So long story short, I had to request a claim for service under my home warranty company who I will leave as anonymous for now. I requested they fix my AC unit which is not blowing cold air anymore. My residence is a multi unit condominium residence similar to apartments and the building has two stories. All the AC units are located on the roof of the building and all other AC technicians in the past have had no problem getting up and servicing my HVAC unit provided they came prepared and brought their own ladders to reach the roof.
My home warranty company is denying service because the technician they sent over didn’t bring a ladder and He/they said that according to California building codes, a building that is over 15 feet needs to have a permanently attached ladder fixed to the building. So because of what the technician said, the home warranty company is saying that it is not covered because of “missing parts”. However missing parts has to do with the actual cooling system however they are vaguely using this term in regards to my building not having a ladder on site. They took my service fee of $125 and are not willing to render service and are not willing to refund the money either!
Honestly, I believe the technician is a crook and a liar and what does he care? He’s already been paid. Just took my money and ran.
I asked them to provide me with the California building code that backs up what they are saying however they said the technician did not provide the code number, just phrased it to them.
I ain’t buying it! Not one bit.
I did some digging around and found nothing that says there must be a ladder installed on 15 foot homes/buildings or taller in California. I even found this article from the California Department of Industrial Relations website titled: §3277. Fixed Ladders. Click here to link.
I read the entire thing line by line and no where does it make any reference to a ladder needing to be installed on a building 15 ft or taller.
I need your help!
If you guys can provide any info and advice on how to fight this uphill battle, it would be greatly appreciated. I will try to show them the California Code mentioned above but I am at their mercy at the moment. I am hoping they are willing to work with me and provide the service I paid for and not get an attorney involved and be forced to file a suit. I just hope it doesn’t get to that point.
Look on Youtube for how to test/replace dual start capacitor. $15 Dollar part and be done with it.
“(c) Access shall be provided to all equipment and appliances except those located on roofs of dwellings and their accessory buildings. Note:For mobile vehicles and equipment, see Section 3210(b), Exception No. 9.”
https://www.dir.ca.gov/title8/3270.html
You live there, right? Sounds to me like it’s a dwelling, so the contractor needs to provide his own access.
Thanks
could be OSHA rules and not building code.
As an HVAC installer, OSHA code would dictate the placement of the techs ladder as well as required fall protection due to being more than 15 ft off the ground, not site access (definitely more of a building code thing if true) . However, all of that is his problem, as it is his duty to work safely. Sounds like a scam to me