A new report by Action 9 exposes an air conditioning repair company that some consumers and ex-employees claim will do just about anything to inflate your bill.
One family spent hundreds on repairs after they claimed the technician said their house could burn down.
In a hidden camera investigation, Todd Ulrich shows how overcharging can happen.
Karen Burk claims an AC repair company charged her elderly mother more than $1,200 for parts she didn't need after a tech claimed it was a life-and-death situation.
“If I didn't replace this particular part, it could set the house on fire,” said of the repairman's claim.
Bayside Cooling has a history of serious complaints with the state and Better Business Bureau.
Mellisa Rathbun, a former Bayside employee, claims she heard top managers tell technicians to deliberately break things to run up the bill.
“The basic fact: He was telling the techs to sabotage the unit,” Rathbun said. “They're told to do something to the unit to make sure we make money.”
WFTV put Bayside Cooling to a test and had a volunteer call for its $39 AC tune-up, which is yearly maintenance check. We used four hidden cameras in and around the volunteer’s house so we could see everything the technician did.
First, he spent a few minutes checking the compressor and took the cover off the air handler. In less than 10 minutes, he called the homeowners outside for the bad news.
The tech said a rusted part could kill the unit within a year and that it was low on refrigerant. He also said air handler was choked with mold and dirt and that repairs were nearly $400.
When Ulrich confronted the tech about the test, his story changed.
“There's nothing wrong with the unit,” the tech said to WFTV’s cameras.
Bayside managers said no tech was ever told to sabotage anything. They said that came from a disgruntled former employee. Managers also said their tech did nothing wrong at the test home.
Now, he said it only needed routine maintenance and refrigerant, but what about the mold?
“That's condensation,” the tech said, after calling it mold the first time around.
An AC expert had inspected the unit before Bayside and had not found anything wrong with the system.
Rathbun claims she saw customers routinely hit for needless repairs, which is why she walked out.
“I couldn't morally wake up and look at myself in the mirror,” Rathbun said.
WFTV
