Roto-Rooter

PLEASE READ BEFORE USING ROTO ROOTER WATER RESTORATION – UNETHICAL PREDATORY PRACTICES I encourage everyone to voice record every conversation with this company. Please remember that Ohio is a single consent state. You are the only one who needs to approve recording the conversation and there are many free apps available. If contractors are wondering why homeowners want everything in writing and are hesitant about trust. Roto Rooter, specially Albert Adkins and Nate Dieckman are to blame. You can reach out to both of Facebook and LinkedIn and thank them for making your life miserable. We have great relationships with most contractors but Albert and Nate must have missed a course in basic ethics. My experience is directly related to the Cleveland extension of their water restoration department (Albert Adkins – Manager). However, I was told that my concern was run through “corporate” so I intend to post my concerns around the country. I let them know I planned to file my concerns with the BBB, Ohio Attorney General, Angie’s List, Google, and Home Advisor. Albert claimed that he would stop to review our concerns with the work and practices on two different days. He never showed. Instead, we were sent to Accounts Receivable and accused of insurance fraud. I’ll be honest, paying $8,500 for a $4,000 quote resulting in the growth of black mold and being told you are over reacting is a little hard to swallow. We had a sewage line back up that spilled into our basement. Roto Rooter did a fine job identifying the problem and fixing our line. My comments and concerns relate to their water restoration group. A day after they identified the problem we were contacted by Nate Dieckman (Press record now). Nate reviewed the damage and verbally quoted us $2,000 to $4,000 for dry wall removal, carpeting removal, and general waste cleanup. We received a written estimate of $4,000 to $6,000 the day later. The result, Roto Rooter did less than agreed (no drywall removal), charged $8,500 and we had black mold in the basement. They eventually came back out and blamed our sump pump for the sudden mold problem… A month later we were billed $8,500 when the amount exceeded our insurance maximum. Keep in mind that the $8,500 is only related to water restoration and does not cover replacement of anything in our finished basement. Roto Rooter threatened legal action with a 10-day letter with another individual’s name in the to line (not very professional). When I reached out to Albert to discuss the letter, he replied 8 days later and stated, via e-mail, “I take time off from time to time.” Be prepared for your questions and concerns to go unaddressed. We ended up paying the whole amount minus a $225 inconvenience fee. My wife and I took off two days’ worth of work to meet with Albert who stated that he would stop by to review the work and our concerns. He never showed. More Details in case you care: Nate Dieckman of Roto Rooter (encourage to record any conversation with him) stopped by the following morning and asked about opening an insurance claim. I let him know that our maximum was not very high but he assured me that “everything would be covered.” We filled out a written contract with Roto Rooter estimating the work between $4,000 to $6,000. Nate claimed that the range was simply to make “approvals easier” and that it would likely be a lot less. They could not provide an itemized list as they run everything through a program called Xactimate. Please note that their written estimate is “not” a contract. Their estimate can be a $100,000 off of what they plug into the program. In short, they will greatly low ball any estimate and bill out as much as possible through Xactimate claiming their hands are tied. It is true that contractors working on insurance claims may be required to use Xactimate. However, most contractors understand basic math and give realistic estimates based on Xactimate pricing. Roto Rooter will lure you in with a low ball estimate and then run everything through Xactimate coming back 200% or 400% higher than the original estimate. Our written estimate was $4,000 to $6,000 and included drywall removal. They billed our insurance company $8,500 and did not remove the drywall despite my insistence. Since the drywall was not removed, we had black mold and could not live in our house despite their work and overcharge. Albert stated over a few days that he would come out and inspect the work. He never showed. My wife and I missed four days’ worth of work waiting for him. $225 assumes we make less than minimum wage and is an insulting gesture throughout the whole ordeal. Oh, I don’t want a posted response by Roto Rooter asking us to call or apologizing for the inconvenience now that this is public. Albert claimed he talked to “everybody in corporate” and his hands are tied. You don’t get to save face that easily. Feel free to reach out to Albert if you need additional information. I’m sure he can provide it and the pictures of the mold in our house. Then again, he might still be on vacation…

unknown

Cotey did an excellent job. Very personable, courteous and thorough. I highly recommend him and Roto Rooter.

They did a real good job there. It has been good ever since. It made quite a mess in the basement and they didn't really clean all that well. I thought it was a little more expensive than it got to be. The guy was very nice and his uniform was all soaked with that dung too so it was a mess.

unknown

Our sewer line began backing up on a Sunday morning.  Roto-Rooter came out that morning and snaked the line with a 4" cutter.  They discovered a 2 ft. section that they couldn't cut through (but could get the camera through) near the end of the line.  They suggested that they come back the next day (Monday) to use a hydro-spray.  They were still unable to completely fix the issue and suggested it was a bellied pipe.  They left me an estimate for repair.

Naturally, I got a second estimate from another company because this is a lot of money.  The second contractor (very well respected on Angie's List) came out 2 weeks later and sent a camera down the line.  They agreed that it was a bellied pipe but felt the flow was good and suggested no repair at this time and that yearly maintenance would be sufficient.

What annoyed me about Roto-Rooter was the scare tactics used to try to upsell me on a repair.  But more annoying was the fact that they charged me for the call on Sunday and another total separate charge for the call on Monday.  I think they really should have priced that situation better (although in fairness they did discount the second charge because they couldn't 'completely' fix my issue).  However, the second contractor commented that they really did a less than excellent job cleaning the pipe (especially since they charged me a hydro-spray visit). Considering the 'double' charge and the use of a hydro-spray... my whole line should have been spotless (from roots) and it's not.

So... if you need something in an emergency... they are ok.  Beyond that... get multiple opinions. 

Responsive, flexible on appointment times (came on a Saturday at no extra charge), showed up at the designated time and performed work promptly/professionally.  Seemed a little expensive for a simple job.

No show on first promised service time, late on second and didn't bring any equipment to fix the issue. Came back the next day and "fixed" the issue. Currently waiting for them to come back since the fix didn't even last 24 hrs. Cost was much higher than I would have expected for a small and simple job.

I needed a plumber on Memorial Day when my sewer line backed up and flooded my newly carpeted basement.  Roto Rooter was the only company open on the holiday.  The service technician, Rodney, was extremely professional.  He arrived within a few hours of my call, gave me two options on how to fix the problem, completed the work quickly, and even put me in touch with a professional sanitation company.  He was nice to my four-year-old son, too, who found plumbing fascinating.

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unknown

The work was very good.  In the process, the plumber attempted to soft-sell me additional services such as scoping the line.

Excellent.  They solved the issue which was a blocked sewer line that had caused a backup into our basement.  However I really want to make note of the service tech's professionalism, respect for our home and overall attention to detail.  And in the end, the cost of the service was less than I expected too.  Overall, VERY happy with the service and the outcome.

No extra charge for Sunday, arrived within the time frame,

It went fantastic. What basically happened was my sewer line was busted. They found out that the damage was caused by the city putting in a gas line. They did the repair and contacted the city. It ended up being no cost to me since it was the fault of the city. Roto-Rooter went way above and beyond what they had to do.

Tim was the service man rep #2029 or 2024

He was fantastic, very polite and diligent. Definitely someone you would want as a representation of your business.  

Alex was very professional and worked efficiently. He described the available services, either the regular drain cleaning, or a hydro-jet process (which is almost twice the cost). We chose the regular drain cleaning as this worked well for us approximately five years ago. Service was on a Sunday morning.

We had a septic tank and the city forced us to hook up to a sewer line.  They were great and even bought back our old septic tank since they had installed it 20 years ago. It was very easy to schedule the appointment and they were professional.

unknown

The service costed me about $220. I thought it was really punctual service with really good feedback, the plumbers who came were knowledgeable and did a good job.

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Randy did a wonderful job. I thought I would have to have a very expensive pipe dig, but he cleaned it all out and had everything running smoothly. He was very polite and efficient. I have always had a good experience when I needed help from Roto Rooter. They are a little pricey but in the end they are always honest and helpful. They do not recommend unneeded procedures.

Came in saw the  problem. Then went to his truck and came back with  a industrial snake and with in 15 min the drain was unclogged. He was young but knew what to do. I wish the company would give him something to carry that heavy equipment with. Also the company should provide the service people with shoe protectors.

He was timely and knowledgeable.  He snaked the drain and crafted a cap for the pipe.  Great job!  We would definitely give Roto-Rooter a call should we need service in the future.