Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/18/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  In August of 2022 we had ACTL Group LLC swap out our ** Compressor and Air Handler in our business. The new unit is a 10 ton ***************** Odyssey and matching AHU.The unit was having troubles every few weeks, shutting down unexpectedly, randomly. ACTL Group came back to troubleshoot but gave no concrete reason for the failure. This would repeat itself more than 8 more times, ACTL Group came back to troubleshoot. They said they would escalate the issue. Nothing changed other than the frequency of Random Shutdowns started to increase. Once every day, the ** would need to be hard - reset at the ** panel outside. The ** would work for a few hours, then quit.One idea was the Thermostat they installed initially, A Nest 3rd gen, they said this might be the issue. They replaced it with a more modest AS brand unit. This was in October.Nothing changed. The issue of shutdowns was happening more frequently now.Obviously the Nest that we paid for, was not the issue.**TL stopped coming out, citing Vacation time for the sales person. I was forced to call another repair tech from another company in November.The other company came out 16 Nov, tested all the systems, found the problem (a simple and basic wiring mistake for the 24vac control transformer) and we haven't had any problems since.ACTL Group needs to return our equipment that was paid for, in full in August 2022. They also need to pay for the repair from the outside vendor. Attached Paid invoice from ACTL Group for the system, including the Nest Thermostat a $516 item.Paid invoice from the Repair ** vendor showing the Repair/Diagnostic fee.A brief timeline of the **TL communications, including some SMS logs showing some of the visit details.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/21/2022

  Good morning BBB team, we hope you're doing fantastic!
  
  We are really sorry about how ************************** is feeling, however, there are some points that we have to clarify for this matter:
  
  1) In our accepted (by the customer) estimate (07/27/22) and invoice (08/07/22) for the job, it was stated that we would use customer's existing high/low voltage wiring, and he  agreed.  Please note that since the beginning we advised or the possibility of a wiring modification as seen in the disclaimer notes (please see highlighted areas). However, after that, customer was looking for us to make a wire modification at no cost, claiming that it was included on the estimated when clearly it wasn't; therefore, we sent him an estimate (09/13/22) with the cost of the low voltage modification (see attached pdf), which he declined.

  2) We have gone 8 times to customer's location at no charge for him doing our best to solve the issue. We have had numerous communication with the manufacturer's technical support and we have been following their instructions on all troubleshooting.

  3) During our last visit (11/11/22) and diagnostics, we advised the customer that if the same issue continued, we would need to replace the low voltage wiring as we had originally recommended. If the issue continue, we also would be returning with the manufacturer's service technician to address the situation.

  4) When the issue happened again the customer contacted another contractor (without our knowledge) who performed a cheaper type of modification, not the one that was recommended by the manufacturer's technical support.  Since we were not consulted, we do not feel we are liable to reimburse for the new contractor's invoice.

  5) Regarding the Thermostat, we originally installed the Honeywell T6 Pro Smart Thermostat as it was originally recommended by our Vendor. The customer then wanted for us to change it to a ****  NLT. Due to the customers preference, we consulted with the ***************** tech support if the **** NLT would be a good fit for that unit. Their reply was positive but stated that the prefered recommendation would be to keep the originally installed thermostat. We replaced Honeywell thermostat for **** thermostat (see AC Replacement invoice). We credited the customer for the Honeywell T6 Pro Smart and only changed the customer the difference for the ****. We did not charge the customer for the second installation, worth $220.00 for the **** NLT WiFi.

  6) When the issues began, the tech support asked us to install a PRO1 701 (basic thermostat) to test the unit and then replace the **** for an ***************** Silver 724 thermostat (designed for this kind of units). We followed their instructions and customer approval, as well as replacing the **** Thermostat as they recommended.

  7) At this time, we will compensate the customer with a new **** NLT Thermostat and allow him to keep the already installed ***************** Silver 724, worth approximately $200.00. Since the customer involved another contractor to work on the unit, we will not be installing the **** NLT. We recommend that the customer continue using the new contractor for future service needs.

  We certainly understand the customer's frustration and felt the urgency of this matter.  We  hope the customer understands that we did all we could to service him, always attending to his calls and needs and working closely with the manufacturer's technical support and advising the customer of the recommendations given.

  *******************

  Residential Sales Manager

  ACTL Group Air Conditioning