ComplaintsforA1 Chimney Sweep

• Initial Complaint

  03/06/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  A1 Chimney Sweep came out to my house on February 18, 2024 to provide a second opinion from another fireplace company about a chimney box that is now visible behind the wall touching insulation after water damage from snow and icemelt in January 2024. While the person sent out noted no concerns or fire safety hazards suggested a fireplace cleaning which was done. The fireplace has not been used since the January 2024 snow event because I wanted to get that done. Plus Im still trying to get the interior redone and remodeled after all of the water destruction. today February 28, 2024. I woke up to the sound of dripping and insidw the fireplace/damper/flue was dripping and water spots were visible.This has never happened by any other company and the last time I had it done in 2020 and no issues up until after they cleaned the chimney. Phone numbers associated with them are ************, **************, address associated with the payment something called Job Box was *******************************************************************. People who have called from numbers are ***************** and **************. This company keeps saying they have no address. One lady even told me she works from home when I asked for the business address. I do not want these people on my property. I do not want the refund sent to the original payment, they must send a check or cashiers check. I do not trust anyone from this company anymore at all. The receipt says in the name or for the name of the company, air ducks not a one. But again on today one lady says they are able to subcontract stuff out now to other places if one of their people falls off of roof or something like that. Which sounds very very suspect.

  Customer response

  03/04/2024

  Thank you. As stated, I do not want them on the property. They have no business address. This has also been sent to the ** ******** of ******** Affairs as a warning to others about this company. 

  Customer response

  04/05/2024

  Thank you for the updated information. Ill do what I can to share information about this company with others. Thank you for trying. 

• Initial Complaint

  02/24/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  They claim to have an inspection special, the specialist just stood on the ground and look up and said I had no damage on the chimney. He seen more time trying to upscale more repair fees of cracks inside of the house. Then due the cleaning, not a single prevention was taken to prevent mu stuff from getting damage. I have a cream white couch and the debris was not able to come off. The company could have said do xyand z since we charging 400 buck but it does not include anything but scrubbing the inside of the chimney. For that price I expected a little more care and prevention of personal property. The entire thing took less than 45mins. After calling the place they were rude, defensive and nasty, they then put on a show of pretending to try and talk to management. Promise to call back, and did not mostly. When I try to follow up I was met with contempt and despite sending the pictures by email and text I never heard back from them again and still waiting for that call back. This place is unprofessional, the service will cost you more money in damage then the actual work they claim they will do. So in essence I paid these folks to come ruin my couch, distribute soot all over my house which took 2 days to clean up. It got on everything. Not worth it.

• Initial Complaint

  02/13/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  If I could give this company 0 stars, I would.It appears that A1 has branched out of ****** to other cities, including **************, and relies on the positive reviews of similarly named local companies to get business.After purchasing our first home in **********, we had a chimney cap installed on our chimney by A1 last November. Having no experience with chimneys, we trusted A1's technician to provide knowledgable and expert advice, and trusted him when he said that he was installing the best cap for our chimney.Unfortunately, with the recent storms, our chimney cap blew off (which I understand is not uncommon with major winds); however, when I contacted A1 to reinstall it, the local ********** team informed ** that they would not be able to do so because they were booked out months in advance and because our 3-month labor warranty had expired only 4 days prior.This being unacceptable, especially as A1 was very pushy when we first reached out to them, I contacted A1's ****** headquarters to resolve the issue. They assured me that they would send out a local technician to reinstall the chimney cap. That technician, ***, arrived this morning to do so and informed us that while he could reinstall the cap A1 provided us, it is entirely the wrong cap for the type of chimney we have. Our chimney has two holes, rather than one, and the flume does not protrude from the brick - which according to **** means we should have a custom chimney cap vs the original one recommended by A1. *** reinstalled our previous chimney cap but informed us that he fully expects it to fall off again.While we appreciate ***'s honesty and experience, we're frustrated with A1 as a company for multiple reasons. This entire fiasco could have been avoided if the correct chimney cap had been installed in the first place - we feel betrayed having trusted a technician who clearly didn't know what he was doing. At this point, our faith in A1 is at zero.In doing more research, we also discovered that A1 appears to be running a bait and switch tactic (*******************************************************) that has affected many local ********** customers, including **. Although we originally had our chimney deep cleaned (in addition to installing a chimney cap), ************** was only on our property for 20 minutes and we do not trust that he did the work we paid for.We'd like a custom chimney cap installed (although I'm not sure whether it will hold at this point) or a refund so that we can contact a reputable chimney company to do this job the right way.

• Initial Complaint

  02/05/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  Business damaged stove and agreed to reimburse half of fee.

• Initial Complaint

  01/22/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I called and asked if they used cameras in their inspection. I was told they did. They didnt even get on the roof or do anything but shine a flashlight up my chimney and point out cracks in the box I already knew were there. I specifically said I wanted cameras to go down the chimney to make sure there were no cracks there. I was basically charged for something I could have just done myself. I wanted the camera inspection to ensure the fireplace was safe to use after we had had our foundation done. Im very disappointed! I thought I was getting a local business and should have looked further. The technician that came was very polite but told me that the only time they used cameras was for before and after photos. That is not what I had asked and not what I was told on the phone.

• Initial Complaint

  11/30/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  Today is 11/29/23. 2 weeks ago, I called A1 to explain I was looking for chimney flue cleaning. It was confirmed that I might spend as little as $400 to get the desired result (2 flue inspections ($99x2) and flue cleanings ($99x2)). I expressed concern that my home is historic, tall, and has a standing seam steel roof. I asked how they would handle the inspection. The representative (****) called back and indicated use of a drone to inspect. This morning, the tech texted me to indicate his arrival in 45 minutes. I inquired whether he had the drone. He informed me it was broken. I asked how he would inspect, but he didn't answer, so I called the business. Despite the unavailable drone, I was told to let the tech assess. I insisted, was told someone would call me back, but no one did. The tech arrived, stood back, looked from my driveway (didn't get within 100 feet of chimneys), hand waived at inspecting and tried to convince me odds were against issues, but he would look from the bottom. We went inside, he took pictures of the fireplaces, and sent them to his office. I asked why that was being done. He said he would be told what the cost should be. The digital estimate for services came back and indicated over $560 for the services. I asked why and was told that they don't perform chimney flue cleanings for $99, I have to pay more. After several calls, no reason was given why costs were higher, so I selected the "decline" option on the digital estimate for cleaning/inspections. I was informed that regardless a bill would be sent to "collections" for inspections. I noted no inspections were performed, they didn't bring the drone, failed to respond to my concern before coming, and no certificate of inspection was being proffered. They insisted they were going to send a bill to "collections" and I would be made to pay. We have no contract, no work was done, I declined the estimate, and I don't think I should be threatened with collections on work that wasn't performed.

• Initial Complaint

  11/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  The $99 inspection estimate was misleading and I tried to get more info about potential price estimate for cleaning services (asking multiple times) but was never given an answer. The cost for a "deep clean" was insanely high at $399 per fireplace/ stove and I was then charge $150 for minor caulking of a few cracks. I accept that I could have sent them away and just paid the $99 but I really wanted the work done and all of the information on the website made it seem like a reputable company. My biggest problem was the quality of the work done (for the exorbitant price) - the fireplace in the house was very dirty- I was not given any warning to cover surfaces and no effort was made by the tech... I had to provide a blanket to put in front of the fireplace and there was still soot foot prints tracked all over my rug and floor. The amount of soot in the air and that ended up covering every surface in my living room/ kitchen/ dining room (it's an open space) was insane. The air quality was still horrible 12+ hours later with 3 purifiers working and the windows open. I'm still getting soot off of the surfaces and washing anything I can, it was like a complete joke. I also had him clean a wood burning stove but he claimed he couldn't get to part of the pipe, so we'll see how much he actually got done when I next use the stove. I just want to warn anyone that they really need to prepare their home for this work unless they want to breathe in black particles and be cleaning all surfaces for days. The insanely high price was definitely not worth it and I feel very taken advantage of and frustrated.

• Initial Complaint

  11/15/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  They were unprofessional they kept speaking in a different language and changing the price. The company lied not a local business. High price for a cleaning yet never fully cleaned the chimney. So *** a different company we will have to pay to do it.

  Customer response

  11/20/2023

  I tried to click on the link to upload the receipt and it doesnt work **** must have deactivated it but my back record will show the amount if needed. The guy who came here was Avi  the number is **********. Didnt think of it till after he was gone he said he stays at air b and b and the company let him use a unmarked with company name pickup truck 

  Customer response

  11/20/2023

  I should have known tben between that and the fireplace not clean it was a scam I feel 

  Customer response

  11/20/2023

  I should have known tben between that and the fireplace not clean it was a scam I feel 

  Customer response

  11/28/2023

  I reached out to Avi the chimney guy told him another company saw it and its not clean fully and I would like all or partial funds returned since we will have to pay for another service. He told me he did a good job maybe missed some said bye and hung up no response or anything since. This was yesterday November 27

• Initial Complaint

  10/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  This company came to my house for a chimney inspection for $99. Then they insisted that I needed deep cleaning and crack repairs for over $800. Since my knowledge was limited I accepted to make my home safe for my family. They used 8$ caulking on 4 minor cracks for $300 and only spent about 20min doing a deep cleaning. Then they said I needed the crown repaired and I accepted which brought the total to $1750 which I thought was reasonable but I now know I was taken advantage of and over charged like many other customers. The over $800 cap repair was just smearing mortar over the existing cracked cap and not even the whole chimney since their ladder didnt reach the other side which was not communicated. Additionally the invoice came from Air Ducts, not even the business. I am completely unsatisfied with the work and feel overcharged and completely taken advantage of. For a total of 3 hours of work while going to the store and back and basic repairs I should be reimbursed half of the amount charged or I will not be satisfied.

• Initial Complaint

  08/23/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I was searching for a service to provide chimney repair and cleaning for two chimneys on our residence. I received a referral from **** for A1 Chimney Sweeps and later received a phone call from the vendor. This was on August 17th. The representative said they would send out a technician on August 18th. There would be a $99 inspection charge for each chimney and then a quote would be prepared. I agreed with the arrangement verbally and asked them to send the technician.The technician appeared on the late morning of the 18th. He arrived in an unmarked mini-van and appeared only to have a portable ladder and his phone as equipment. He spent about an hour taking a variety of pictures of both chimneys. He then informed me that they could not perform any service on the chimney for the wood burning furnace in the basement. He then showed me a variety of photos related to the chimney for the gas furnace, gas water heater, and gas fireplace appliance.He prepared a quote of $4,137.16 for the work on this chimney which included extensive repair and cleaning. He stated that I would need to provide a deposit of $1,241.14 to begin the service request and that they would contact me in the next several weeks to set up the service appointment. I thought the estimate somewhat high, but trusted his judgment. I paid the deposit with my ***** My concerns began with the following:The initial invoice on 8/18 was from Revo Cleaning. A name I did not recognize.The next invoice was from Chimney and Air Duct Cleaning.The receipt for my invoice was from Chimney and Air Duct Cleaning.Beginning August 19th, I sought to cancel the service request and receive a refund of my deposit. I used various emails and phone numbers found on the invoices without success.I spoke to a representative on August 21st and asked to cancel . Within 20 minutes, I received a text invoice for the full amount from A1. I have registered a dispute with my credit card company for the deposit charge.

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