work that way with them," Edmundson says.
It didn't work, Edmundson says, because when he called Select, they couldn't find a heating and air contractor in the Dewey or Bartlesville area that would take on the warranty work at a time when the summer heat and calls for service are at their highest.
"They told us they couldn't find anyone to service this, we could go out and try to find our own," Edmundson says.
"You figure they're a business, they're supposed to have these people to come out, they didn't."
When Edmundson finally did find a technician to come out, he says the tech found a "catastrophic rupture" in the unit which couldn't be repaired and would have to be replaced.
However, Edmundson says the warranty company considered it a leak, which wasn't covered.
"I fought with them and fought with them, it needs to be replaced, it was very expensive, and they kept saying no."
They were stuck, Edmundson says; no repair or replacement, plus they're out that $2,300 they paid for the warranty.
So finally, the Edmundsons told the company they were contacting the Problem Solvers. After we got involved, Edmundson says he got at least a bit of good news from a manager.
"The first thing that came out of his mouth was 'where do you want me to send the check?'" Edmundson says.
That manager was referring to a refund check, for the $2,300, but there was no other explanation from the warranty company.
Edmundson says that the refund is a relief, but he still thinks the company should have replaced the AC as the warranty calls for. Now, the family will replace it on their own.
Anyone having issues with a warranty company can file a complaint with the Oklahoma Insurance Department.
The O.I.D. may be able to determine if the warranty company broke any rules or regulations.
File complaints here.
Contact the Problem Solvers:
- 918-748-1502
- problemsolvers@kjrh.com
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