Complaint Review: Terminix - Nationwide

In 2014 several of my neighbors were getting their houses tented for termites so I decided I'd better get an inspection.  I called Terminix.  They came out and found no Termites but said that everyone is sure to get them eventually so I bought an insurance policy which I understood would provide me with a yearly inspection and cover the cost of tenting or treating any future infestation.  I was charged about $30/month and kept paying it for three years.

In May, 2017, I found a bunch of termites in a window sill in my kitchen.  They had wings so I knew they had swarmed.  But since they were inside my house, I was afraid I'd had an infestation for some time and this was evidence of it.  I called Terminix.  As others have complained, they did not show up when they said they would, but when they did, I showed them the dead termites and pictures I'd taken earlier.  They walked around the house on the outside and then informed me that I had termites and should tent the house.  I said, I was sure glad I had bought the insurance.  The agent said, "Oh, these are dry wood termites.  You're only covered for ground or Formosa termites."  I didn't remember there being any such conditions explained to me previously, but sure enough, when I went back and found the contract that's what it said:  ground or Formosa termites.  

Terminix gave me an estimate of $4,200 to tent the house.  By the way, they didn't just give me the estimate:  They said they would call me with the estimate after they worked it out at the office.  They never called, so I called them.  A couple of times.  They finally got back to me and said they would call me.  Then they called and said they'd lost their original paperwork and would have to come back.  Once again they didn't show up on the day they said and had to reschedule after I'd waited around half the day.  They said they'd give me a discount since I'd been paying for 3 years and quoted me a price of $3,800.

I wasn't happy.  So I asked my neighbor who he had used to tent his house and he told me Hilo Termite.  I called Hilo Termite and spoke with the owner who is also an entimologist.  I told him how I'd found a bunch of termites from a swarm in my window but no other evidence.  He said they could have come in from outside and that he would never recommend tenting a house based only on that evidence.  I asked him to come do an inspection.  They weren't going to be in my area for a month so he recommended I call Hawaii Fumigation, a competitor of his who he said would also probably be cheaper since they're on my side of the island (I smelled integrity!).  I called Hawaii Fumigation and told the lady my story.  She said she'd heard lots of complaints about Terminix.  She said, "We don't send a salesman to do the inspection, we send a technician.  They get paid by the hour and have no incentive to sell you anything you don't need."  The technician they sent inspected my property and told me he saw no evidence of termites.  When I told him I'd bought an insurance policy that turned out to only cover ground or Formosa termites, he said, "those are the same thing."  He also said that ground termites almost never come up to my elevation and that in the 10 years he's been working in Kona, he'd never seen ground termites up at my elevation!

About a month later Hilo Termite came to this side of the island and also inspected my house with the same result:  no evidence of termites.

I asked Hawaii Fumigation for an estimate for tenting my house if I had been infested.  They said $2,500...$1,700 less than Terminix, and they were honest and told me I didn't even need it!

I called Terminix and laid all this out to them and asked for a refund.  They refused.  The manager insisted that I had termites.  He also said he saw no possible motivation for someone working on commission selling me insurance I didn't need or finding termites I didn't have.  Really!  We argued about it and I said, "alright, I want to talk to someone who's had ground termites in my area or anywhere at this elevation."  He said he would have to check with customers to see if they would be willing to talk to me or let me see their houses.  I said fine and he promised to call me the following week.  That was two weeks ago and he's never called.

Fortunately I have been paying for my insurance contract with a Citi Visa card.  Never thought I'd have anything nice to say about a credit card company but they were great.  I am disputing all the charges and have already been refunded the last 6 months.