Complaint Review: Roto Rooter - Fortuna California

I am a service plumber and do not work for Roto Rooter at this time or in the past. The price given to you was about $75 cheaper than the company I work for and we are still cheaper than some. If I owned my own Van and were running a one man company I might could charge less than that amount. It costs on average $225 for a plumbing company to send a technician to each house.

You are completely forgetting about overhead. You are not just paying for the part and the time he was there, you have to help pay the cost of running a business. Supervisors, accountants, dispatchers, sales reps, and warehouse managers all are paid through the work that a service tech charges, as well as 20-60 thousand dollars a month on marketing.

Also, being that you live in Longmont, the technician probably travelled about 45 minutes to get to your residence. That is time spent on your problem as well. You also stated it was an after hours call. I have work for companies that charge between $0-$150 as an after-hour charge and as an employee I agree with that. If I have to get out of bed in the middle of the night to come fix your problem... I expect to get paid accordingly.

Roto Rooter is a franchise operation. There are many, many corporate owned offices, but many are owned and operated by individuals, partnerships and families. Please do not judge the entire company with over a thousand affiliated employees doing quality work for hundreds and hundreds of customers EVERY DAY on terrible service from one office. Find out who the owner is to try to get satisfaction and then contact Roto Rooter Inc. on their website to complain about a franchisee you are unsatisfied with.

The price was a contract price that was th result of a negotiation. The price they set for their services is no different then I can get a hamburger at Hamburger Hamlet for $13 or McDonalds for 99 cents. I can get my hair cut by Vidal Sassoon himself for $400 or Supercuts for $8. I can but a Mercedes Benz or a Hyundai. You conveniently ignore that they probably spent a half hour getting there, a half hour back, and their total time at the home was probably 30 minutes. That doesn't even include their administrative staff who engages in support activities. Frankly $150 for 1.5 hours is probably below their overhead expense. You should be ashamed of criticizing them till you understand financials, direct and indirect overhead.

YOU NEED TO TAKE MANY THINGS INTO MIND, ABOUT WHAT IT COST TO ARRIVE AT YOUR FRONT DOOR AFTER HRS. FIRST THE PRICE OF GAS, STAFFING A CALL CENTER, PAYING OVERTIME TO THE SEVICE MAN. THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE MANY THINGS IT TAKES TO GET THAT VAN IN FRONT OF YOUR HOUSE LATE AT NIGHT. I DON'T KNOW OF MANY COMPANIES THAT CHARGE LESS THAN 100 DOLLARS DURING THE DAY. REMEMBER TOO, ALL THAT MONEY DOES NOT GO INTO THE SEVICEMANS POCKET. HE ONLY RECIEVES A SHARE.

Dear Fortuna,Ca. I would be willing to bet that the company quoted you a price BEFORE they repaired your water heater.I also would be willing to bet that you tried to get other companies to come out & you could not find anyone.The $150.00 was O.K. until you had hot water again,then it was to much.It is alway's wise to get three estimates before getting any work performed. If your not happy,c all these people and ask them to remove the parts from your heater and give you a refund. It sounds to me like the man told you what it would cost,NOT how long it would take.You also have to understand that you are only seeing 15 minutes.These man has prob. got two hours or more in the job when you consider travel time to and from your home.

Dear Fortuna,Ca. I would be willing to bet that the company quoted you a price BEFORE they repaired your water heater.I also would be willing to bet that you tried to get other companies to come out & you could not find anyone.The $150.00 was O.K. until you had hot water again,then it was to much.It is alway's wise to get three estimates before getting any work performed. If your not happy,c all these people and ask them to remove the parts from your heater and give you a refund. It sounds to me like the man told you what it would cost,NOT how long it would take.You also have to understand that you are only seeing 15 minutes.These man has prob. got two hours or more in the job when you consider travel time to and from your home.

Dear Fortuna,Ca. I would be willing to bet that the company quoted you a price BEFORE they repaired your water heater.I also would be willing to bet that you tried to get other companies to come out & you could not find anyone.The $150.00 was O.K. until you had hot water again,then it was to much.It is alway's wise to get three estimates before getting any work performed. If your not happy,c all these people and ask them to remove the parts from your heater and give you a refund. It sounds to me like the man told you what it would cost,NOT how long it would take.You also have to understand that you are only seeing 15 minutes.These man has prob. got two hours or more in the job when you consider travel time to and from your home.