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HMS Home Owners Warranty

January 04, 2006 by

Dana Boone

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Not Worthy of Your Time and Money

After spending so much time, energy, and money on buying a house, my fiance and I were delighted to get something for free. After all, what could be better than a free home owners warranty through HMS, an established and recommended company? It truly seemed to be a sa

ving grace when our heating and air conditioning stopped working shortly after we moved in to our townhouse. We called HMS, and they put us in touch with a contractor who came out immediately to check our furnace. He determined that we had a bad fuse, which he replaced, we paid our $100 deductable, and we sent him on his way. Two days later when our heater still wasn't working, the contractor come back out to find further problems that would possibly require replacement of the unit.

That's where the communication ended. After a week of not hearing from either the contractor or HMS, I called HMS to find that no log of our work order even existed. In the meantime, the tempurature outside had dropped to nearly 30 degrees. I was told by HMS customer service that a message had been left with the contractor to retrieve our work order and that someone would be in touch on the status of the repair within 24 hours. After 48 hours, I called HMS for the fourth time.

During the fourth call, it was determined that no work order had ever been obtained. The HMS customer service representative explained that she was placing a complaint with the warranty service management on my behalf. As compensation for the lack of effective service we had received up until this point, going nearly three weeks without heat or communication from either service provider, she offered to put in a request that our deductable be waived. I actually got off of that call a relatively happy camper...

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Takeaways

Check with your realtor to see if he gets any kick-back for promoting a particular company.
Do your research before choosing a home warranty company, and make suggestions to your realtor.
Be wary of getting something for free. It usually comes with a price.

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ART DUNN IN OHIO

SAME THING HERE AFTER A MONTH OF LIES TOLD ME IT WOULD BE 1200 DOLLARS OUT OF MY POCKET TO HAVE AC REPLACED ASK FOR MY MONEY BACK FOR POLICY THEN .REPORTED THEM TO BBB IN FLORIDA HMS CALLED ME AND ASK ME TO SIGN OFF ON CLAIM .THIS JUST TRYING TO GET COMPLAINT STOPPED IF YOU LOOK AT BBB IN FT. LAUDERDALE OVER 400 COMPLAINTS AND THEY STILL HAVE AN A RATING

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Posted on 08/19/2008 at 6:08:06 PM

Joyce Ferrarelli

I know I may be a Johnny Come Lately. But, we are involved with a situation with HMS also. We moved into a 1970 home. The HVAC system is original to the house. The A/C went out earlier this month. They are denying the claim because of "lack of maintenence". They said the serviceman reported that there was debris in the A/C. I called the serviceman asking why he did not tell us anything about debris when he was out at our house. He said there is a box on the report that asks if there is debris in the A/C. Since there was debris in the A/C he had to check the "yes" box. But, per the serviceman, the debris did not cause the A/C to fail. Gee, I wonder why a 37 year A/C would fail? Anyway, I asked HMS for a 2nd opinion. They said I would have to pay another $100 deductible. She nearly ended the call before giving me a name of another company to use as a 2nd opinion. I called the 2nd company. They said they never heard of anyone having to pay for a 2nd opinion. So, she called

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Posted on 06/25/2007 at 10:06:00 AM

hvacguy

cause 13seer have big coil, and substandard unit don't mean it will fix it like the old one, 700 compare to 3500, you save lot already

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Posted on 02/12/2007 at 8:02:00 PM

Clark Hinson

Same here. Apparently this is the mode of operation - to delay or deny claims as long as possible. They get to keep the money for the so-called covered repairs longer. Their other reason is if you finally get frustrated and repair or replace it on your own, then YOU'VE breached the contract and they pay NOTHING. Take my advice, stay away from these guys and tell everyone you know too as well.

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Posted on 01/04/2007 at 12:01:00 PM

Molly

I've had the same experience. I've called every day for almost a month to get my air conditioner fixed and still nothing from HMS. I would like to know if anyone had their situation resolved.

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Posted on 08/07/2006 at 10:08:00 AM

Kurt

wow, this is like deja vu. I am in the exact same boat pretty much. The end of May my A/C went out. Called HMS and they sent a tech out on June 2nd. He said the unit (heat pump) needed to be replaced. On June 18th I called up and HMS said I had been approved for a 13 seer outside unit and due to the age of my system they would also upgrade my inside air handler. Called back on June 20th and was told that they had instead found a 10 seer unit and because of this that was my only option, or $700 and that gets me no where. On June 22nd I decided to just let them install the 10 seer and be done with it. Called on June 23rd to see what happens next and they said it had been ordered and should be here Tuesday 6/27, on Tuesday was told that it had be ordered on Monday 6/26 and would be here on Friday the 30th. Guess what, on Friday 6/30 was told it had been ordered on Thurs 6/29 and would take 3 business days to get here. Decided to call them today 7/5, and was told they can't find

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Posted on 07/05/2006 at 12:07:00 PM

Kim

Wow! We have had the exact same experience with HMS. Nothing but lies! We are now having our a/c replaced ourselves and taking HMS to court. We have also lodged complaints with the BBB in both VA and FL, as well the attorney general and insurance regulators for both states. At over 90 degrees, we cannot wait for HMS, but we CAN cause them a fraction of the inconvenience they have caused us.

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Posted on 06/25/2006 at 3:06:00 PM

Doug

Are there any lawyers reading these comments? If so, please contact me at: tikidevil@earthlink.net. I smell fraud in dealing with HMS and I have documented proof that they drag their feet, deny legitimate claims and breach their agreements with their customers. Terrible service. Avoid HMS and their rude representatives at every cost! There are better companies out there. Do yourself a favor and find one right away.

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Posted on 06/07/2006 at 2:06:00 PM

Tracey

I have a similar problem with HMS. I think the "contractor' actually dropped the ball but there was no follow up. It all started b/c our furnance wasn't working properly, was supposed to be replaced in December. HMS already paid the contractor in Dec and the contractor said it was our fault for not calling them to schedule the replacment. We had a ton of questions b/c the replacement furnace was 10 Seer (they only make 13 SEER now I believe) and we will owe the contractor $700 for new ductwork. They were suppose to have someone explain to us why we should have to pay for the ductwork on a substandard unit. I gave them a chance to "upsell' us with no luck. so we're thinking of replacing everything on our own with our choice of companies. If we do that, we will make sure HMS and the contractor (Tribble Refrigeration)and everyone that we can tell knows how horrible the service has been. Now it's May and our A/C is not working.

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Posted on 05/30/2006 at 11:05:00 AM

Dianna Robinson

This reads like exactly is what is happening to us. Only we paid almost 700 dollars for HMS at the time of closing. A Year ago. The A/C stopped last June -- and we STILL have not received the "part" they claim was shipped, and all phone calls to HMS sound like exactly what you went through. Did your situation ever resolve? What else can be done about this comany?