[Laura]

Here is a follow up to my original posting. While all agree that this was terrible thing that happened to my uncle, no money can be refunded because my uncle did, in fact, agree to these services, even though scare tactics were used.
Let me just list ONE item on the list of things for which he was charged:

hydrostatic test on two bath cables: $649.00.
Reminding you once again that this plumber was called because the handle to flush the toilet fell off and my uncle couldn't put it back on.
Again, the name of this company is: PAT THE PLUMBER.

[memason]

Maybe I'm showing my ignorance, but what is a "Bath Cable" ??

[BaylorBear]

Originally Posted by memason

Maybe I'm showing my ignorance, but what is a "Bath Cable" ??

Yeah, what he said!!!

[chacam]

Me too ! !

[redwitch]

Did a quick scan for bath cable. Apparently, it is some sort of a drain pipe -- Koehler sells one for $109 (reg), net price $75. From what I could find, it seems the hydrostatic test is done mainly on pools, although it can be done to be sure the hot water is hot and the cold is cold (at the appropriate temperatures). While I can't say definitively, it does sound like a total rip off. I'm sorry your father had to go through this. Here's hoping that others will be wiser.

If nothing else, can you do a report with the BBB letting them know your father was legally scammed?

[Laura]

darned if I know. I read it right off of the work order. I e-mailed everyone I know in The Villages and told them the facts of this story. Many wrote back and said they knew from past experience that they are crooks. I would say this case qualifies them as crooks - fixing things that do not need to be fixed and walking away with over a thousand dollars.

[gary42651]

I am surprised to hear the Pat the Plumber is still in business. There is no reason to do this type of test on a tub in a residential home. If the tub doesn`t hold water just adjust the cable, or clean out under the pop-up. I bet there was no problem with the waste and overflow holding water. A test kit to do this for commerical applications cost $27.00. I have been a plumber (i hate to say) for 40 years, and have had my own business for 32 years, I have never heard of anyone ever doing this type of test on a residential tub. It would have been alot cheaper to just replace the waste and overflow. It has been my experience that most waste and overflow units on residential tubs last around 20 years.
I am happy to say that I just sold my Plumbing business in NJ and will be living full time in the Villages in a couple of weeks. If anyone needs plumbing advice feel free to contact me anytime, but I did hang up the tools....

[barb1191]

A suggestiion that may work for you....

If you contact the local television stations in Central FL and ask to speak to the consumer advocate representative and impress upon them that you're a senior citizen, they may follow up with your story on the televised news and possibly the public display will put this thief out of business (or in jail) and you just may get your money back. It's worth a try. Just start with the phone call to the television station. That's a big chunk of money he scammed from you!!

I suggest this because my daughter in MA called the local Boston channel 5consumer advocate, Susan Warnick, left a message to speak to her and Susan returned the call within an hour and advised her what to do some time ago when she was scammed. I don't recall if it was televised, but I do remember that my daughter was so very thankful for their help. The television is extremely helpful, especially to senior citizens.

Good luck.

[K9-Lovers]

From my experience in Virginia, when a television station is contacted and decides to investigate before airing anything, they contact the contractor in question. At that point, the contractor bends over backwards to make it "right" so they won't look bad on television.

It is worth a phone call.

[jannd228]

not sure if this was posted before or not it a volunteer group from the FL Atty Gen'l office dealing with crimes against seniors
http://www.seniorsvscrime.com/

consumer media advocates are different in every area, Susan Wornick of WCVB is a very special person in MA she does more than others do in her position in other parts of the country

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by jannd228

not sure if this was posted before or not it a volunteer group from the FL Atty Gen'l office dealing with crimes against seniors
http://www.seniorsvscrime.com/

consumer media advocates are different in every area, Susan Wornick of WCVB is a very special person in MA she does more than others do in her position in other parts of the country

These are all great ideas, especially the TV approach . Which channel has the best consumer advocate person here? Does anybody know?? Laura do you live here?

You have done a great service to tell us. That item about bathtub cables makes my blood boil.

Thank you Laura. You are a great neice to your uncle too!

Another thing we could do is all call him and tell him we have heard about his underhanded dealings!!

[jannd228]

this probably isn't legal but is it possible to have a consumer beware, or we advocate for you thread here, (sorry my days of titling things are over) something that doesn't STATE an issue with a service but subliminally makes reference to double check before you buy

or you could have we prefer ABC Company, there seem to be a lot of double threads here on the same issues, I bought the TOTV book offered to edit it (nc) about what you need to know about TV, but maybe there needs to be something for seniors not to get scammed on here also

I see my uncle almost scammed every day (he's 87) including a recent incident involving his wife's recent death and hospital notification from the donor bank, gruesome call, I step in and take the calls now,

[CaliforniaGirl]

Laura, have you considered simply forwarding a link to this thread (and your previous) to Pat the Plumber?
Word-of-mouth advertising can make or break a business, especially in a close-knit community like TV. Their obnoxious clover-leaf trucks are seen all the time here, so they might be willing to reimburse your uncle in exchange for a post that $$ was reimbursed due to a "misunderstanding", etc.
Not that I would ever use them, especially after hearing about what happened to your uncle, but it could help recover some of what he lost.

[dillywho]

I, too, experienced a very expensive plumbing lesson with this dude a few years ago. Now with any problem I have, I call the Villages Warranty Department and get their recommendation. So far, that has worked out great. Anyone they do business with certainly doesn't want to chance losing their business. If you would like, PM me and I will give you specific instances.

[loonlovers]

Our friends were enroute to The Villages last week when they received a call that a leak had been detected outside their home and their water had been turned off. Since they had used Pat the Plumber before (for a very expensive gray pipe job) they decided to call him. About 15 minutes after I read your initial thread on the plumbing scam, they called me and told me that they were having Pat the Plumber do their repair and that the estimate was between $650 and $3,000! And, P the P had already charged their credit card $500 without even starting the work! I told them that TOTV members had listed numerous negative experiences and that they maybe should rethink their decision to use P the P.

They called TV Warranty Department for advice and the response was "Oh NO...do not let them in the door". The Warranty Department recommended a plumber who responded within an hour or so. The job was repaired with a foot of PVC piping replacing the section that was leaking. P the P estimate for a "quick job was $650 but he recommended the "full job" which involved digging up the yard from the road to the house which would run between $2500 - $3000.

Mike Scott Plumbing repaired their leak for $96 and advised them to use the $10 coupon from The Villages phonebook. He also recommended they report their experience to Seniors vs Crime.

Thanks again Laura and other TOTV members for helping save our friends a lot of money.