Beware of frank may plumbing
 

BEWARE OF FRANK GAY PLUMBING!!
This Saturday morning , at 9 AM , we were faced with 2 toilets clogged , and the shower drain backing up. We immediately called Frank Gay, (we always heard their commercials). We were informed that the earliest someone could come would be between 12 and 4 PM. At 3:15, Frank Gay’s office called and informed us that they have a scheduling problem and we would need to re-schedule. Being Senior Citizens, and not having water or facilities for over 8 hours we were upset and needed the situation remedied ASAP. The service rep put us on hold for over fifteen minutes and informed us that a service person would be able to come between 6-10PM, however, since it is emergency hours we would be charged an additional $129 Emergency Assessment Fee plus the cost of service. At this point we were at their mercy and conceded. This entire fiasco appears to have been a scam on Frank Gay’s part to get an additional fee, even though it was not our doing to cancel the original service time and re-schedule. The technician arrived 11:15 PM and found and resolved the problem. I should be reimbursed for the Emergency charge!

If your only complaint is about an extra fee of $129, you should feel very lucky. If you don't mind sharing, what was the cost of service? Next time call Mike Scott Plumbing.

I know you were in a pinch to get someone to come out but I sure hope the next time you’re able to do a little research before getting taken again. Frank Gay Plumbing are notorious for shady practices. I hope they were actually able to fix your problem.

You called at 9 a.m. on a Saturday morning and you're unhappy because you couldn't get immediate service?

Working on a weekend, after 5 pm? Any company is justified in charging you at least double their going rate.

& did it occur to you, that perhaps they couldn't make the 1st appointment, because someone who called well before you did, turned out to have a bigger problem than expected and it took longer to correct?

I have called Mike Scott Plumbing several times and they have responded within a few hours. They don't charge extra for after hours work. As I understand it, Frank Gay charges $139 to just come out and provide a quote. I will pay for a service visit, but never for a simple quote. The charges that I have read about for Frank Gay's work have been more than double the going rate. In this case, the OP had an appointment that was cancelled by Frank Gay, and, apparently, the only reason the OP was charged an extra fee was because the company could not make the original appointment. That doesn't sound justified.

For my Midwest home I called Rotor Rooter on a Thanksgiving weekend and they charged a couple hundred flat fee for an emergency sink unclogging. Justified, IMO

Nah, just living up to their reputation.

I second Mike Scott! Punctual, reliable, professional and reasonable.

You called them they didn't contact you. Next time do a little research.

You agreed to the extra fee, so it's on you.

I agree!!
 

Had an AC issue as no power to units and thermosthat. $129 just to diagnose. They came out and quoted $350 more. It turned out just to be a partially blocked drain line. Toom guy 10 minutes to put a shop vac on outside line and turn it on while pouring a gallow of water down PVC pipe inside. Big ripoff and I called but they couldn't justify cost. Never Again!!

Why didn’t you call Mike Scott plumbing?

Regarding the additional emergency fee it is justified.

This is not a scam.

Another experience with Frank Gay, came out to solve a water leak. Estmates were $2200 for immediate fix and $10,000 to replumb the trailer. Bottom line they completely missed the issue a leak in the water line from street to house. They did return half the charges after only one phone call.

They have the worst reputation in The Villages. It’s all social media how bad they are especially with their high prices and lack of customer service.

Always research a company before calling them out.

We just used Frank Gay before hearing about all this. We weren't charged an estimate fee, the service men were on time and efficient and friendly and polite, and charged us exactly what they quoted. We had a very small issue that was resolved the next day for free first thing in the morning.

I use Dove Plumbing (local). 561-262-6875

You have no air and you called an AC guy to fix the problem. He did it at the going rate of his company. That’s maintenance you should be doing yourself. So having the AC guy out so you have air is a WIN in my book!

Note: it is widely known that that company generally rips people off. So many complaints. Try calling Dunston Plumbing out of Leesburg next time.

NEVER use Frank Gay plumbing unless you like to be ripped off

I don't agree. Paying $479 for 10 minutes of work to clear a condensate drain line is overpricing.

But, my main issue is with a company who charges $129 to come to your house and provide a quote, with no obligation to do any work. The person who provides the quote doesn't even need to be a licensed technician. They are just coming to estimate the project. I would never pay for a quote. A quote should be free. There is a difference between sending a licensed technician on a service call to diagnose and possibly fix a problem, and sending someone to estimate the job and provide a quote. I will pay for a service call, but not for a quote.

Your mistake was to call Frank Gay services to begin with. I have never heard any good comments about that company.

I've use Frank Gay More than once and was satisfied.
I did have one issue which they resolve immediately.
If I have any complaints with them, is I signed some type of contract, and they are constantly calling that I am due for some type of inspection.
It reached the point of being annoying.

I'm afraid Saturday is a overtime, premium time charge in any event. I don't think the fee was unusual for a Saturday.

I think it was because it was a Saturday .

Best plumber that I've found is The Village Plumber-they come the same day, fix the problem at a very fair price...I've used them for 3 different issues & have never been disappointed...

Never use Frank Gay. They are notorious for shady practices.

I'm surprised with all the negative social media that people still call them. I guess it's the commercials?

I totally disagree. According to the OP, there was no mention of a Saturday upcharge until the contractor failed to show up for the original appointment, which was between noon and 4 pm on Saturday. It was only then that the $129 upcharge was discussed. Shouldn't the contractor waive any upcharge after missing the original appointment? It wasn't the OP's fault that the contractor failed to show up. At that time, 8 hours after making the original appointment, it was too late for the OP to hire another contractor.

We always use Torri plumbing. Never had a problem with them. They are great & reasonable

This is/was worse than OP story. Sounds like 15-20 minute job, including time to prepare the invoice

Their annoying commercials should be enough to make you run from Frank Gay - I always mute the radio when they come on.

Frank Gay: Boo-Boo -- Hiss-Hiss
 

This is a copy of a review I made a while back regarding Frank Gay, and currently, it's still meaningful.
Frank Gay does more than plumbing services and what I've said here goes for everything they do:

We called Kiley plumbing which has become part of Frank Gay Plumbing because we had a leak in the wall of our garage. Their technician said we had to call Sleuth so they could determine exactly where the leak was coming from. So, $350 (for 5 minutes of "work?"), he marked where he said the leak was. How come I already knew where it was and the Frank Gay guy didn't??? Okay. So another Frank Gay plumber comes out. After too much verbiage this man told us we needed the entire house replumbed to the tune of ONLY $11,555 (WHAT???) and that figure did not even include a new hot water heater! I told him that would not happen in my lifetime. He also tried to sell us an annual plumbing service contract. Then he said (without any embarrassment) that he had 30 years of plumbing experience under his belt and was not going to fix the leak because he could not guarantee the work. Another WHAT???
The following day the Frank Gay Company called to ask if we had any questions and when would we like them to begin the work of replumbing the house. Yeah, right!
To make a long story shorter (because there is much more than what I've written), we ended up calling a qualified man who worked for himself and has his own plumbing business. He repaired the leak quickly and all is fine.
If anyone needs a plumber, do NOT call Frank Gay under any circumstances. They are bad news and not honorable.

Frank Gay bought Kiley and Sons. and ruined it
 

We always used Kiley and Sons (<2022) Great people, great service, reasonable. Then they "became" Frank Gay. Expected the same level of service. Soon learned better. Discovered that several of the best ex-Kiley plumbers couldnt handle the way Frank Gay did business. They left and started their own shop according to their own standards. They are now The Village Plumber. Very happy with them.

No! The Villages Plumber OVER CHARGE, did you not read my report on them when they flushed my water tank and asked $250 above the rest of their fees to do it? On a regular scheduled day?

If you don’t mind subsidizing their lifestyle… please read my report on them before considering. I still have the invoices I can post here.

I hate their commercial, too. The one with the girl with the British accent. I call them just to complain and ask them to stop airing the commercial. I wish everybody would call them, as well.

Last month when we had a clogged toilet, we ordered a "toilet snake" apparatus from Amazon for under $20 and it fixed the toilet in five minutes.

Frank Gay responded when others didn't
 

Need a bathtub installed. Called 4 plumbers, explained the job not one of them returned my call. Read the reviews here, nevertheless, called Frank Gay. Operator listened to the request and scheduled an appointment. I shall report further on the work but at least they are doing the job

Are they charging you to come out and provide a quote?

I am not an expert on bathtubs, but it could be that some plumbers are not prepared to do the extra work involved in replacing a tub. You may have better luck calling a bathroom remodeler. If you get a quote from Frank Gay, make sure the price is reasonable and competitive. He has charged as much as 2 to 3 times more than the going rate for some projects.

I do my own drain clean out with 55 psi water hose. Put this in line for about 10 bucks. Takes around 5 mins or less to blow it out. 1 close valve (so water pressure won’t back up into A coil, 2 connect garden hose adapter. 3 turn water on. 5 watch water blow out at outside drain. 6 shut water off, 7. Open valve back up so condensation water drains, 8. Remove hose connection and install cap back on blow out access port.