Mr. Rooter Plumbing Pittsburgh Mr. Rooter Plumbing and Mr. Rooter Corporation Lied To Me Cranberry, Pennsylvania

The information provided below contains facts about the interactions that took place from January 2012 to the present.  Also included with the factually presented information are my opinions and conclusions based on everything I have personally witnessed up to this point...

 

As mentioned in the previous post, an email was sent to Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh on January 22, 2012, which described our extreme displeasure to have paid $20,267.05 to have sewage continue to back up into our basement.  A copy of the email I sent is below:

 

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Mr. Rooter STILL did not solve my problem $20,265.05 later....

 

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Rachel <@gmail.com>	Sun, Jan 22, 2012 at 5:32 PM
To: mrrc@mrrpitt.com
I wanted to inform you of our situation.  Currently, we still have the SAME exact plumbing problems in which we contracted you to fix right the first time.  You completed main sewer line work for:       Mary Province   *** **** Street   Greensburg, PA 15601       12-24-2011 Through 12-30-2011       Invoice:  106273 :      767.05   Invoice:  105738 : 10,000.00   Invoice:  105742 :   9,500.00                            -----------------    Total Paid:          $20,265.05   (Oops, I had a mathematical error here!  It should've been $20,267.05)       Below describes everything that has transpired up to this point:   When business was first initiated with Mr. Rooter at 64 Progress Avenue in Cranberry Township, PA 16066, it was due to sewage backing up from the basement floor drain on Christmas Eve, 12-24-2011.  (This was the SECOND time we had someone come to the home we just purchased on 12-14-2011 about this problem.)  The technician that arrived from Mr. Rooter gave us the price to complete the work that the previous plumber told us might need to be done in order to address the problem, which was to install a clean-out and run a larger drain routing line down the main lateral sewer line: $767.05 (Mr. Rooter Invoice).  At the end of that visit, we knew that a bigger problem existed because the drain-routing machine got hung up and couldn't get very far down the line.  It was decided that a video camera inspection was necessary in order to find out what was going on in the line.   The next day, Christmas Day, 12-25-2011, a video inspection was done in which the technician said that it was necessary to replace the entire line underneath the foundation up to 5' to the outside of the building to the outside where the house trap is located: $10,000 (Mr. Rooter Invoice).  I watched the video inspection and saw clogs, but wouldn't have known what I was looking for.  The diagnosis on the invoice reads, "draining slow."  Well, no kidding!  It is draining so slow that it backs up into the basement.  The diagnosis on the invoice should've been more specific as to what was revealed during the first video inspection.  I asked for a more detailed diagnosis based on the video inspection, even after all the work was completed; yet, Mr. Rooter still never provided the requested information to me so that it could be submitted to HSA for consideration to see if it is possible to recoup what would be covered under the terms of the home warranty (Which, by HSA's contract terms, would never be more than $500).  Upon signing the contract, they dug to provide a relief area so that we could use our plumbing until they started work on Monday, 12-26-2011.   On Monday, 12-26-2011, a technician arrived with equipment to start jackhammering through the basement floor to reveal the sewer line.  According to some of the photos I took and what the technician had said, the soil was black and it was wet around the pipes, which indicated that it has been leaking for sometime.  Even when he was digging to reveal the house trap, the soil was black and there was water pooling there, which indicated that there was probably sewage leeching for quite sometime.  On this same day, I believe that it was necessary to get the hydrojetting truck to unclog the pipe that ran underneath the basement door.  Down the line, the hose couldn't get past a certain point; thus, the video camera was needed again.     On Tuesday, 12-27-2011, the technician, who does the video camera inspections,  came to camera the rest of the line.  To me, the line looked clear, with the exception of a battery and a pencil up to where he couldn't get the camera past.  At first, the technician said that a full excavation was necessary, but later said that a pipe bursting could be done to 2' shy of the main that would COMPLETELY solve my problem for the tune of $9,500 and was told that they would go ahead and install a toilet in the basement for me while everything was still open at no charge (But, they did charge me for that toilet.  I had purchased the Advantage Plan in order to get discounted pricing and premium service for $199.95 and did not give me advantage pricing for the $5200 service, so they did actually charge me $400 to install the toilet-That is almost a fraudulent statement right there…just sayin').   When they did the pipe burst, something was blocking their ability to get the pipe through the line.  They called the hydrojetting truck again to come out so that they could continue installation of the pipe.  I was told that the technician was going to come out to camera the line to see what the problem was, but he didn't come (It wasn't necessary according to the technician that was there).  The technician that was there assured me that everything would be fine and I should have NO problems with the line upon completion of the work.       So, one week after all the work was done, sewage backed up from my basement drain AGAIN and was even leaking out of the bottom of the new toilet they installed.  Mr. Rooter came with the hydrojetting truck and hydrojetted the line, but couldn't get it clear.  The Township came and hydrojetted and cleared the line; however, it did not last.  A week after they cleared the line, I had to call the Township again to come out and hydrojet the line.  On Monday, 1-23-2012, the Township will perform a camera inspection to find out what the problem is with the line - if it is their responsibility, they will fix it….If it is ours, it is our responsibility.  The men from the township asked me if Mr. Rooter put a video camera down the line after they were completed with the project in order to make sure there were no further problems and I told them that they did not.  I hadn't seen the camera guy since the last invoice that was written up on 12-27-2011.   So, here we are at $20,267.05 (Mr. Rooter's Kitty) for the total replacement of the sewer line underneath the foundation, extending five feet from the house AND a pipe burst procedure (a 4" pipe put through the current 6" terra-cotta pipes) to just 2' shy from the main that runs behind the house in the backyard according to the work order.  The only thing is, considering the angle of the lateral main sewer line, it is more like the work stops at about 5'-10' to the main from the access protruding from the yard.  When the Township performs the camera inspection, I will ask them to tell me how far from the main the work that Mr. Rooter did is exactly in order to determine if work was completed according to the terms set on the invoice.      Now, don't get me wrong.  The technicians from Mr. Rooter that showed up were very friendly and courteous.  They definitely robbed us, without addressing the problem that they promised that they would solve completely right the first time, with a smile on their face all the way to the bank.  Now, if the problem was completely 100% fixed for $20,267.05….I would recommend them and call them for other plumbing projects; however, we SINCE we have the SAME EXACT PROBLEM.  Not to mention that I am 100% certain that they did not come within 2' shy of the main (Which would've been to the tap) according to the contract, I can not recommend them to others.....It would be like recommending crooks.       Based on the results of the Township's video camera inspection, I see in Mr. Rooter's foreseeable future:     BBB Attorney General A lawsuit For Failing To Complete The Work Promised

 

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On January 23, 2012, Earl, the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician," arrived only a few hours prior to the local municipal authority employees in order to try to sell my Mother an additional product/service that she didn't need - a $5,000 backflow preventer.  Aware of their true intentions at this time, my Mother shooed the employee off of her property.

 

After the January 23, 2012 appointment with the local municipal authority, we decided to wait and see if we had any further issues after the local municipal authority employees had cleared our lateral sewer line as it was important to be sure that the conclusions we arrived at were correct because you don't go around make accusations about individuals or businesses unless you are ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN about them.  We concluded that the continuation of the problem was, in fact, a result of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh's intentional negligence....

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh intentionally failed to properly address the issue of sewage backing up into our basement.  Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh has NEVER exhibited any behaviors towards us that have communicated any remorse for the events that transpired nor have they made any attempts to correct the situation or offer resolution related to fraudulent misrepresentation, breech of contract, or shoddy workmanship to my Mother.  

So, once we accurately concluded that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh's behaviors were less than honorable and that they rate #1 in the category of the WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE that we had ever experienced in our lives, we decided to go straight to the top authority by attempting to contact the CEO of The Dwyer Group, Dina Dwyer-Owens.

 

In January of 2012, we saw an episode of Undercover Boss.  The episode depicted Dina Dwyer-Owens as a devout Catholic who claimed to be operating the entire organization by a "Code of Values."  On National TV, Dina Dwyer-Owens proclaimed that she wanted these values implemented throughout all of the brands under The Dwyer Group.  She shed tears and exhibited behaviors which I later came to believe were intended to trick the viewing public into thinking that Dina Dwyer-Owens was a CEO who cared about any wrongs that existed within the organization she runs and that she was truly interested in ensuring that any existing wrongs were corrected.

 

So, based on Dina Dwyer-Owens' reality TV persona depicted on Undercover Boss, I had thought, at the time, that surely an individual who publicly portrayed themselves as someone who was virtuous would be willing to help my Mother appropriately address issues of fraud, breech of contract, and poor quality workmanship with one of their local franchisees.  Apparently, we were deceived by this misrepresentation of Dina Dwyer-Owens on Undercover Boss.

 

Based on the events that occurred at the corporate level alone, my opinion is that Dina Dwyer-Owens is either not cognizant of what actually goes on within the company she runs and/or is nothing more than a hypocrite because she knows exactly what they are doing and these behaviors are how they make their money.  The definition of hypocrite is :  1) a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion  2) a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.

 

In March of 2012, the following is the communication that occurred between myself and Dina Dwyer-Owens (sort of...communication on her behalf anyways):

 

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NAME	Rachel
LASTNAME
EMAIL	@gmail.com
PHONE
ADDRESS
CITY
STATE
ZIP
COMMENTS	I watched Undercover Boss out of sheer morbid curiosity as to who was behind Mr. Rip Off-I mean Mr. Rooter….Did you know in the Pittsburgh Area, Mr. Rooter has an "F" rating with the BBB because of the way it conducts business? I know that I got ripped off. Fix it right the first time.....NO! After $20,267 (3 times what it should've cost - It was less than 100 feet of main lateral sewer line, with less than 45 feet of line being pipe bursted and about 25 feet or so being laid underneath the foundation, although I would have to take a measuring tape to measure about how much line was laid) my basement still flooded two more times and I had to clean it up-The only people that have done anything for me right now, honestly, is the Township I live in (For nothing more than the taxes I pay for)because Mr. Rooter came back with their hydrojetting truck and still wasn't able to remove the grease in the line…Not surprised because the hydrojetting should've been done with the camera checking for clearing of grease. On top of that, I will probably have foundation floor problems because no bonding agent was used to adhere the new concrete to the old concrete. What floors me is after all of the money that was invested in the sewer line (people taking advantage of two women in a desperate situation), the problem still continued and they had the nerve to suggest that for $5,000 more dollars they could install a backflow on the line (First of all, it shouldn't cost more than $1,000 WITH excavation and second of all, those things get clogged and require maintenance or completely dysfunction and would need dug up again). Seriously, I wonder if the people we were dealing with actually had the skills necessary to hydrojet properly and adequately evaluate the situation. Did I really need a new main sewer line already? The township said nothing was wrong with the tap and that the work Mr. Rooter has done doesn't appear to have any problems; however, the township did not inspect the line before they began work. I wonder if the township had inspected the line if all of that was actually necessary. Each time they were clearing lines, they cleared grease…..lots and lots of grease…….After the first large job, something didn't set right with me concerning Mr. Rooter and it prompted me to do a search online. I found tons of customers explaining how you have to be careful because Mr. Rooter employees will actually break things if they aren't broken to get work so that they can sell and make money for themselves and the company. It's sad that your customers really aren't put first, but rather it is a facade.
BUTTON	Submit

 

 

 

On Behalf of Dina Dwyer-Owens

 

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Jasmine  <@dwyergroup.com>	Mon, Mar 5, 2012 at 5:23 PM
To: Rachel Province <@gmail.com>
Good Afternoon Mrs. Province,     Please know that one of The Dwyer Group’s Code of Values is to respond in a timely fashion. Since our Undercover Boss episode aired we’ve received an overwhelming amount of positive feedback. Dina has dedicated much of her time to reading and responding to letters, and although the email is being sent on Mrs. Dwyer-Owens behalf, the thoughts and words are all her own.  Please read below to view her response to your specific feedback.   Hi Rachel,    Thank you for tuning in and taking the time to write. Despite the nature of your commentary, I do value the time taken to voice your concerns.   One of our values is that "everyone has the right to their own perspective" and I appreciate you taking time to share yours.   I have copied Mary Thompson, President of Mr. Rooter so that she too can be made familiar with your experience.  In the mean time, I would recommend that you revisit the Mr. Rooter franchisee that originally handled your service and make them aware of your disenchantment.  I am certain they would love to earn the opportunity to make things right.   Thank you again for caring enough to write.    Please accept this coupon offer as a token of our appreciation for your feedback.   Live R.I.C.H.,   Dina

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In March of 2012, I was still in the early stages of discovering and understanding what really happened during the dates of service.  Nothing about our experience was made public until October 2012 concerning the heinous acts of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and Mr. Rooter of Corporation, in addition to the hands-off policy that The Dwyer Group practices which is Mr. Rooter's parent company.

 

From January 2012 to the present, I have conducted a lot of online research about Mr. Rooter locally and nationally and have found a lot of appalling information about them and their sister companies.

 

As I reread the statements that I made in March of 2012, very few corrections to my statements are even necessary and none of the statements that I have made contain any critical errors.  For example, while I discovered online from a news source that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh had an "F" rating with the BBB, I later discovered that they actually have a D- rating when I visited BBB's website.  In reality, a "D-" rating does not depict Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh in a better light than an "F" rating.

 

Within the correspondence between Dina Dwyer-Owens and myself above, she offered a $15 off coupon to use towards products or services at any one of their 7 brands.  Since there was obvious dissatisfaction involved and serious issues mentioned, what would have possessed her to arrive at the decision to provide a $15 off coupon toward purchasing more products and services at their brands considering the fact it was explained that dealing with their local Mr. Rooter brand was a nightmare?  This action, in my opinion, communicates the following sentiment from Dina Dwyer-Owens:  "Thank you for being a sucker and, by the way, here is a coupon for $15 so that we can continue to take advantage of you!"

 

Well, Dina Dwyer-Owens did, as she stated, forward the information I sent to her to the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation, Mary Kennedy-Thompson.  Below is the first email that was received from Mary Kennedy-Thompson:

 

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Your Mr. Rooter Experience

 

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Mary  <@dwyergroup.com>	Mon, Mar 5, 2012 at 6:41 PM
To: Rachel Province <@gmail.com>   Cc: Stacie  <@mrrooter.com>
Good evening Rachel,   We’d like to get a few more specifics from you to determine how to best help.  Since you did not provide a phone number, may I get that from you so we may call you?  If so, what is the best time for us to call? Thank you for the feedback.

 

All the best,
Mary Kennedy Thompson - CFE
President - Mr. Rooter^® 

 

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At this point, I thought it was promising that the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation appeared willing to discuss what occurred during dates of service with my Mother.  Unfortunately, After just moving into the house and then becoming busy with education-related events, I didn't have the time to spare so I figured that I would just get back to them as soon as I was able to.  In April of 2012, I provided a detailed written account of our experience to the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation for review.  A copy of the email that was sent is below:

 

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Rachel Province <@gmail.com>	Tue, Apr 24, 2012 at 8:39 PM
To: Mary <@dwyergroup.com>
Dear Mary,   I've been very busy (I will be busy until July 1st) and have not been able to contact you or the local Mr. Rooter.  My mother and I (and our neighbors) have discussed the actions performed by Mr. Rooter, re-examined the documents, and have concluded that Mr. Rooter either exhibited criminal behavior (fraud, scam) and/or incompetence.  Hempfield Township was the entity that actually solved our sewage back up issue in the basement by simply cleaning the end of the main lateral line where it meets the main sewer line by performing a video-assisted hydro-jetting procedure (We have been problem-free since. To think, when the "camera guy" from Mr. Rooter came out after the Township finished the procedure, he was trying to sell a $5,000 back-flow preventer that even the government says, installed, a back-flow preventer shouldn't cot more than $1,000!).  Hempfield Township's policy is to call them first and we didn't know this; however, the company should be familiar with the policies and procedures of the areas they serve.  If they are familiar with them, then they withheld valuable information and even told us to call them, not the Township first if we have a problem with our line.  We have read reviews about employees at Mr. Rooter Franchises actually coming to a customers home in the middle of the night to break something to force the customer to have replace it and get more money out of them; hence I have installed hidden outdoor cameras because that is how much I do not trust Mr. Rooter after our experience.  Anytime I see a Mr. Rooter vehicle on the road, I cringe when I think of how bad they ripped us off.    To be clear, Hempfield Township solved our problem AFTER $20,267 was forked over to Mr. Rooter to fix the problem that they said, for sure, was going to be fixed after $10,000 and for sure after $9,500, and an ATTEMPT at "fixing the problem" after another $5,000.  Never once did Mr. Rooter ever send the camera down while hydrojetting and/or snaking to make any kind of true attempt to see what they were doing to clear the clog.  Like I said earlier, when you have someone that says get ready to write your life savings away, what does that say?  Crook, is what it says.  This is because the policy of your franchises are to pay employees on commission, so they need to sell in order to feed their families....A screw the customer with a smile policy.  On top of that, I know for a FACT that the concrete replaced after the plumbing was put in on our basement floor wasn't put down properly as I was permitted to observe and ask questions when concrete was installed properly for another project we had done.  You have to put a bonding agent in the concrete and/or on the surface of the old concrete.  I'm sure it won't be long before our basement floor looks like that really bad concrete slab in front of the basement door.  The concrete slab in front of the basement door looked good when Mr. Rooter first did it, but it is practically split in half.  No one has barely even walked on it yet.  The sewer line replacement and pipe burst job cost 19,500 (3 times of what replacing the whole line up by digging to the main would've cost for the size job we had).  Based on all the data we have, we feel that the Attorney General should be alerted to how Mr. Rooter conducts business.  Mr. Rooter took our money without even fixing the problem and, perhaps, told us we had to have the whole main lateral line replaced/fitted when it only needed cleaned out.  It's nice to see Mrs. Dwyer actually care about her employees a little bit on national TV, but who cares about the customers who are the ones who put butter on that bread.  We had a whole bunch of other plumbing and other household tasks that we might have considered turning to Mr. Rooter and the other franchises located within the Dwyer corporation, but now we will not give our business to ANY company that the Dwyer group owns in our area based on our HUGELY negative experience with Mr. Rooter. On top of that, we feel that we have a moral obligation to protect people from being taken advantage of the same way we were by telling people what happened, show them pictures and one of the two videos that were taken (the other video wasn't even recorded for me because they said we wouldn't want it, but I did).  The only way to put a stop to unscrupulous business practices is to stop the income stream and spread the word.     The only way we would be satisfied is to have $9,000 returned to us.  Why is that a reasonable amount?  The way we see it, the work that was done probably, for sure, needed done on the first contract ($10,000); however, we highly question the necessity of the work that needed done on the exterior section of the main line due to the fact that Mr. Rooter was unable to clear and camera the line to the Township's main line AND the fact that the finish work was done poorly and incorrectly AND they didn't even pipeburst to the point on the contract - they were two connections away from the main rather than one.  As far as we are concerned, only $500 from the second contract is valid because that was the toilet that was installed due to the foundation already being open from the first contract; Thus, $10,500 of the $19,500 collected for sewer placement is fair for Mr. Rooter to keep - especially since all that was blocking the outside lines were TONS grease, a battery, and a pencil, which could have been taken care of with proper hydro-jetting and tools.     I am not going to hold my breath about Mr. Rooter actually doing the right thing or anything, though, so we will fill out the paper work for the Attorney General and make contacts about our experience.   Sincerely,        Rachel Province

 

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Again, the correspondence to the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation above, which was written in April of 2012, still accurately represents the facts of the situation and our opinions about what happened to us during the dates of service.

 

In reply to my email, I received the correspondence below from the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation:

 

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Mary  <@dwyergroup.com>	Fri, Apr 27, 2012 at 3:53 PM
To: Rachel  <@gmail.com>
Hello Rachel,   Thank you for sending this to me.  I’ve asked Stacie ****, who manages our customer service department, to begin the process of looking into your complaint. She will be getting back with you once she speaks with the local franchisee. Do you have a phone number where Stacie may call you?       All the best, Mary Kennedy Thompson - CFE President - Mr. Rooter®

 

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Considering that I had already sent an extremely detailed email and they had my email address on file as well as our address and our phone numbers on file with the local franchisee, there was no reason why Stacie could not have gotten back to either one of us after speaking with the owner of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh (Robert "Bob" Beall).

 

I waited until May 2012 to hear back from anyone at corporate.  Since I heard nothing, I sent the following email:

 

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Rachel  <@gmail.com>	Sat, May 26, 2012 at 10:21 AM
To: Mary  <@dwyergroup.com>
I can be reached at 3**- 4**- 4*** in the evening.   Rachel

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So, there it was....The information they asked for....My phone number.  Do you think I heard anything from anyone at all?  I waited until August of 2012 in order to give them plenty of time to respond.  I was furious that they never got back to us, so I sent the following email:

 

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Rachel  <@gmail.com> Wed, Aug 1, 2012 at 6:38 PM To: Mary  <@dwyergroup.com>   Dwyer Group,   Due to Mr. Rooter's unethical and unscrupulous practices and their lack of concern for how they affect the customer, I will be gathering supporting documents and submitting the details of my interactions with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh to the Attorney General, the BBB, Rip Off Report, a variety of websites in which Mr. Rooter advertises and where reviews are available, creating blogs dedicated to alerting people about doing business with Mr. Rooter and other Dwyer group franchises, submitting to the local radio and television stations (to see if they are interested in protecting their viewers from a company who takes 20K and doesn't even fix the problem, in addition to leaving the house and the area around it a disaster area), and placing warning flyers under people's windshields in shopping areas with web links to explain why using Mr. Rooter or any other franchise under the Dwyer group would be like hiring criminals.    =======================================================================

 

I still gave them additional time to respond to the email sent above prior to publicly posting the truth about what happened and alerting consumers to other instances of less than honorable behavior demonstrated by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter Corporation, and other Mr. Rooter locations.

 

In October of 2012 is when I saw that other dissatisfied Mr. Rooter consumers were posting on their social networking pages and decided to make our experience known as well.  As I recall, I posted on Mr. Rooter Corporate's Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube accounts.  I gained the attention of Mr. Rooter Corporation, once again, where they asked me to call their Customer Service manager, Stacie, at the number they provided.

 

So, I called the number that they provided only for Stacie to inform me that there was nothing they could do because it was solely up to the franchise owner whether or not they were willing to resolve the stated issues.  So, if the franchisee makes the decision to behave in a less than honorable manner (i.e. fraudulent misrepresentation, breech of contract, poor workmanship), then too bad for you is essentially what I was told Mr. Rooter Corporations' position is.

 

The following day, to my surprise, Stacie called me back and told me that Mr. Beall would call me later that day, tomorrow, or soon.  I waited several days out of consideration of the fact that he is running a business.  Since I hadn't heard from him, I sent a reminder email to Mr. Beall informing him that I was waiting, what resolution I thought was reasonable, and why I thought it was reasonable.  A copy of the email is below:

 

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Rachel <@gmail.com> Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 10:07 PM To: Robert <@mrrpitt.com>     Mr. Beall,     According to the service manager, Stacie, at Mr. Rooter Corporate/Dwyer Group, you were supposed to contact me.  Honestly, I am not surprised you haven't.  Now, I understand that it has been about 11 months since I was "serviced."  So, in order to be extremely detailed in the process, I have created a blog with invoices, comments, photos, and videos to adequately express my situation to Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter Corporation, the Dwyer Group, and the general public.  This is the last time I am going to waste my time trying to communicate with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter Corporation, or the Dwyer Group with regard to making the situation right.  I must tell you that the ONLY action that will resolve this issue is returning the second invoice amount of $9,500....an extremely fair request considering the situation.     Again, before I make everything very permanent with the Attorney General; the BBB; Rip Off Report; Complaint Board; My YouTube Account; My Twitter Account; A Dedicated Facebook Page; Submission Of Materials To Television, Newspaper, and Radio Stations; looking for a construction-related litigation lawyer who may be interested in this case; and whatever else I have to do in order to save another person worse off than we are from getting scammed, etc....  I am giving you the opportunity to make it right.  In the event that I do not hear from you and receive appropriate restitution, I will begin the above processes on 10-26-2012.   In the event that the situation is resolved, the blog disappears and you are in the clear.  Also, if you refund the second invoice, it is fair that I would not hold Mr. Rooter accountable for the items within the second invoice; however, I fully expect you to honor the work in the first invoice of the sewer replacement/whatever you call the second part...pipe blast, pipe burst...?  If you don't plan to uphold your warranties, then you should return the entire amount less the materials cost of $4,000.    If you had solved my problem, I would've been a repeat customer (I would've thought I was paying for quality paying 3 times the amount charged locally...It would've hurt, but it would've been worth it.  I am a very brand loyal person if the brand is customer-focused.  I was even asking about replacing my hot water heater and a whole lot more-until you ran off with 20,267.05...tried to pilfer another $5,000 out of us and didn't fix the problem.  It wasn't necessary for you to scam me regarding my sewer line.  I had plenty of plumbing work where you would've gotten that much legitimately.).  Furthermore, I probably would've used services other Dwyer Group brands, but my experience with Mr. Rooter opened my eyes to how that would be a very big mistake on my part.      My Blog:   http://howmrrooterofpittsburghscammedme.blogspot.com/2012/10/how-mr-rooter-of-pittsburgh-and-dwyer.html       -Rachel

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In response, Mr. Beall sent the following email, which, to me, implied that he was going to address the aforementioned issues when he returned :

 

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Bob <@mrrpitt.com>	Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 10:22 PM
To: Rachel  <@gmail.com>, Mary  <@dwyergroup.com>
Rachel    I am currently out of town. My mother is in the hospital. If you have any doubt call Palatka Fl medical center 3**.3**.5***. (Sarah B****) her name.   When I return I will address.  Sorry if the timing is bad. Bob B**** Mr Rooter Plumbing    Pittsburgh's Most referred local plumber   7**.5**.8***

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Well, ok, I thought.  I will wait until he comes back from Florida to address the issues as he stated.  So, I sent him the following reply email:

 

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Rachel <@gmail.com>	Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 11:14 PM
To: Bob  <@mrrpitt.com>
Mr. Beall,   I have received your email.         -Rachel Province

 

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At this point, I refrained from proceeding with posting the truth about occurred during the dates of service and waited for Mr. Beall to return from Florida so that my Mother and I could bring up issues and discuss appropriate resolution to the issues presented.

 

While I was waiting, I received the following letter, which was not from Mr. Beall but his lawyer, dated only 4 days later:

 

 

 

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The content of the lawyer's letter does not contain accurate information in reference to what occurred during the dates of service nor what my intentions were at all.  In fact, if the information that the lawyer provided was received from Mr. Beall, who was never at the location where the work was performed; then, the content is simply heresay relayed to him by employees who were at our house and who also, as I have more recently discovered, have criminal dockets on file with drug and theft-related charges which were discovered by myself in early 2013 after I had been inspired to check the online statements of another victim of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh where she actually states that it is run by felons and it appears that there is truth behind her statement.

 

Other lawyers who I have spoken with, but who I can't afford to attain, also view the events that I have described, accurately, as evidence of fraud and breech of contract.

 

Mr. Beall has not initiated this action because the information that I have provided is inaccurate, but rather this action has been taken because the information that I have provided IS accurate and very detailed as mentioned to me by the president of Mr. Rooter Corporation, Mary Kennedy-Thompson.  Mr. Rooter's intention is to prevent me from accessing my First Amendment rights with regards to sharing information about events that I was a direct witness to and that are of public concern considering the fact that this company is in the business of providing services to the public.

 

I could understand the business' reaction if I was acting in this manner and my information was only heresay (like Mr. Beall's); however, I have seen with my eyes and I have heard with my ears the information that I have provided and have every right to form opinions and conclusions about my first-hand experiences when no other behaviors exhibited by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Beall, or Mr. Rooter Corporation have occurred that would warrant any change to any of the opinions and conclusions that I have arrived at.  If anything, their behavior supports and solidifies the stated facts and my opinions.

 

Since I know for a fact that Rip Off Report never removes reports, that is where I moved my blog to because, rather than showing consumers that the business lives up to their stated values and promises, they would rather bully the consumer into silence and give away prizes and money before they take any initiative to right any wrongs that they are responsible for.  In fact, how they have responded in my Mother's situation and the presence of other online recounts of others confirms the truth behind my statements and the statements made by others about Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter Corporation, and other franchisees.  The Rip Off Reports offer a good account of the facts that have transpired in our situation and our state of mind at the time of posting the complaints.  The only problem with the Rip Off Report Format is that is difficult to follow because the information is in one big pile; however, they have started to provide links to each entry which could make it easier to follow.

 

The two Rip Off Reports actually contain the most recent accurate information concerning our interactions with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and Mr. Rooter Corporation.

 

This was the first report I created after first interactions with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and the first interactions with Mr. Rooter Corporation:

 

http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/mr-rooter-pittsburgh/cranberry-pennsylvania-16066/mr-rooter-pittsburgh-mr-rooter-cranberry-how-mr-rooter-of-pittsburgh-the-dwyer-group-958849

 

This was the second report I created after the second interactions with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and the second interactions with Mr. Rooter Corporation:

 

http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/mr-rooter-plumbing-pittsburgh/cranberry-pennsylvania-16066/mr-rooter-plumbing-pittsburgh-mr-rooter-plumbing-and-mr-rooter-corporation-lied-to-me-971652

 

 

For now, I will take a small break from attempting organize, in chronological order, all the information surrounding the reporting of Mr. Rooter's actions because there is SO much information surrounding the interactions that have taken place - a nightmare many consumers wouldn't want to risk.  In hindsight, we surely would have avoided this hassle by never picking up the phone to call them.

 

 

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh has been accusing me of making defamatory statements...statements which I have proof of that are true because if a statement is true, then it can not be defamatory statement.

 

In a hypocritical manner, Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh continues to display their created publication which includes defamatory statements surrounding the fact that they are recipients of the Angie's List Super Service Award when, in fact, I have absolute proof that they are not and that they have been asked to comply with Angie's List's request to remove the brand violations where Angie's List has provided them multiple extensions, even though Mr. Rooter Corporation removed the violations on their social networking sites immediately because they knew what they had done and what the repercussions could be if they ignored Angie's List's request.

 

In fact, Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh did the same thing with the BBB logo; however, they removed that at the same time they removed the Angie's List logos off of their website after Angie's List contacted them about brand infringement.  The only proof I have of that is that my Mother and I both saw the BBB logo imbedded among other payment icons, unless there are other people who noticed that the BBB logo was on the website and then disappeared.

 

Here is a tiny example of their behavior:

 

 

 

 

The next blog post explains how I came to the conclusion that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh engaged in fraudulent misrepresentation, breech of contract, and bait and switch/deceptive sales tactics...

 

 

Mr. Rooter Plumbing and Owner Robert "Bob" A. Beall is reportedly the owner of the following locations:

 

http://www.rooter2.com

 

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh

 

 

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh has been attempting to bully me into removing the facts surrounding what happened during the dates of service because they do not like how the facts make them look and they do not want the public to know that they never had any intention of making things right with my Mother.

I have the right to report the truth about events that I have been directly involved in and that I have directly witnessed.  The truth could help the public be educated as to how to survive using a Mr. Rooter franchisee or avoid using a Mr. Rooter franchisee altogether.

The First Amendment allows me to engage in the following activities:

1) I have the right to speak freely without government interference.

2) I have the right to publish news, information, and opinions without government interference.

3) I have the right to gather signatures in support of a cause. 

4) I have the right to gather in public to march, protest, demonstrate, carry signs, and express my views in a nonviolent way, as well as to join and associate with groups and organizations without government interference.  

The recreation of this blog is to ensure that facts and opinions are being clearly stated.  

 

On December 24, 2011 at 12:54PM, my Mother called Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh to come to her home because there was a second raw sewage backup in her basement.

 

Cell phone records document that my Mother made eight calls to HSA Home Warranty between 10:52AM and 12:31PM on December 24, 2011 to report the second sewage backup in the basement of her home and to check on the status of HSA Home Warranty finding a plumber to come out and address the situation.

 

At 12:40PM on December 24, 2011, HSA Home Warranty called my Mother to giver her permission to find any plumber who would respond to the sewage backup in the basement.

 

As evident from my Mother's HSA Home Warranty Account, there is a record of sewage backups being reported on December 21, 2011 and December 24, 2011 respectively.

 

According to my Mother's HSA Home Warranty Account, HSA Home Warranty dispatched Main Street Mechanicals to her home on December 21, 2011 to address the first occurrence of the sewage backups.  The Master Plumber from Main Street Mechanicals warned that the small diameter drain cleaning machine used to open the sewer line through the basement floor drain was probably not going to be effective and that installing a clean-out would be necessary in order to accommodate a larger diameter drain routing machine that would be able to more adequately address the issue of sewage backing up in the basement.

 

On December 24, 2011, my Mother's HSA Home Warranty Account showed that Shaw Plumbing was dispatched to come out and address the second sewage backup at her home; however, due to the fact that it was Christmas Eve, Shaw Plumbing did not elect to answer the service call.  HSA Home Warranty still shows that it was waiting for information from the "other" out-of-network plumber, or rather the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician" that did respond to the service call.

 

Cell phone records show that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh returned my Mother's phone call at 3:36PM on December 24, 2011 to set up an appointment later that day with one of their "Technicians," Joe, on or around 5:00PM.

 

Cell phone records show that a phone call to HSA Home Warranty was made from my Mother's cell phone at 5:08PM on December 24, 2011, which was made in order for the Mr. Rooter "Technician" to explain to HSA Home Warranty what his plan was to address the sewage backup.

 

Considering HSA Home Warranty appeared to us to be wasting the Mr. Rooter "Technician's" time by asking the same questions over and over, we decided to absorb the cost of that particular service call in order to have the necessary clean-out installed and to have the larger diameter drain routing machine run through the sewer line in the hopes that the second drain cleaning attempt would be successful.

 

There is a photograph that was taken to show the sewage backup that occurred on December 21, 2011, which was five days after we had moved into the home.  The photograph also adequately depicts the extent of the sewage back up that occurred on December 24, 2011.

 

 

 

As advised by the previous Master Plumber from Main Street Mechanicals, my Mother and I informed Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," that the previous plumber suggested that installing a clean-out was necessary in order to use a larger diameter drain routing machine to clean the sewer line since the smaller diameter drain routing machine through the basement floor drain was obviously unsuccessful - lasting only three days.

 

Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," agreed with the previous plumber's assessment of the situation and told us that installing a clean-out and cleaning the sewer line with a larger drain routing machine would be necessary.

 

We asked Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," to be detailed on the invoice in order to satisfy HSA Home Warranty requirements.

 

Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," went out to his truck and returned with a detailed invoice as requested - Invoice #106273.

 

 

 

 

According to Invoice #106273, a clean-out was to be installed in the basement and a drain cleaning was to be performed on the sewer line.

 

Also included on Invoice #106273, were the "financial benefits" of purchasing the "Valued Customer Protection Plan," or the Advantage Plan as advertised on Mr. Rooter Corporate's website.

 

Uncertain about the plumbing of the home and the fact that it appeared as though the homeowner would save approximately $86 upfront according to Invoice #106273, it looked like it wouldn't take long to start saving money on the 5-Year $199.95 Advantage Plan or "Valued Customer Protection Plan."

 

 

 

Before the work outlined on Invoice #106273 commenced, Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," spoke with HSA Home Warranty and described the work that he was going to perform in order to address the sewage backup in the basement.

 

For $558.19 ($472.10 CPP Pricing) on Invoice #106273, Joe installed a drain stack that looked as though it was pulled from someone else's sewer line in which he told me that the unsightly drain stack could be painted, in addition to informing me that he installed a temporary clean-out cap that he would replace the next day because the cap being installed was not appropriate for the situation.  This is an example of SHODDY WORKMANSHIP.  Would you pay $558.19 for the stack pictured below?

 

 

 

For $95 (Not Subject to CPP Pricing) on Invoice #106273, Joe spent only a few minutes max using the drain routing machine, claiming that he couldn't get the drain routing machine very far into the line.

 

I am, by no means, an expert in the trade of plumbing; however, I recall that the end of the drain routing machine, used by Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," had an attachment that looked like the rotary/saw rotary cutter blades on the documentation that I obtained from PASCO.  Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," even told me that nothing stops the rotary saw/rotary cutter blades that were at the end of the drain routing machine.

 

I am also not suggesting that a 'simple cleaning,' by cabling or snaking the lateral sewer line, would have been effective in the long-term; however, if the drain cleaning was properly performed on the lateral sewer line, it would have given my Mother at least three additional days to gather, appropriately, other professional opinions about the condition of her lateral sewer line and not feel pressured into entering into subsequent contract immediately and solely with Mr. Rooter Plumbing.

 

Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," used a cleaner and some rags that he had with him to clean up the sewage and its associated debris from the floor in the basement and around the floor drain; hence, there was no sewage remaining on the basement floor or in the basement at all after Joe left for the evening on December 24, 2011.

 

Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," told us that he had a "buddy" with a camera who he could ask to come take a look at the sewer line to see what the problem was - warning us that he would deny it if we told anyone about his gesture.  We thought that he made that statement jokingly; however, it was not a joke.  The statement Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician,"made should be recognized as evidence of DISHONEST INTENT.

 

 

On Christmas Day 2011, Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," VOLUNTARILY returned to the house with his "buddy," Earl, as a "favor" to my Mother offered the previous evening.  I met them at the house as requested by my Mother who was at her sister's house at the time.

 

When I arrived at the house, I saw two Mr. Rooter Plumbing vans and thought to myself *Oh, he's a Mr. Rooter employee, too* At the time, I didn't really think about significance of this detail.  The significance of this detail was that Joe and Earl both had a mutual financial interest for volunteering to show up at the home of a widowed, still grieving, physically disabled 59 1/2 year old woman and her daughter, two women who knew nothing about plumbing, in order to "investigate" what the problem might be - Commission.  Joe and Earl's mission was to arrive at the home in order to convince the homeowner that she needed a sewer line replacement, which is the most expensive and most extreme option usually reserved for serious issues like collapsed sewer lines, cracked sewer lines, or severely misaligned sewer lines...None of which existed at our home.  This would be an example of a BAIT and SWITCH SCAM.

 

 

 

Earl, a Mr. Rooter "Technician," sent the camera down our lateral sewer line twice.  Once prior to reporting their supposed "findings" to us.  Once after they had reported their supposed "findings" to us and after Invoice #105738 had already been created and signed where I had watched the screen unfamiliar with what I was looking at and under the impression that there were professional Master Plumbers evaluating the situation.

 

 

Other than the obvious fact that the sewer line contained debris and a clogged area of off-white cloudy water that prevented any clear recognition of the real issue at-hand, Earl gave me no indication that there was anything going on serious enough to warrant a sewer line replacement.  All Earl went on about is something about a clogged artery which was obvious and the purpose of seeking "professional" plumbing assistance.

 

During the camera inspection, I never saw past 00:00:24 on the video, which is the ONLY video, out of two videos that were supposedly done on the sewer line, that I could get them to give to us.  This camera inspection was performed prior to creating an invoice.

 

Earl, Joe, and I gathered in the living room to discuss the state of our sewer line.  Earl told me there was good news and bad news.  The good news was that they could fix the problem.  The bad news was that  a sewer line replacement was necessary in order to fix the problem and prevent sewage from backing up into the basement.

 

I asked Earl how much a sewer line replacement would cost to which he replied "*...Be prepared to sign away your life savings...$10,000."  I told him that is too much money to make a decision on without first talking to my Mother, who was at her sister's house for Christmas.

 

At this point, no invoice had been created or signed nor had any of the unnecessary digging took place. Everything was still in a verbal state of affairs.

 

 

Cell phone records show that I had called my Mother at 1:41PM, which was to explain what I was told by the so-called "professionals," Earl and Joe...That the only way to solve the issue of sewage backing up into the basement was to replace the lateral sewer line.

 

At this point, my Mother and I had both been told, with me confirming repeatedly, that the quoted price of $10,000 included the entire sewer line to the main sewer line and that our house would be put back together the way they found it.  These are the conditions in which my Mother gave her consent for me to sign and enter into contract with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh.

 

After I informed Earl and Joe that my Mother gave me permission to go ahead with the complete sewer line replacement, Earl promptly created Invoice #105738.  With my Mother under the impression that she agreed to a typical contract with typical contractual terms, Earl produced two extra forms "Emergency Work Authorization" and the "Notice Of Right To Cancel" that he said I had to sign or they wouldn't do the work.    

 

 

 

According to the FTC, they require that the person signing the forms ("Emergency Work Authorization" and the "Notice Of Right To Cancel") put the reason for the emergency in his/her own words; however, I didn't know what to put down to explain why rights needed to be signed away to have the work done and asked Earl what I was supposed to write in that section; thus, the words on that form are actually Earl's words and not the words of myself or my Mother.

 

 

 

 

 

After I had filled out and signed all the forms on my Mother's behalf and made payment in full via two separate credit cards, I examined Invoice #105738 closely only to discover that Earl never wrote down the whole sewer line as he had deceptively made me believe he had, but rather the invoice stated, in barely legible writing, that only a small section of sewer line was supposed to be replaced to the house trap located just outside approximately 5' from the basement door.  I had continued to discuss the invoice several times with Earl and Joe in an attempt to understand exactly what they were supposed to be doing according to the contract.

 

 

 

My Mother was furious when she returned home because her rights had been signed away, the invoice had already been signed, and the work to be completed within the invoice did NOT include replacing the entire sewer line as she verbally agreed to over the phone.  My Mother's discovery would be a premium example of FALSE and MISLEADING SALES TACTICS - an example of FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION.  Fraudulent misrepresentation would be implying verbally that the consumer is getting an entire sewer line replacement, but then changing what the consumer initially agreed to over the phone without their knowledge on the invoice to include only (3) 10 foot sections or less of sewer line.

 

After Invoice #105738 was promptly created, signed and payed in full, Earl and Joe dug a "relief pit" so that sewage would exit the basement; however, there was no sewage to exit the basement because Joe had cleaned up the sewage around the basement floor drain the previous evening on Christmas Eve 2011.

 

 

 

On the camera inspection video, Earl recorded the name and address of the video inspection AFTER all of the forms were signed, payment was collected, and the "relief pit" had been created.  I found that odd because I thought he had already inspected our sewer line and the video footage had already been created.  Also, the footage at the end of the video, which showed the "relief pit" on our property, was created at the same time he recorded the name and address of the video inspection.  So, my theory that I was shown a dummy video with recorded audio and visual add-ons is probably accurate.  It would be extremely difficult to tell one clay sewer pipe from another, especially with modifications which could potentially be made by the self-acclaimed audio and video specialist staff member employed by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh.  In order to detect and locate our house trap, Earl would have had to insert the camera into the sewer line and use a machine to detect the camera's position first before digging the "relief pit."

 

According to Joe, the Mr. Rooter "Technician," the heavy duty, supposedly unstoppable drain routing machine did not make any significant impact on the clog on Christmas Eve 2011, with the blockage actually being located between 0:00:27 and 0:00:29 according to the recorded camera inspection video taken on Christmas Day 2011 where there appears to be a small diameter dark area suggesting that the blockage had not completely blocked the line - The blockage of solidified grease, as it turned out to be, was located before the house trap; thus, it would be logical to conclude that digging the "relief pit" and breaking the cap to the house trap before work was schedule to begin the next day on December 26, 2011 was unnecessary because enough waste water would have never made it past the blockage to the house trap to overflow there and prevent sewage from backing up into the basement.  On the recorded video, the sewer line looks relatively problem-free from the 21 foot mark to where the off-white cloudy water begins at the 16 foot mark.

 

 

This is a photograph of pieces of the cap to our house trap that was destroyed on Christmas Day 2011.

 

 

It is important to note that the invoice does not describe the results of the camera inspection performed; therefore, no adequate tool was used to arrive at an appropriate recommendation for the homeowner.

 

The price of Invoice #105738 just appeared out of nowhere as there is no evidence on this document to suggest that Earl ever used the "no hidden fees" price book, as advertised, to arrive at the total of $10,000 for a 30 foot or less replacement of the lateral sewer line that was actually supposed to be the entire sewer line to the main sewer line.  There is no price itemization to describe the cost for a hydrojetting service, for a camera inspection service of the outside lateral sewer line, or for the sewer line replacement.  There is NO evidence, whatsoever, to suggest that the Advantage Plan pricing that my Mother was entitled to receive was even applied since she purchased and paid for the Advantage Plan the previous evening.

 

On the evening of December 25, 2011, since we had just relocated back to the area on December 14, 2011 and moved into our home on December 16, 2011, I did online research surrounding sewer line replacements in our local township.  Well, I discovered that we had not followed protocol regarding our sewage backups and was worried about possible repercussions.  The local municipal authority's website specifically states that if there are any sewage backup issues to CALL THEM FIRST to assess the situation.

 

On Monday, December 26, 2011, Earl arrived at our house prior to Mr. Rooter employees showing up to begin work.  My Mother and I informed Earl about what I discovered online regarding what the process was of addressing sewer line issues in our township.  What we were supposed to do is have the township municipal authority investigate the issues first, and then they would let the homeowner know if they needed to contact a plumber.  Earl told us that, whether or not we decide to get the work done, the contracts are already signed and they have the money anyway.  Earl also stated that the township municipal authority's website was wrong and that we were supposed to call Mr. Rooter first.  This is an example of Mr. Rooter MISREPRESENTING THEIR AUTHORITY.

 

At the time, my Mother and I thought we had no other choice but to proceed with the work that was supposed to be completed according Invoice #105738.  If the emergency forms that signed her rights away weren't signed without her knowledge, then my Mother would have terminated that contract the following day.

 

Later that day, my Mother and I had the idea, since they were already tearing apart the basement floor, that it would be easy and it shouldn't cost that much more to add a toilet to the basement.  So, I asked the employee working in the basement about adding a toilet.  The employee in the basement told me to contact Earl because he handles that and that he expected Earl to be at the house tomorrow in order to camera the rest of the sewer line.

 

On December 27, 2011, Earl showed up to camera inspect the lateral sewer line.  The part of the sewer line inspected showed that our lateral sewer line was in really good shape compared to the first video I saw.  The only obstructions that I saw in our sewer line was a #2 pencil, a 9-volt energizer battery, and another clogged area further down the sewer line.  Although the clogged area was close to a line of pine trees in our neighbor's yard, I opened my mouth and asked if it is possible if roots were the problem; thus, providing valuable information for Earl to use on his next invoice, which is written under "diagnosis/recommendations."

 

Earl, again, explained that the only way to solve the issue of sewage backing up into the basement is...you guessed it...a sewer line replacement for the rest of our sewer line for around $12,000-$15,000 in addition to the first invoice!  We declined that option.  Since I had been doing research on sewer line replacements and their associated costs, I asked Earl what other options were available to address the issue of our lateral sewer line being clogged.  He explained that there was a liquid that could line the sewer in the ballpark of $5,000-$7,000 that only carried a 1-year warranty.  We thought that was crazy to spend $5,000-$7,000 on a product/service that was only guaranteed for a year, so we passed on that option as well!  The only reasonable option that we thought we had to choose from at the time was a procedure referred to as pipe-bursting for $8,000-$9,000.  Earl explained that the pipe-bursting was inserting a 4" pipe into the existing 6"  pipes.  My research has determined that it cost $9,500 to have Mr. Rooter perform a slip-lining process.   The pipe-bursting procedure was not actually performed as verbally stated as pipe-bursting is the process of pulling a new pipe into the place of the existing pipe while a machine breaks up the old pipe, allowing for the installation of the same or larger diameter pipe in a non-evasive manner.

 

Earl proceeded with the creation of Invoice #105742.  This time I told him to go get the price book because I wanted to be sure that my Mother was getting the membership pricing that she was entitled to.  He pointed to two jobs in the price-book which didn't really describe at all the scope of the work that was to be done.  One of the jobs was supposedly given the membership price of $4,300.  What the price is actually attached to isn't defined in the invoice.  The other price was $5,200 and it was not given the membership pricing, which was $4,800, because Earl said that his boss would be mad because he was giving us a toilet and no charge.

 

 

 

 

At the time and under stress from moving and having sewage backup into our house, we didn't think about the relationship between Earl's verbal statements to us and what he actually wrote down on the invoices.  It became clear after evaluating all of our interactions with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh after they failed to resolve the issue of sewage backing up into the basement as they were contracted to do.

 

Earl told us that he was going to give us something that he didn't.  The price difference between the actual price of the job that he pointed to in the price book and the membership price that my Mother was entitled to receive was $400; thus, he charged $400 for the toilet and its associated installation that he claimed he was providing at "no charge."  Invoice #105742 states in writing that the toilet was being provided at "no charge."  So, Earl and Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh lied on a business contract in order to get the sale; hence engaging in FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION.

 

A recently discovered  example of SHODDY WORKMANSHIP (May 2013) is the fact that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh does not appear capable of properly installing the "no charge" toilet on an uneven surface - our basement floor.  Even though, since January 2012, the "no charge" toilet in the basement has been used less than 10 times, the toilet is now wobbling because it wasn't shimmed and/or caulked and the wax seal is broken due to the movement over the uneven surface.  All I have to say is that we are fortunate that my Mother did not discover this and get badly hurt and that this incompetent work was located in our basement and not on other floors of the home where more damage to our home could have occurred.

 

Invoice #105742 actually states the following:

"replace outside sewer stopping 2' shy of main. bed oil pipe in gravel.  additional cost 9500. prior cost 10,000.  new job total 19,500.  all cost are cpp discounted. installing new toilet no charge due to cpp membership.  paying 9500 by check."

Even the content of Invoice #105742 does NOT describe what my Mother and I were verbally told was going to occur.  This invoice states that the sewer line was supposed to be replaced and does not describe the process of inserting a pipe; yet, we were told verbally that a pipe bursting procedure was going to occur and, instead, a 4" pipe was inserted into our 6" terra cotta sewer line which can be confirmed by the inspection performed by our local municipal authority.  Again, a continuation of FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION!

 

In a letter composed by the lawyer representing Mr. Robert A Beall and Mr. Rooter Plumbing (Pittsburgh) on October 22, 2012, the lawyer communicates that even he understands the scope of the work within the invoices to be a COMPLETE SEWER LINE REPLACEMENT.  This letter can be reviewed in the following post.  

 

Between December 28, 2011 and December 30, 2011, the employees were supposedly working to complete the work contained within Invoice #105738 and Invoice #105742.

 

During this period, there was an issue with being able to insert the new pipe inside the terra cotta pipes due to a blockage.  Before finally calling for a hydrojetting truck, the Mr. Rooter "Technicians" were trying to force the pipe into the sewer line.  The hydrojetting truck came, but the employees just pulled the solidified grease out by hand which had holes from the hydrojetting machine that they didn't leave in the sewer line very long which had been working to break through the grease - albeit slowly.  I was told that Earl was supposed to come to camera inspect the rest of the sewer line, but when Earl arrived he said it wasn't necessary.  The Mr. Rooter "Technicians" working on the sewer line installed the "T" at the point of blockage in the sewer line, which stopped 4 feet before the point indicated on Invoice #105742.  This is just one example of BREECH OF CONTRACT.

 

The green flag was used to mark the main sewer line by the local municipal authority.

I measured from the clean-out "T" at the angle the sewer line was going above ground.

 

 

This is the measurement I got from the picture above.  This is definitely not 2 feet shy of the main.  

 

While I estimated that they stopped a total of 8 feet from the main sewer line, I was off by two feet. 

 

 

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, FOR A FACT, stopped 6 feet from the main sewer line - making their breech of contract 4 feet as they stated they were supposed to stop 2 feet shy of the main sewer line ...at the tap where our lateral sewer line connects to the township's main sewer line.  

 

Here is the link to the video I uploaded on YouTube after obtaining an independent video inspection today, May 17, 2013, in order to prove that my statements and my conclusions about Mr. Rooter are spot on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LVVMf4wnos

 

 

 

 

This photo is courtesy of Earl's cell phone - the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician."

This photograph was submitted through BBB correspondence.

This is the grease that they pulled out of the sewer line by hand in order to be able to insert the pipe.  

 

 

Between December 24, 2011 and December 30, 2011, the lateral sewer line was camera inspected twice and hydrojetted 2 or 3 times.

 

On December 30, 2011, the final day consisted of a Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employee looking around for a jackhammer to break up the rest of the concrete slab to lay the new slab, but then decided just to put half the concrete slab back, informing me that we could call them in the spring to have it redone.  No bonding agent was applied and it only took weeks before it cracked where the new and old concrete meet.  This is an example of SHODDY WORKMANSHIP that remains today.  I should offer tours because there is nothing like seeing their "quality" workmanship for yourself in person.

 

 

 

 

Upon the claimed completion of work, the Mr. Rooter "Technicians" swore up and down that we would have no further issues with sewage backing up into our basement...That we'd have problem free sewer operation for 50 years or more.

 

The declaration of the Mr. Rooter "Technicians" was merely another lie because we had to call them shortly after they claimed to have completed work due to the sewage backing up into our basement..AGAIN!  Due to my understandably being paranoid about the sewage backing up into the basement, the sewage backup that occurred during this period was similar to the extent of the backups on December 21st and December 24th because I was still afraid to run too much water and allow it to go down the drain.

 

The FIRST hydrojetting truck that responded after the work was claimed to have been completed ran water through the line and told us to use Scott Toilet Tissue, promising us that we would have no further issues with sewage backing up into our basement.  We followed the recommendation of the so-called "professional."

 

Three days or so later, on January 6, 2012, we had the worst backup that encapsulated 3/4 of our basement floor and destroyed over $1,000 (closer to $2,000) of our personal property that was stored in the boxes which became saturated with raw sewage.  At this point, my Mother and I were both livid.

 

 

 

 

As mentioned previously, January 6, 2012 was the worst backup that we had ever experienced.  Over $1,000 worth of our irreplaceable personal property stored in boxes in the basement were ruined from being saturated in raw sewage.  Taking a shower, running the dishwasher, and doing a load of laundry all at the same time should have not taxed the capacity of our lateral sewer line - especially after forking over $19,500 to Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh!  At this point, our patience with Mr. Rooter had run out and my Mother and I were both beyond livid!

 

So, we called Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh to come out, AGAIN, for the second time.  This time, though, Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh sent us someone who had NO CLUE what he was doing.  He might have been able to operate the equipment, kind of, but he certainly did not know how to use the equipment to his advantage to clear a sewer line.  We wondered if it was his first time all by himself running the hydrojetter....

 

The African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician," whose name started with an "A" or something like that, claimed that we had a "soft clog."  There was no camera inspection or anything like that...Just a psychic prediction.  For a "soft clog," he had a very difficult time trying to clear it.  The hydrojetting stream rose 3 to 4 stories like a geyser out of the clean-out.  He told me that he didn't know why that was happening because it never happened before.  His statement alerted my Mother and I to the fact that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh sent out an employee who was incompetent.

 

At this point, we decided that it was time to call the local municipal authority like we should have done from the beginning.

 

The African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician" was waiting around to see what the local municipal authority was going to say.  The local municipal authority sent a camera on wheels up their main sewer line and hyrojetted it.  Even though there was grease in the local municipal authority's main sewer line, it wasn't enough to block the flow of sewage.  My Mother heard the African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician" ask a local municipal authority employee if Mr. Rooter could replace the tap (It would've been nice if they actually completed work up to the tap as indicated on the contract.), but the local municipal authority employee told him, "No."

 

Then, the local municipal authority employees sent their camera up our lateral sewer line, but couldn't make out what the blockage was.  The local municipal authority employees decided to go ahead and hyrojet our lateral sewer line from the "T" clean-out in the yard to the main sewer line.  The African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician" told me that the local municipal authority had better equipment and should be able to get the sewer flowing for us.  The African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician" also told me that he was afraid of getting the hose stuck in the sewer line and having to pay to get it removed.  Prior to the local municipal authority employees working on our sewer line, the The African American Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh "Technician"left.

 

Well, calling Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh wasn't getting us any closer to stopping the sewage from backing up in the basement and we found the incompetence alarming; thus, future backups were brought up to the local municipal authority instead and they are the ones who finished the work that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh should have done with regard to successfully unblocking our lateral sewer line.

 

In addition to lying to consumers about their willingness to resolve issues that arise with consumers and about receiving the 2012 Angie's List Super Service Award, The Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employee, who responded to this complaint and falsely claimed to be willing to resolve the serious issues that arose during dates of service with my Mother after being contacted via e-mail as requested by the employee, has taken to using an unprofessional and profane demeanor with consumers who post on their social networking websites, like Facebook.

As a representative of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, the "Social Media Consultant," as she refers to herself, recently deleted what I believe to have been an unprofessional and profane response to a consumer.  Even though Mr. Rooter Corporation delivers their automated and impersonal responses to people who post complaints or negative feedback and in extremely rare cases positive feedback, at least their responses on their social media networking sites are always professional.  Get Mr. Rooter Corporation on the phone, though, and they behave in a completely unprofessional manner:  they talk over you, they lie to you, etc.

As you review the exchange in the photo, with all of the other possible words to choose out there, the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employee was not capable of replacing the word, "Shitty" with something less profane like "Crappy?"

"It's best to call an expert, not a parrot?"  So, the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employee is publicly referring to Mr. Rooter being "experts" and Gillece as not being experts - engaging in accusatory/defamatory behavior.  Perhaps, Gillece should include Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh in their defamation lawsuit as a competitor tarnishing their "stellar" reputation...

Personally, I would never call any of the three large companies serving Pittsburgh (Mr. Rooter, Gillece, and Roto-Rooter) based on everything that I have been witness to both directly and indirectly with Mr. Rooter as well as reading and hearing in-person all of the horror stories.  Mr. Rooter, Gillece, and Roto-Rooter all charge way too much with people often finding themselves poorer and still experiencing the same problem with no offer from the companies to make it right.

Mr. Rooter is the SECOND largest plumbing company....NOT the largest plumbing company as the Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employee stated...That is still Roto-Rooter based on my research.

Is Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh capable of telling the truth? Considering that Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh still has the defamatory statement on both of their twitter feeds reporting that they are recipients of the Angie's List Super Service Award when I have emails from Angie's List confirming that they NEVER received the 2012 Angie's List Super Service Award and there is an active brand infringement case open, that would be a resounding "NO!"

To avoid being taken advantage of, I highly recommend avoiding Mr. Rooter Plumbing locations all together - especially Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh.  In fact, we are so concerned about the welfare of the consumers living in the Pittsburgh area that we now have t-shirts and bumper stickers displaying the facts, in a concise manner, that we wear all around the Pittsburgh Metropolitan area.  Photographs of our shirts and bumper stickers have been attached and you are free to create and wear these shirts to protect consumers in areas where you have been victimized. 

 

The organization on Rip Off Report is difficult to follow; therefore, I have recreated a blog which clearly separates facts from opinions.  It is difficult, however, because my opinions have evolved from facts.  The blog can be accessed at: http://howmrrooterofpittsburghrippedusoff.blogspot.com

So, even though emails were sent as requested by the Mr. Rooter employee, no response has been received.  As you can see, they lied to consumers about their intentions of resolving the serious issues of FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION, BREECH OF CONTRACT, & SHODDY WORKMANSHIP with my Mother.

Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh/Youngstown/Dayton (same owner…same business code of ethics) continues to infringe upon the Angie's List brand, taking advantage of being associated with a Super Service Award they did not receive in order to misrepresent themselves to consumers.  I guess that one can expect this behavior from a business who has individual employees with multiple PA criminal dockets on file.  

In other news, mutliple Mr. Rooter locations refuse to honor their advertised promises and warranties.  There is NO piece of mind when choosing Mr. Rooter or ANY Dwyer Group brand for service….Find established local companies and ask others about their experience before proceeding.

I have created and ordered a shirt that I will wear out in public in order to protect as many people as I can from the same fate as my Mother.  A photo of the T-Shirt is below:

  Although I believe that the  business should have been the one to take the first steps to open up communication with my Mother, an email was sent to the employee in this Rip Off Report and to the owner of the business to open up communication and ask them to contact my Mother to resolve the serious issues mentioned in the report.  It has been 10 days since the e-mail was sent and neither my Mother or I have heard from the local business - Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh.  I just resent the e-mail to the employee's e-mail address provided in the employee's response.  As you can see from Rip Off Report, this business has not acted in a responsive manner and it appears as though they have lied to my Mother and I as well as you, the consumer.  I will post an update on 4-29-2013 to give a second opportunity for the business to respond and contact my Mother.    

I'll keep looking.  I don't want to pay all that money to have the same problem.  If they would've made it right, then I would've taken a chance on them.    

Terri,

No, the business has not contacted my Mother to resolve issues of fraudulent misrepresentation, breech of contract, and faulty workmanship.  I like your approach...rewarding businesses that show they are in favor of ethical business practices; however, it appears as though ethical business practices are not on Mr. Rooter's list of priorities.  If you read the posts made by the business, you can see that they serve enough desperate and gullible people (17,000 + Year) out there who give them enough business not to care about whether or not they complete jobs according to contract or stand by their advertisement which states that it is "fixed right the first time."  There is a good chance that you would probably have sewage backups even after they claim to have your job completed like us, where they were not even competent enough to perform their hydrojetting service; however, our local municipality was able to successfully hydrojet the part of the sewer line that should have had the insert installed in it.  What's more is that Mr. Rooter still continues to deceive consumers by advertising that they are winners of the Angie's List Super Service Award, even though they were asked by Angie's List to remove this information because they did NOT receive it.

Would you really want to risk putting your trust in someone who behaves in this manner?  If they convert to ethical business practices, I will be sure to update accordingly.  In the meantime, I recommend finding someone else to do the job.  I don't believe they should be rewarded with a $20,000 sewer line replacement job for unethical business practices plus you could probably find someone cheaper who does a better job.  

I need to consider replacing my sewer due to frequent backups.  I wanted to check back here to see if this location followed through on resolving issues with your Mother before picking up the phone to call them.      

If you would like to follow the defamation suit filed against me, go to:


https://dcr.alleghenycounty.us/selectcaseid.asp?filename=welcome.htm&nologinrequired=yes


Enter CASE ID:  GD-12-021144


I have been looking for the docket in the electronic filing system since I was served with the complaint on 11/19/2012.  They left out the zero.  Instead of making a two hour trip to the court house and paying for parking on top of filing, I could've filed my answer electronically which would have been considerably cheaper.  


As a Pro Se Litigant, I should've been able to locate my case in the electronic filing system to follow the actions in order to ensure that I have the opportunity to take action as it is recorded in the system.  By the Plaintiffs serving me with numbers missing, the discrepancy has acted as an obstruction.  All communications have had the CASE ID as  GD-12-21144.  Try looking that up in engine.  What happens?  Can't be found!


FYI:  They still continue to misuse the Angie's List Brand.  I shouldn't be surprised because this misuse is something that can be easily removed by them.  Corporate moved their misuse swiftly; yet, the local Mr. Rooter continues to linger and they have recently redesigned their webpage.



They don't say what they mean and they don't mean what they say....


Regardless of all other claims, they see (or at least an employee sees) that their concrete job is horrible and they don't even offer my mother restitution for something that is faulty on its face.  So, if a consumer has a problem, this is how they will be treated?

Update:  Ms. S****, who was speaking on Mr. B****s behalf (Wow, look at that.The same thing I have been doing for my Mother!  What a coincidence!), has claimed that Mr. B**** was willing to discuss resolution options; however, neither Ms. S**** or Mr. B**** have taken steps to contact my Mother or myself to discuss amicable resolution options. 

Considering that Mr. B**** is the one who directed his lawyer to warn us not to contact him AND his business sent a letter to the BBB stating that they refused to do anything about the situation they left my Mother in, Mr. B**** should be the one to open communication as he is the one, in addition to his business, who has refused communication from us about the serious issues that arose during the dates of service.  In fact, it would be in the best interest of both parties to have everything in writing.  We have no problem standing behind our statements, but it seems as though Mr. Rooter has a problem standing behind theirs because we continue to remain in the same unfortunate situation. 

  

Consumers, it continues to appear as though Mr. B**** sent Ms. S**** to write some damage control posts in order to make it seem as though he cares about the consumers who use his business because, based on both the lack of action and the action of filing a Defamation suit for reporting the truth, it looks like his plan is really just to ignore us for as long as he can.  Consumers, this could be youwaiting in limbo for resolution talks that were probably never intended to occur.  It seems as though what he really wants to do is to run out the statue of limitations.  If Mr. B**** actually follows through with reported claims of wanting an amicable resolution, the consumers would be the first to know. 

  

Here is another example of a lack of follow-through: Lets look at the fact that Ms. S**** STILL has not removed status updates and the press release about Mr. Rooter winning the 2012 Angies List Super Service Award on the companys website, Mr. Rooter of Youngstowns Facebook page, and Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and Mr. Rooter Media Twitter accounts.  It is a simple deletion processYou hit an X or the Delete button and remove the posts on Facebook and Twitter (10 minutes if you are slow) and remove the page created on the website on www.rooter2.com.  

Considering the fact that Angies List confirmed the misuse of the Angies List brand by corporate and the local franchisee, it was removed from another blog and even PRWeb faster than its removal from Facebook pages or Twitter accounts.  It seems as though they want to leave it up as long as possible to deceive consumers into thinking that they won this award.  If your purpose is not to deceive consumers, Mr. B**** and Ms. S****, and you are turning over a new leaf into the ethical world, then REMOVE IT!!!!  Considering how long the false information has been up, Ms. S****, you do not appear to be very anxious to have the inaccurate information removed. 

 

In other news, today my Mother and I just met for the first time and spoke with our neighbor who said she had problems with her sewage when she first moved into her home.  To my surprise, she brought up Mr. Rooters name; however, it was NOT in a positive light.  In fact, she reported to me that they destroyed her home and lied to her about signing the emergency forms, claiming that the forms were to protect her from them going to do work on someone elses house and leaving her waiting. 

Lucky for her though, other people (including the township) told her to get them out of her house and to get a lawyer who was able to get her out of the contract.  In the end, her problem was fixed for $900 and not $4,000 quoted by Mr. Rooter.  Even the lawyer that represented our neighbor wouldnt take any money from her.  The neighbor also met someone who used to work for Mr. Rooter and he told her they were crooked.  Now she tells everyone she knows never to call Mr. Rooter. 

  

So, how many more people are out there who have been treated this badly by Mr. B****s businesses (Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter of Youngstown, and Mr. Rooter of Dayton (Mr. Rooter of Dayton just opened)?

  

Mr. B****, you should be ashamed of yourself for allowing consumers to be treated like this.  Your business would have more traffic if you would treat people right the first time.  I guess what makes it worse is that while you dont care about corporates actions, what you dont understand is that corporates actions will hurt you too as a franchisee owner.  You probably have a lot of people who are warning other people regularly not to do business with your company based on the non-responsiveness of your employees, yourself, and corporate.    

   

If people stop putting money in The Dwyer Groups pockets through their service brands, like Mr. Rooter, then perhaps the franchisees within the Mr. Rooter brand will care enough to take care of customers right the first time in order to avoid having the customer turn to a corporate entity who could care less because they still get their money no matter what.  In fact, it is even more of a vicious cycle because then all the brands are affected when there is a negative experience with one brand.  Out of 1,600 franchise locations across 7 brands, very few locations receive positive reviews.

 

 Mr. Rooters actions do not illicit ANY business sense whatsoever.  It has been our experience so far and the reported experiences of others that Mr. B****, Mr. Rooter Corporate, and The Dwyer Group do NOT stand behind the products and services that they deliver and they will leave you out in the nether.

  

So, Mr. B****Here are some valid questions directed towards you.Why should people do business with a company who does not stand behind their products and services and who are not committed to resolving serious issues in a reasonable and timely manner?  Why should people do business with a company who takes legal action against consumer who waited 10 months to post a review in order to give the company ample time to respond favorably? 

Why must it appear as though you insist that I tell consumers a different story before you are willing to resolve matters with my Mother?  My Mothers situation should have been resolved.  Period.  Your employees, you, and corporate have done EXACTLY what I said you have done to my Mother and myself.  I shouldnt have to lie for issues with my Mother to be resolved, so RESOLVE them either on her terms which is $19,700 (My Mother states:  Mr. B****, you destroyed something of value; thus, you owed me something of value.

The work performed never rectified the issue of sewage backing up into the basement for which the contracts were signed.) or my suggested terms which is the second part of the unnecessary sewer line replacement/restoration at 9,500 as there was a breech of contract and deceptive sales tactics performed on that specific contract plus an official releasing of me from the defamation suit.

  

Business ethics isnt complicated

My Mother and I both agree that it looks as though they are continuing to give us the runaround.  If they really wanted to work out the serious issues with us, then either Mr. Beall or Debra would have contacted us by telephone and left a voicemail message or sent an email as the information should be able to be obtained from both the local and corporate offices as well as from Mr. Beall's lawyer.  I have offered my public email address for Mr. Beall or Debra should they be sincere about their stated intent:  raerae_province@yahoo.com w/subject line "Mr. Rooter Resolution Effort."

It also appears to us as if their effort to try to resolve our issues is largely dependent on whether or not I am willing to make up stories about what really happened...which I am not.  For example:  

1.  Asking me to tell consumers that my negative emotions are the result of The Dwyer Group's actions and not theirs when, in fact, my negative emotions are the result of the actions by people from the local and corporate Mr. Rooter offices.

2.  Asking me to tell consumers how a telephone conversation never took place between Mr. Beall and myself or my Mother, which is true; however, they conveniently do not mention WHY a phone conversation never took place.  It never took place because Mr. Beall never called me as the corporate service manager told me he would.  It never took place because after waiting several days for Mr. Beall to contact me, I sent him an email to which he replied and implied that he would address the issues when had returned from Florida.  Four days after Mr. Beall's reply email, a lawyer composed and sent out a letter warning me not to contact his client.  We would still welcome Mr. Beall's better late than never approach if he is truly willing to attempt an amicable resolution.

I believe that Debra's statement concerning blocking my access to the rooter2.com website was made and could be implemented because they want to restrict my ability to gather information that may be valuable to my legal defense as I have no choice but to represent myself.  The data that I discovered during my research, I feel, would serve as a strong body of evidence to support both my stated facts and my stated opinions.  Also, I believe that they are upset because I contacted Angie's List and informed them of the misuse of their brand.  One of my friends advised me to contact the BBB about the misuse of their brand between January 14th through January 29th; however, the BBB image and the Angie's List image were both taken down at the same time.  Honestly, if things had not transpired in the manner that they did, then I would NEVER have thought to perform extensive research or to question the authenticity of the content of a business' website.  All I was requesting was that accurate information be removed from the website so that consumers would not be mislead.

The message Debra is sending is right, though.  I should prove my statements to consumers.  To prove my statements, I should take the following actions:

1.  Post my email to Mr. Beall on 10/18/2012
2.  Post Mr. Beall's return email to me on 10/18/2012
3.  Post the letter Mr. Beall's attorney sent dated 10/22/2012

[Items 1-3 explain why no conversation occurred between Mr. Beall and myself and/or my Mother and how it appears as though Mr. Beall had no intentions at this time to resolve the serious issues presented]

4.  Post pdf's of the court dockets between Plaintiffs and Mr. Rooter Plumbing

[Item 4 would allow consumers to review the civil court cases which contain evidence of the last recorded action that would shoot down Mr. Beall's claim that he or his business has never lost in court based on the last action recorded.]

5.  Post the lawsuit complaint against me and the answer I filed for public review.

[Item 5 would allow consumers to see the claims made by the Plaintiffs and the Defendant.]

Regardless of what we have been through as a result of choosing Mr. Rooter to solve a problem that never got resolved by them because they aren't the ones that stopped the sewer from backing up into our basement, my Mother (because I asked her to) and I remain willing to explore amicable resolution options because everyone makes mistakes and should be given a chance to make things right.

I suggest we wait and see what actions Mr. Beall intends on taking and I will, of course, report accordingly.

I believe that if Mr. Beall is willing to step up to the plate, then perhaps he should be given consideration as a Second (Third, Fourth, Etc.) Opinion; however, Mr. Beall has to be willing to actually step up to the plate, though, and do what is right with regard to my Mother's situation. 

What they are really doing here is giving Rachel and her Mom the runaround.  Debra told Rachel to lie to consumers about Debra's misuse of the Better Business Bureau's image because she still posted the image representing the Better Business Bureau on the company's website in public view regardless of the size of the image, the time on the website and her stated intentions.  Debra claims Mr. Beall is willing to try to resolve the matter but Rachel has to reach out to Debra first to open communication with Mr. Beall.  According to Rachel, she already reached out to Mr. Beall first in an email she sent on 10/18/2012.  Upon receipt of the email, Mr. Beall transferred Rachel directly to his lawyer who sent a letter out 4 days later warning her not to contact him.  On 11/5/2012, a defamation suit was filed against Rachel.  I don't blame Rachel for waiting for Mr. Beall to make the first move considering his actions towards her.  "Courtesy is and will remain the most important tool in our toolbox."  The behavior towards Rachel and her Mom are considered courteous by Mr. Beall and his business?  I find Mr. Beall's actions towards consumers alarming in general and would not want to enter into a transaction with Mr. Beall or Mr. Rooter based on how they have behaved towards Rachel and her Mom!  Any consumer could find themselves in Rachel's and her Mom's position.  Rachel, thanks for standing your ground on behalf of consumers despite what the business and its owner are attempting to do to you!  I like that you have conviction and hope you continue to stand up for what is right!  Rachel, I find your information to be of value.  Rachel, I also think you should invite people to your house for a tour so they can see the quality of Mr. Rooter's work up close and personal.  The concrete work in the photo is horrendous.  I wouldn't want them to do that to my property.  Good luck, Rachel and Rachel's Mom!

Ms. Santavicca,

Yes, I am Rachel Province from Greensburg, PA.  Scarlett and RMP are the online identities that I have used; however, I am not the only one in the internet world to have used an anonymous identity online.  Why do you think people use anonymous identities?  They use them in order to try to protect themselves from identity theft (all you need is a unique name and a city and finding the address and tracking someone down is not a difficult challenge), as well as from businesses with excess money to spend on SLAPP suits in a possible attempt to intimidate or silence consumers from adequately describing their negative experiences and voicing their opinions based on the facts of their personal situations and the reported situations of others after being ignored.  If consumers notice, in this complaint, our identity is in the body of it!  If you read it, then one could easily have discovered our identity because the emails were copied and pasted directly from our email accounts, with a good faith effort made to protect identities by removing last names and email account informationI missed a few, but even without "reading it," it was obvious that Ms. Santavicca knew who I was.    

First of all, it is important to mention that Mr. Beall has never met my Mother or interacted with her in any way nor has he ever been to the job-site.  Any contact with my Mother, the "customer," has only been through the employees of his business with the last attempt being to sell an obviously unnecessary $5,000 backflow preventer for our lateral sewer line.  The invoices/contracts are between Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh and my Mother, Mary Province.BUT.MY handwriting is on INVOICE 105738 ($10,000) and bears my Mother's name - her name is in MY  handwriting.  My Mother received the information about the claimed condition of our sewer line from ME over the phone while she was at her sister's house and NOT Mr. Rooter employees on December 25, 2011.  The employees volunteered to come out on Christmas Day and inspect the sewer line, with phone records proving that there were no outgoing calls from our phone lines on December 25, 2011, except from me to my mother to explain the claimed findings.  After explaining to my Mother what Mr. Rooter employees claimed was needed to rectify the issue on December 25, 2011, she gave me permission to enter into contract on her behalf in order to solve the issue of sewage backing up into the basement which was never solved by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh as we backed up for three weeks upon the claimed completion of work.  Mr. Rooter employees did not object to me signing my Mother's name on December 25, 2011 and, therefore, recognized ME as an authorized agent of my Mother to enter into a legally binding contract with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and to make payment in full for services before work began as an authorized user on my Mother's Discover and American Express Credit Cards respectively.

Considering that I signed INVOICE 105738 and its associated paperwork, as my Mother's daughter, I am responsible because I was representing her interests at that timeYes consumers, not very well, obviously, because here I am on her behalf and have mentioned so on the other report and on other forums.  My earlier reports and updates (October-December - http://www.ripoffreport.com/mr-rooter-pittsburgh/plumbing/cranberry-pennsylvania-81d70.htm) with the facts surrounding our experience and my opinions, which I felt were well-supported by the stated facts, contained an emotional flare with the source of the emotion stemming from the negative interactions that took place with the employees of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, then the Mr. Rooter Corporate customer service manager and president, and then back to the president of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh due to the fact he brushed me off and never even bothered to contact his "valued customer" directly.  If you notice online, other similar reports have emotion behind them as well and, honestly, do you expect people who have been taken advantage of not to be hot under the collar?  The great thing about this complaint number is that, within the emails to corporate, the facts are restated about the situation from start to finish and come from the customer, my Mother, without the extra commentary that I added in other online postings which also include my opinion based on my experience and my shared opinions of the situation others have reported online that I have provided links to.  The interactions between Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh employees and us occurred over a 7 day period (12-24-2011 thru 12-30-2011), so of course there are going to be a lot of details - yes, very much like a dissertation!  :-)


As far as me contacting Angie's List about the issue I discovered, Debra, you just agreed that Mr. Beall's businesses did not meet Angie's List eligibility requirements for the Super Service Award.  So, then why would my being thrilled to have a company actually listen and respond to consumers' concerns in a timely fashion be perceived as a problem or presented with a sarcastic undertone?  How Angie's List responded was how I hoped that the employees of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and then later Mr. Beall would respond; however, that never actually happened - even after I had sent the link of my blog to Mr. Beall in an email which was in an appropriate format to support media intended to help describe what happened during our experience with Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh since Mr. Beall was never at our home (legally my Mother's home, but I live there too so it is not completely inaccurate to call it my home or include myself informally in the mention of it) and the blog was the only information that was public at the time, but not well distributed and could be easily altered.  Instead of contacting me as Mr. Beall implied he would in his return email to me, I received a letter from his lawyer that was composed four days after Mr. Beall sent the return email to me claiming that he would address the "issues" before I received the letter from his lawyer warning me not to contact Mr. Beall; thus, Mr. Beall refused to speak to me or even make an effort to contact my mother whose name is on the invoices and who both corporate and Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh along with Mr. Beall continue to state that my Mother is "their customer," despite the fact that it is accurate to state that I was present during the entire process except to go to the bathroom and my Mother can only speak on a few issues presented because she couldn't physically be onsite through the process due to balance issues complicated by a second hip surgery with the instability of the gravel and uneven ground posing a potential danger to her.


As far as Debra's description of her experience with corporate and based on our experience with corporate, I believe that Debra's claims in that regard are probably valid.  The vibe I get online about corporate based on accounts from others is that they don't care about consumers OR their franchisees, but rather only their bottom line.  I have no doubt they probably throw Mr. Beall and other franchisee owners under the bus repeatedly (Violation of the Code of Values for sure right there); however, what doesn't seem to add up though in that equation is that before I posted in permanent public forums such as Rip Off Report and Pissed Consumer, Mr. Beall knew where both I and my mother stood regarding the issue (my mother's expectations were actually much higher than mine, but I asked her to consider a different resolution and presented that resolution to Mr. Beall in the email) because I sent an email that he responded to the same day which was after the time period in which I had spoken with the corporate customer service manager who told me that Mr. Beall was supposed to contact me directly.


Debra, I couldn't understand, as a journalist, why inaccurate information was permitted to remain online for such an extended period of time (inaccurate information in journalism is also a potential risk for a Defamation suit according to what I learned online); however, it is a relief to hear that you are just as concerned about the truth being reported as I am.  As for your reputation, tarnishing it was and is not my intention; however, you are the entity who chose to reply or who was given the authority to do so; therefore, all I expect between any interactions is honest and ethical behavior.  In fact, as far as your writing goes, I find the Mr. Rooter Tips to be well-written and, based on my own research, consistent with what is reported in the plumbing trade.  Also, the format of the website is improved, less cluttered, and more pleasing to the eye.  Debra, your web design skills are very good, actually.  I have to recognize and give you credit for supporting the fact that the BBB Logo and the Angie's List Award should not have been attached to the rooter2.com website.  While you used the BBB Logo for formatting purposes, I am confused as to why you didn't resize any other non-copyrighted icon to take the BBB Logo's place.  So, what I don't understand is that you claim that you used the BBB Logo for formatting purposes for a day or two, but you want me to tell consumers that you didn't post it on the website in public view - there was no disclaimer at the time that stated the website was being edited or under construction.  I'm sorry Debra, but what you are asking me to do doesn't make any sense to me and, ethically, I would be lying to consumers if I made such a statement because, on its face, the statement isn't true.  In speaking with my Mother, we can't seem to understand why the BBB Logo/icon would've remained on the website for not a couple of days, but rather over a week (I'm sure that you have my IP information from even that period because we only have one IP address but multiple computers).  But the important thing is that the Angie's List and BBB icons have been removed from the website and, hopefully, if they are placed on the website in the future it will be because they were earned and that they were legally permitted to be there.  Also, as far as your advertising the Dayton location, I still feel strongly that including Dayton as a most referred area would be premature considering the grand opening isn't until March 1, 2013 so you aren't really there yet technically; however, perhaps mentioning that the business looks forward to becoming the most referred would be a more accurate statement?  I do love the separation of territories, though.  Kudos, for that idea.  


As far as your previous post, Debra, it sounded brash and insensitive to me; however, it might have been better received if you would have used the terminology that you just did in your most recent posts.


Again, the last time that my mother and I were willing to reach out to Mr. Beall, while I was waiting for his availability according to his return email to me on October 18, 2012, I received a letter from his lawyer dated four days later warning me not to contact him.  I would rather Mr. Beall contact us directly to arrange a convenient time to talk, although I realize that right now he is in the process of opening up another territory.  My intention was not and is not to ruin Mr. Beall's reputation or his business in any of the communities he serves or plans to serve.  If you truly read the scope of my online postings, I believe that it is obvious that while I am angry at the situation I am also begging him to do the ethical thing at the same time.  If Mr. Beall is willing to come to the table in an effort to resolve the serious issues that arose during the dates of service with my Mother in an equitable and fair manner, then that action, when completed, would make many if not almost all of my statements of opinion false regarding Mr. Beall's businesses under the Mr. Rooter brand; however, until that happens, my stated opinions remain true and supported by the facts of our personal experience and, indirectly, the reported experiences of others.  I've been challenging Mr. Beall to make my stated opinions false since October 18, 2012.
 
Also, in reference to the court cases Mr. Beall states that he never lost, would Mr. Beall like me to post the 26 PA Court Docket Numbers here or perhaps direct consumers to the other complaint so that they can access a summary of the court docket numbers of the cases brought against Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh in the last 15 years, its local president, and its employees?  Perhaps creating a YouTube video with official copies of the court dockets would save consumers time from looking all 26 dockets up online?  According to the court dockets, 15/26 cases appear to be found for the Plaintiff, with some of the Judgements being Default Judgements for the Plaintiff.  Some of the cases were settled and some of the cases were found in favor of the Defendant (Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Bob Beall, other employees, etc.).  You realize that court dockets are a matter of public record and are accessible online in PA, right?  Currently, there appears to be two active cases between people who I suspect are scorned customers and Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh.  I read through the court dockets thoroughly and the last action that occurred looks like that was the last action for the case - the final judgementAlso, the fact that a portion of the cases were closed also alerted me to the fact that the information provided on the latest date was the final action taken.

As far as the character defamation that is being claimed by Mr. Beall and Mr. Rooter Plumbing via their legal representative, to be considered defamation the statement has to be false and knowingly so.  The character of the business is relevant.  The character of business' owner is relevant, and the character of the employees of the business is relevant, as is the character of the corporate entity.  The character that is being referred to is the claim that the Code of Values is at the center of everything at Mr. Rooter and that all employees are expected to behave in that manner both inside and outside of the business.  The Code of Values defines the character of the business and its employees.  The Code of Values is a set of values with expected behavioral outcomes that we have NEVER been on the opposite end of; however, we would be interested to see what these professed values are supposed to look like when they are implemented according to how I've seen them implemented on Dina Dwyer-Owens' videos that thoroughly explain each one.

Since I have to acquire information to support my legal defense pro se and act as my own lawyer because I can't afford the type of lawyer I need to help me best support my defamation defense, which is the truth, I have had no other choice but to devote time to gathering the evidence I need due to the fact that everything I have documented about our experience and the experiences of others online will be scrutinized.  No, Debra and Mr. Beall, I am not "obsessed," but rather am monitoring and gathering data as necessary, not only to defend my statements of fact but also to defend my statements of opinion should the suit continue to trial, in addition to taking on the role of consumer advocate in order to protect other consumers from being treated in the same manner.  While I am the only customer that has seemingly been this persistent and vocal, perhaps the reason I have been such is because I was directly involved and my handwriting is on an invoice which makes me feel strongly about my ultimate responsibility for introducing my mother to this unfortunate financial disaster and the continuation of a problem that was never remedied and the fact that I have nothing to loose by standing up for the injustice that occurred and continues to remain unresolved.  Not everyone comes forward for many reasons.  Perhaps, consumers fear that the actions taken against me will be taken against them and they have family to support and a roof to keep over their head.  I even have support on this issue locally (family, friends, relatives, and even my medical team believes that I should stand up for what is right!).  Perhaps the online support I appear to be receiving is from other consumers in different market areas that may have friends and relatives who have been burned by a Mr. Rooter Plumbing location.  For the record, Debra, I DO have my story straight and have provided links to back up any statements of fact and why I arrived at my opinion so that consumers can investigate and form opinions for themselves.  The only information that the consumers did not really have from me was my identity.

It is nice to hear that my opinion may be valued by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, however, actions have definitely spoken louder than words with regard to Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh and Mr. Beall demonstrating how my opinions might be valued.  Even Mr. Beall states publicly in his interviews that he takes negatives experiences to improve his business and how he and his business is coming off to members of the community.  Respectfully, Mr. Beall, your employees need retrained.  

With regard to whether the situation has gone past an amicable resolution, what you, Debra, and Mr. Beall don't seem to understand about me is that I understand people make mistakes and I always give people the chance to make things right more times than I should.  I'm the mediator, the nice girl in the familyMy mother, though, not so much and she doesn't see the situation the same way I do.  I even advocate for Mr. Beall as a businessman with her and have advised her to consider Mr. Beall's situation as well.  Why do you think I waited until October 25, 2012, even though work ended on 12-30-2011 and the sewer didn't stop backing up until the sewage authority hyrojetted our line on 1-23-2012, before making our situation a matter of permanent record through a public online forum such as Rip Off Report?  My delay, I believe, shows that my intention was NEVER to put a reputation in danger; however, morally I could not let what happened in our situation happen to someone else without me reiterating our experience and pointing out the themes that we did not notice earlier during the time of service due to being caught up in the panic of sewage backing up into our basement.

Again, I have stated through other mediums that how Mr. Beall reacted to our situation and his effort to find a reasonable and equitable resolution with my mother should send a strong message about his business ethics or his intended business ethics to the community.  

I don't agree with the statement that the customer is always right because they aren't always right.  I don't believe that price should be the only reason to bring up a complaint or that price be the only reason not to consider a contractor.  Other factors should be present like the work not being completed, a breech of contract, a continuation of the problem, a failure to resolve the problem, etc.  I made an effort to resolve issues privately on behalf of my mother because I am the primary source of information before I made them public; however, when you are ignored, then what do you expect a consumer to do and what options do you think the consumer would feel that they had?

Again, I invite Mr. Beall to contact us if he is truly interested in discussing resolution because, due to the letter written to me by his lawyer on 10-22-2012 and that I received on 10-24-2012 warning me to stop bothering Mr. Beall about our dissatisfaction with the failure of his business to rectify the problem AND the defamation suit filed against me on 11-5-2012 and served to me by the Westmoreland County Sheriff on or around 11-19-2012, I have no intention on reaching out because I have already tried and failed and, quite frankly, do not want to be at the brunt of anymore of this unnecessary legal nonsenseIt is Mr. Beall's turn to reach out and it is his response that WE have been waiting for.  

Mr. Beall knows exactly the minimum that we feel would be considered an amicable resolution to right the wrong.  Also, release from the Defamation suit and my being required to adequately represent any of the above efforts should be demanded.  I challenge Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh to diffuse the situation and show consumers that he and his business are committed to implementing the values that are advertised, standing behind the work and decisions of his employees and being responsible if a mistake is made, in addition to being willing to address any issues that arise and/or miscommunication that has occurred in the process.
  

I just simply needed to state that I apologize for the negativity in my rebuttal.  My position is to continue to promote Mr Rooter Pittsburgh Youngstown and Dayton in a positive manner.

We believe the customer is always right and will continue to do everything in our power to maintain a good relationship with the community. 

Mistakes happen and information sometimes gets confused.  We will continue to monitor any and all feedback to ensure that all complaints get addressed as quickly as possible.  Courtesy is and will remain the most important tool in our toolbox.

Sincerely,
Debra Santavicca, PR, SMM, WebIT
Mr Rooter Media Center
Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day
www.rooter2.com
724-553-9510

Greetings!
I wish to express my sincere apologies for Rachel Province (AKA RPM) (AKA Scarlett McScammer). Scarlett? RPM? Rachel?
I am sorry, but it still disturbs me that you will NOT put forth your real identity.

Let me be absolutely clear - regarding the comments that you have been writing regarding my integrity.  And to the consumer that is reading these comments:  I apologize that you have been subject to these rantings from Rachel Province who resides in Greensburg, Pennsylvania - I will refrain from giving you her street address or her mother's street address and phone number.

I have been contracted to write Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day.  I do an excellent job, as a journalist, creating a comprehensive library of useful plumbing tips for the consumer.  I also was asked to create a Website that would offer the consumer information on the services that Mr Rooter Plumbing offers in the Pittsburgh - Youngstown and Dayton areas.

I was given a press release from corporate written by their new Public Relations person and was told to circulate the "news".  I then went about my normal routine of creating a blog post, a press release and then added the information to rooter2.com.  I was contacted shortly after using the press release that was forwarded to me from corporate (Dwyer Group) that this information was not correct.  Rachel, aka; RPM and aka;Scarlett McScammer - is the one who reported this to Angie's List.  She states her "thrill" that Angie's List responded!

Yes, I was bewildered as to how I was given a press release that (after I did some research) appeared to be a "template" Microsoft Word document that the Dwyer Group's representative "plugged in" Bob Beall's information.  She spent 3 minutes updating the document and I can furnish this information if needed.  I was appalled and it was very disconcerting, to say the least!

I immediately contacted the Brand Awareness Enforcement at Angie's List - sent them the information and source of the information that I acted upon in posting the "award".

The details of the investigation and the reason why I had been sent this "announcement" of the award are still unclear to me.  I do not know why I was sent this press release from corporate.  The ball was dropped and I have not pursued it - mostly because I do not believe that I will be satisfied with an appropriate answer from the Dwyer Group.  I can say this for sure!  I will never trust another press release that is sent to me as "news" EVER!

I value my reputation as a journalist.  I went to Geneva College for Secondary English and then went to Slippery Rock University for my communications degree.  I have been working in the newspaper, radio and television genre since 1987.  The last thing I want is to have my reputation destroyed because I do not report the truth.

To the best of my knowledge - I write comprehensive plumbing tips that are gaining popularity and authority on the Internet and I am proud of the writing style and skill that I have to write relevant content and quality articles.

Rachel, I do not understand why you continue to try to tarnish my reputation.  I am not today or ever have been connected to corporate (Dwyer Group).  They do no answer my calls, they do not respond to my emails and I do not see them as a reputable or concerned entity when problems arise with one of their franchise operators.

Mr Beall has been assaulted by you with these postings - and I was asked to respond to you a few months ago - I didn't mean to be interpreted as uninterested in your problem.  I may have been misunderstood when I said that I didn't wish to expound on your explanation of how you were treated by corporate.  As I stated just above - they also treat me with reckless abandonment.  They misspell words on documents we ask to have created, they put wrong phone numbers on documents we ask to have created and most recently sent me that press release which embarrassed me as a journalist - because you are right:  it was not a valid or documented award!

I meant to express to you, Rachel, that I didn't need be redundant about reiterating your dissatisfaction with your experience - it was already posted here at Ripoff Report and anyone could read for themselves your entire, thorough explanation about your experience.  I truly, truly, with integrity, came here to this forum to ask you what we could now do to open up communication and attempt to resolve the situation.  Meaning - Mr Beall asked me to invite you to contact us personally and open up communication!  As I re-read my rebuttal here I do not see how I acted as though I didn't care about your problem.  I stated that I didn't need the include your 2,000 word dissertation regarding your situation.  I was asked to post inviting you to contact us to personally speak to you!  Period!

I am not an expert in this area - resolution!  I am not in an office with a team of loss prevention experts to assist you.  I cannot do anything about your experience with corporate.  I am truly sorry that they treated you with indifference.  I cannot change that.  The only thing that I could do and am still willing to do - although I do not know if it has gone beyond an amicable resolution point or not - my intention was to let you know that Mr Beall was willing to try and resolve your situation.

I wasn't included in any decision to utilize an attorney in this matter.  I simply write the Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day - I have been given certain paragraphs of information to include at the bottom of press releases and I do my best to include statements that are given to me about the company.  I was asked to include this statement when I responded to you:

"Last year, Mr Rooter Plumbing Pittsburgh responded to over 17,500 plumbing emergency service calls and you, Rachel are the only customer that has made it a campaign to try and destroy Bob Beall and my reputation.  Mr Beall also wants me to make the consumer aware that we have never in 15 years of serving the areas of Pittsburgh - Youngstown since last June and Dayton most recently - ever lost in court, either as a plaintiff or as a defendant." ~ Bob Beall

As for the BBB logo you claim that I had used on the rooter2 Website - you are taking things out of context.  So let me put the record straight.  I was adjusting the sidebar area of the new responsive Theme - and had used a block image that fit into the 180 X 212 area in the sidebar.  That image was flattened and in my media library and I liked the way the plumbing surrounded the image.  I used that image in the sidebar for a day or so - and since you are so on top of all of the work that I am doing - you should retract your statements about me using a BBB logo on the site.  The only thing that I can find that would have even given you the ammunition to say that I had used a BBB logo was the tiny representation of that logo within that image with the plumbing that surrounded it -as it also contained credit card logos.  I decided that I didn't like that ad block - which advertised $79 something - and that was not true to our current advertising campaigns.

We are currently using a "Call Our Dad" campaign that uses Mr Beall's adorable children in commercials, billboards and print advertising.  You have probably seen the very creative commercials on KDKA and WPXI.  I am sure you have also seen his great kids on billboards, for I know that we have some in your immediate area - again I will refrain from giving your mother's or your own address for privacy reasons.

I will also say again, that I do believe that I would have been more receptive to your derogatory rantings if you were transparent and forthright in stating who you really were - instead of hiding under the personna of "Scarlett McScammer" and now "RPM".

When you are prepared to come forward and let the visitors to Ripoff Report know that yes, you are in fact Rachel Province and that you are not the actual customer that Mr Beall even dealt with - then perhaps you will improve your own credibility.  My name is Debra Fischer-Santavicca.  My previous married name was Braden.  I currently use the name Santavicca and use the Fischer-Santavicca because I have so many friends from high school on Facebook that I wanted to be able to be found by my birth name.  I was also adopted as a baby and my biological mother was Annamarie Funkhouser from Ellwood City PA.  My father worked at ARMCO Steel and passed away three years ago in January.  My adoptive mother is Marie Conn Fischer and still lives in our family home in Butler.  I am the oldest of 5 children and if there is any other personal information that you would like - please feel free to give me a call.

You will find, Rachel, that I am a very happy person, I love the wonderful talents that God has gifted me and I love the opportunity to write the Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day.  And to the consumer, my intentions are never to mislead you about Mr Beall, his family, how many children he has fostered or how many children he has adopted.  Rachel, this is why I am sure that Mr Beall's attorney has chosen to file a Defamation of Character lawsuit against you.  Because you have strayed from the facts of the unsatisfactory job results - at your mother's home - and have taken this forum and turned it into a personal character assassination forum - that does not represent anything realistic or rewarding for the customers to read.

I would like to also state that I openly invite anyone reading these Ripoff Report comments to feel free to visit www.rooter2.com - contact Mr Beall or myself and we will be glad to offer transparency about our list of satisfied customers as well as customers that were not completely satisfied.  We have a service area of over 3.5 million consumers and I do not think it would ever be realistic to say that every customer we have ever dealt with are 100% satisfied.  We do focus on customer service, we do wish to be the trusted plumber that offers competent quality services of a plumbing nature and we do value your opinion, Rachel, as well.

Again, Mr Beall or myself can do nothing about the way your were treated by calling corporate.  And from what I can surmise from this entire unfortunate situation is that the Dwyer Group threw Mr Beall under the bus after treating you with such disrespect.  They left you hanging without resolution far beyond a reasonable time - and by the time you began addressing your anger in this public forum - Mr Beall was just finding out about the seriousness of your claims.  Get the story straight, Rachel.  Please come forward and admit the entire truth.  That you are in fact, speaking on your mother's behalf and that your anger and infuriated and elevated comments have been fueled by the treatment you received from the Dwyer Group.  Openly state in this specific forum the exact nature of your phone conversation with Bob Beall, including the date, time and specific dialogue between you and Mr Beall when you spoke to him about a resolution concerning your mother's plumbing job.

At this time, Mr Beall does not recall one phone call between the two of you regarding your situation.  And I have never received an email or phone call from you personally, even though I have invited you to do so - which I will still maintain my position - that you refuse to be transparent and forthcoming with your claim.  You have now chosen to attack my integrity and my intentions insinuating that I am using different names and choosing to intentionally mislead visitors to the rooter2 Website.  If you are so offended by the website why do I track your personal IP Address to the site so consistently.  You are obsessed by this and by the activity and traffic and bandwidth you are consuming - are more like a virus than an actual real visitor.  Your activity to the site alerts my virus protection software that your visits should be monitored and reviewed as malicious.

My phone number is on every single Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day.  You can contact me via email:  webmaster@rooter2.com  My personal email address is:  ambassadormedia@comcast.net

I have the power to block your IP Address from accessing Rooter2.  I have thought about doing so - but have chosen to respond to you one more time - and let the visitors to Ripoff Report know that I am not being represented appropriately by your character assassination.  Look me up on Facebook. www.facebook.com/crushedviolets.  I do not hide behind a false personna nor do I blatantly post anything on rooter2 in an attempt to mislead the public, consumer, customer or you, Rachel.

I simply write the Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day and do my best to create personality with the rooter2 Website - I am proud of my work, I enjoy my opportunity and I thank the Lord everyday for the gifts and talents that He bestowed upon me and I pray that my integrity will continue to be well received by the general public.  I invite everyone to take a look at rooter2 for yourself and please take a moment to write a review.  Let me know if there is a plumbing question you would like to see covered in a future tip and I will be sure to get your specific plumbing questions addressed.  In the event that you are cautious about using Mr Rooter Plumbing - feel free to call for a second opinion on your next plumbing repair project.  Remember that not every plumbing need, needs a plumber and that is why Mr Beall is giving back to the community with the expert plumbing tips.  We want the consumer to know that there are many things that the homeowner or business owner can accomplish themselves without calling a plumber.  Plumbing repairs can be costly.

Thank you in advance to all of the readers of Ripoff Report - who are following this post - please let me know that you have been to the Website by leaving a review.  Let the public be the judge as to whether the claims set forth by "RPM", "Scarlett McScammer" are founded to be a realistic representation of the Rooter2 online presence.  And, I also thank you in advance, Rachel, for coming forward in a transparent way and connecting with me personally, either by phone call, leaving a review at our Website or by contacting me via email. :)

Sincerely,
Debra D. Santavicca, PR, SMM, WebIT
Mr Rooter Media Center
Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day
www.rooter2.com
webmaster@rooter2.com
724-553-9510

Like you, Debra D. Santavicca/Debra D. Fischer-Santavicca/Debra D. Braden, I took the time to look you up as well.

In a post dated Wednesday, December 12, 2012, Debra D. Santavicca/Debra D. Fischer-Santavicca/Debra D. Braden, an employee of Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, stated the following:  

"I will follow up with a post comment in about 10 days to keep consumers abreast of your intentions to offer suggestions on how we can diffuse your current opinion of Mr Rooter Plumbing Pittsburgh."

I am not surprised that the employee did not follow through with the actions she told consumers she would execute.  In fact, the employee's actions or lack thereof adequately represent the responsiveness of the Mr. Rooter brand to consumers.  

WWW.ROOTER2.COM is the official website of Mr. Beall's businesses:  Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, Mr. Rooter of Youngstown, and soon Mr. Rooter of Dayton.  Unless Ms. Santavicca/Ms. Braden can provide evidence of her ownership of the web domain rooter2.com, it is unlikely that simply providing a link to the company's official website, which has gone through multiple transformations since then, is a violation of any copyright laws.  

Speaking of www.rooter2.com and copyright laws...

I wonder if Ms. Santavicca/Ms. Braden can provide an explanation to consumers as to why she applied a BBB Accreditation Logo, for a brief time, on www.rooter2.com along with images that represent the payments accepted by Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh even though NONE of Mr. Beall's businesses are BBB Accredited (http://www.bbb.org/youngstown/business-reviews/plumbers/mr-rooter-in-boardman-oh-19000727 and http://www.bbb.org/pittsburgh/business-reviews/plumbers/mr-rooter-of-pittsburgh-in-cranberry-twp-pa-12002891).  

Speaking of www.rooter2.com and copyright laws...

I wonder if Ms. Santavicca/Ms. Braden can provide an explanation to consumers as to why www.rooter2.com had the Angie's List Super Service Award Logo attached to every page within the web domain and the press release attached to multiple pages.  According to the Angie's List Super Service Award eligibility requirements, NONE of Mr. Beall's businesses were eligible to claim or receive the 2012 Super Service Award.  According to Angie's List Super Service Award eligibility requirements at http://support.business.angieslist.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/121/kw/ssa , it states the following:

"Super Service award eligibility is based on the size of the city and how long Angie's List has been there. Angie's List must be established in a city for at least one year, prior to any company being considered for the Angie's List Super Service Award. As our markets grow in each city, in terms of businesses and members, eligibility may change to ensure that less than 5% of businesses are eligible for the award each year. We look to preserve the value and integrity of this award program in order to give businesses the prestige they earn as an industry leader.  

Currently, eligible businesses must:
1.  Obtain a minimum number of reviews (varies by market) in each eligible category during the review period, November 1st of the previous year through October 31st of the current year.
2.  Maintain an A Rating in each of the following areas:
-Overall Grade, which averages all reviews received (3.5 GPA)
-Recent Grade, which averages reviews from the last three years (3.5 GPA)
-Review Period Grade, which averages reviews received since the previous November 1st to October 31st (GPA varies)
*3 - 4 reviews = 3.75
*5 - 7 reviews = 3.67
*8+ reviews = 3.5
3.Must be in good standing with Angie's List"

According to Angie's List, Mr. Rooter of Youngstown would have had to be serving the area from November 1, 2011-October 31, 2012 (Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh does not have the GPA required to claim the reward).  Mr. Rooter of Youngstown was opened in June of 2012 by Mr. Beall according to http://www.prweb.com/releases/youngstown/mrrooter/prweb9626569.htm; hence, Mr. Rooter of Youngstown was only in operation during approximately 4 to 4 1/2 months of the award period of eligibility which was from June 2012-October 2012.  Since none of their locations are eligible for the 2012 Angie's List Super Service Award, the press releases should be removed and the false notification that they were recipients of the award should be removed from all local and corporate websites and social media websites.  Consumers who are part of Angie's List, just remember when you are reviewing the work under Mr. Rooter of Youngstown, look for work that was completed from July 2012 and later.  Consumers who are part of Angie's List, just remember when you are reviewing the work under Mr. Rooter of Dayton, look for work that was completed from March 2013 and later.  Consumers who are part of Angie's List, just remember when you are reviewing the work under Mr. Rooter of Pittsburgh, look for work that was completed from 2001 and later.  

Speaking of www.rooter2.com and deceptive advertising practices...

How can the owner of a plumbing company that hasn't even opened its doors for business in a market area (Dayton, Ohio) yet or that has only had its doors open for approximately 8 months in another market area (Youngstown, Ohio) make the following claim:

"We are the most referred plumbing specialist in the Pittsburgh, Youngstown and Dayton greater areas." (www.rooter2.com)

So, the business is deceiving Dayton Ohio before they even open their doors for service on March 1, 2013?

As consumers, would you consider the above behaviors exhibited by Mr. Rooter Plumbing and its employees to be an example of honest and ethical behavior?  I know that I have not witnessed or observed honest and ethical behavior nor do I believe that I will ever be witness to honest and ethical behavior from the Mr. Rooter brand or their sister companies Rainbow International, Portland Glass (PG), Mr. Electric, Mr. Appliance, Grounds Guys, Aire Serv, and The Grounds Guys.

i'm glad i looked up to see what other people's experiences were with this company before i called them.  this report shows how the employees and the company they work for don't care about consumers. 

another report shows how this same company targets consumers who speak out against unfair business practices.  instead of working with the consumer, what does this company do?  the company files a defamation suit against an indigent consumer for more than $50,000. 

i'm not doing business with a company who exploits consumers by taking their money, not fixing the problem, ignoring them, and then suing them when they speak out publicly about their experience. i will stay away from mr rooter plumbing pittsburgh and countywide plumbing and restoration because the owner of mr rooter plumbing pittsburgh also owns that company.  detestable.

since mr rooter plumbing is a brand of the dwyer group, i will stay away from all of their brands because they turn a blind eye to the unethical behavior of their franchisees.  all the dwyer group cares about is the money their franchisees make for them. 

the employee that responded doesn't give a crap.  she didn't care about why the customer was unhappy.  nice way to represent your company lady.  i live in the area and almost called this company for plumbing service.  good thing i ran across this report and saw how the business responds to complaints.  i'll take my business elsewhere and tell others to stay far away from mr. rooter because if they screw up, they won't make it right! 

Based on the internet research that I have done concerning all available consumer experiences with Mr. Rooter Plumbing, I would never choose to do business with them or any other brands owned by The Dwyer Group in any part of the world.  

The reason that I would not do business with them is because I don't feel it would be safe.  According to all the experiences posted online, all the company seems to do is engage in high pressure and misleading sales tactics, don't complete work according to the contract, and break just about every promise they make to the general public through their advertising.

Let's take a look at customer service, for example.  Mr. Rooter Plumbing claims that the customer's needs are important to them.  However, based on the response above from an employee of Mr. Rooter Plumbing, it is obvious that the customer is not even important enough to take the time to address them with the proper form of their name or for the business to show a genuine interest in the nature of the complaints presented

From what I read concerning the author's experience, the corporation ignored the customer's complaint that they asked for and the local business just recently publicly brushed aside this consumer's complaint as of December 12, 2012.  The only response to the customer that the local Mr. Rooter Plumbing made was to send someone out to the customer's home to sell more products and services that were unnecessary because the problem should've been solved at the completion of the contracted work.

As a consumer, I would be very angry if I had paid money for a company to fix a problem that wasn't fixed and that continued to occurred AFTER the work was claimed to have been completed.  I would have definitely filed a lawsuit against the company and reported them to other appropriate agencies.  What's more is that I would be irate if I was ignored the same way this consumer has been ignored.

I appreciate the author's advice concerning how to protect oneself against being taken advantage of by this business.  I will pass it on.  This information would also be helpful when dealing with other businesses that provide home repair services.  I have copied the valuable information and put it in a safe place.  You never know how you are going to react in an emergency situation.  

I am sorry to hear that the author was taken advantage of in that manner.  From what I read, I highly doubt that this consumer will ever see any resolution.

Due to the questionable acts of the company, I intend on boycotting any company related to Mr. Rooter Plumbing or any of the companies associated with The Dwyer Group.  If they change their practices, only then will I change the opinion that I have about them.  

Based on the internet research that I have done concerning all available consumer experiences with Mr. Rooter Plumbing, I would never choose to do business with them or any other brands owned by The Dwyer Group in any part of the world.  

The reason that I would not do business with them is because I don't feel it would be safe.  According to all the experiences posted online, all the company seems to do is engage in high pressure and misleading sales tactics, don't complete work according to the contract, and break just about every promise they make to the general public through their advertising.

Let's take a look at customer service, for example.  Mr. Rooter Plumbing claims that the customer's needs are important to them.  However, based on the response above from an employee of Mr. Rooter Plumbing, it is obvious that the customer is not even important enough to take the time to address them with the proper form of their name or for the business to show a genuine interest in the nature of the complaints presented.

From what I read concerning the author's experience, the corporation ignored the official complaint it asked for and the local business just recently publicly brushed aside this consumer's complaint as of December 12, 2012.  The only response to the customer that the local Mr. Rooter Plumbing made was to send someone out to the customer's home to sell more products and services that were unnecessary because the problem should've been solved at the completion of the contracted work.  The content of the report clearly states the issues and what resolution the author was seeking.  

As a consumer, I would be VERY angry if I had paid money for a company to fix a problem that wasn't fixed and that continued to occurred AFTER the work was claimed to have been completed.  I would have definitely filed a lawsuit against the company and reported them to other appropriate agencies.  What's more is that I would be irate to be ignored the same way this consumer has been.

I appreciate the author's advice concerning how to protect oneself against being taken advantage of by this business.  I will pass it on.  This information would also be helpful when dealing with other businesses that provide home repair services.  I have copied the valuable information and put it in a safe place.  You never know how you are going to react in an emergency situation.  

I am sorry to hear that the author was taken advantage of in that manner.  From what I read, I highly doubt that this consumer will ever see any resolution.  

Due to the questionable acts of the company, I intend on boycotting any company related to Mr. Rooter Plumbing or any of the companies associated with The Dwyer Group.  If they change their practices, only then will I change my opinion.  

Dear Ms. Santavicca,

First of all, the President of Mr. Rooter Plumbing Corporation, Mary Kennedy Thompson, refused to respond to my written communication which was requested by her.  

Since you are not interested in my "lengthly expose," then it is obvious that you are not interested in my situation at all; therefore, no resolution could logically come about.

You are not an authorized decision-making party in this matter as per your statement:  "however, I would be willing to discuss matters with you to relay to Mr. Beall how we can best offer you resolution."

After a year of being referred to people within the company who have the authorization to make decisions and who have explicitly stated that they can't help me, I have come to the conclusion that it is absolutely futile to deal with anyone at all within the organization, literally, from the ground up.

By the way, no resolution was intended.  Had a resolution been intended, then the President of Mr. Rooter Plumbing Corporation would have mediated such a resolution.

If you do not believe that there will be any viewers, comments, or agreement with my complaint and you don't expect to see any, then why did you feel the need to post?  I believe you posted because the business is threatened by the truth contained within this report.

Suggestions on how the situation could be diffused have already been stated and ignored on ALL levels.  

With regard to your statement about my posting a link to your copyrighted information...FYI, the website listed at the top of this complaint that you claim to own is advertised as Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Pittsburgh's OFFICIAL Website - Information that was requested to create this report.  It is on their invoices, their coupons, their commercials, their Facebook page, etc...IT IS NOT YOURS!  The website listed contains Mr. Rooter's copyrighted information...You organize it.  Within this report there are NO links other than the links that were in the signature section of the President of Mr. Rooter Corporation's email.  None of your articles are being referenced or distributed within the body of this complaint.  By the way, I AM linking to the proper authority.

If you were as knowledgeable with marketing as you claim to be, you would be aware that NOTHING in this report can be altered.  It is the policy of Rip Off Report.  

I suggest that Mr. Beall should reflect on how he operates his business and encourage his employees to provide services in the same manner that is advertised.  



To consumers:  

Don't just consider my experience.  Search for posts from other people who have also had similar experiences.  Should you choose to engage in business transactions with this company or feel that you have no other choice, I recommend taking the following actions:

1.  First, check with your local Municipality regarding any issues with water lines and drain lines.  2.  Document everything with pictures and video in addition to keeping the paperwork between you and the company in a safe place   3.  NEVER sign your rights away on their emergency forms 4.  NEVER pay the full amount up front.  5.  It is cheaper to stay in a hotel than it is to make an "emergency" decision.... 6.  Ask for the employee's Master Plumbers License number and run a check - Considering the prices in their price-book, you should have a Master Plumber evaluating your situation.

Protect Yourself!

Dear Scarlett,
I would like to discuss your claims about Mr Rooter Plumbing Pittsburgh.  Please feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience.  I have taken the time to identify your profile, which does not exist.  It would appear that by non-disclosure of information to identify yourself would indicate to viewers of your complaint that they should disregard your testimony as invalid.

I understand that you are unsatisfied.  I am not interested in your lengthly expose' - however, I would be willing to discuss matters with you to relay to Mr. Beall how we can best offer you resolution.

There will be no resolution until we can speak about the situation with you.

I see there are no viewers, comments, agreement with your claims appearing at the location of this complaint - nor do I expect to see any.

You may contact me between the hours of 11am -4pm, Monday through Friday.

I will follow up with a post comment in about 10 days to keep consumers abreast of your intentions to offer suggestions on how we can diffuse your current opinion of Mr Rooter Plumbing Pittsburgh.

I would like to ask you publicly to stop attaching my copyright tips to your complaints.  I own the work that you are linking to and I do not appreciate you distributing my copyright information.  You have not asked my permission to distribute my articles.  Please stop this practice as of 12/12/2012.  You will need to link your complaints to the proper authority for which you have a descripancy.

I currently monitor my Google Analytics account every 24 hours, as well as my Google Webmaster Tools account, respectively.

Sincerely,
Debra D. Santavicca, PR, SMM, WebIT
Mr Rooter Media Center
Mr Rooter Tip Of The Day
www.rooter2.com
724-553-9510