Nice floor plans, poor warranty
The floor plans are nice and the construction is "okay". Things were going well until we encountered an issue which WARRANTY tried to get out of fixing or compensating for in a very unprofessional and disrespectful way!! We spent 600K on this property and expected better customer service! Here's what happened:
There was no return-air flow in our master bedroom. We reported this to the warranty service. After inspection, they said that they do not know what is causing this issue, but a booster fan should fix it. I was not happy with the proposed solution as I believed before implementing a band-aid fix, they need to get to the bottom of the reason for the lack of airflow. I was told that I can hire a licensed inspector to see if they figure anything out, and that Urbandale will cover the costs. I did hire an inspector, but he couldn't identify the issue. Here's where things got very unprofessional from Urbandale's side:
- Urbandale, despite initially telling me that they would cover the costs, said they will not cover the costs!
- I sent an angry email to the manager
- They said, okay we will send you a cheque
- They sent me a cheque, but in a very cheeky way, in the letter accompanying the cheque, it says that the home owner will have no further claims
- My feeling/understanding is that they are trying to not let me ask for further repairs for the actual airflow problem with this statement!
- I have not yet cashed the cheque, waiting to see if the airflow issue will be fixed!
As for the actual airflow problem:
- Urbandale said the only solution they can come up with is to install a booster fan!!
- My issue is that the fan will be an extra appliance that will be ALWAYS ON, which will add to my hydro bill. Also, it will need repairs and maintenance. Since this issue is clearly due to either a design flaw or a construction flaw, I believe Urbandale should cover those costs. Urbandale says that it won't!!! In one email, they said that their homes are based on code with respect to airflow, even without the return airflow in the master bedroom!!! You can imagine my frustration and the flaw with this logic.
The booster fan has since been installed, but the problem persists - still no airflow!!
- Approximate cost of services:
- $600.00
- Company Response
Thank you for reaching out to us. We would kindly ask that for any warranty related items to please contact our Warranty Department at warranty@urbandale.com.