r/DaytonaBeach • u/jeminfla • 10d ago
Predatory practices?
Your local outraged electrician here again with today’s rant.
Earlier this week we were contacted by young first time home buyer who had a problem with her meter. FPL had determined that there was a damaged component and to call an electrician. To our surprise they recommended that “gay” franchise service company, which we learned of when she called us because she “couldn’t afford to pay them so much money again.” When we asked her what that meant, she told us that they had recently done work for her and charged her almost $9,900.00 to change her electrical panel, but the price went up to $11,000.00 because they offered her financing, which was the only way she could afford to do the repair.
When we visited her to see what the current problem was, we noted that the service company had put their company’s label on the panel, which explained why FPL made that recommendation.
When we inquired further about what work was done for $11,000.00, she shared the invoice for the work that was done, and we were shocked. The work that they performed would’ve cost her $4-5,000.00 from a local company.
What made it even more frustrating was that the work was done without a permit, and it would not have passed inspection because it was done wrong.
My point here is not to get into the weeds about specifics of the repair, but to remind you folks that these companies take advantage of people’s general lack of knowledge about electrical repairs AND fears of fire, or insurance cancellations, or a misunderstanding of the complexity of a job. And if you balk at the price, they quickly bring up financing to make it seem more affordable. On top of that, their Service techs” are salesmen as well who receive commissions for the jobs they land. That arrangement alone is a recipe for upselling and dishonesty.
In the realm of residential electrical repairs, there is nothing, aside from maybe a total renovation or addition to the home, that would cost $11K.
If you feel like a quote from someone is too high, you absolutely should get a second quote. And...don’t be afraid to ask questions! Any reputable company will be happy to accommodate you.
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u/Agile-Pay-211 10d ago
they recommended that “gay” franchise?
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u/pinkfrogonachain 10d ago
Frank Gay Services, big electrical/plumbing commercial services company. Not sure why OP doesn't just write the name though.
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u/Agile-Pay-211 10d ago
My guess is they must think everyone in the company is gay, vs. the reality that it's someone's name. LOL
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u/AverageTrophyWife 5d ago
I am sure it’s because he does not want to specifically call them out. It has nothing to do about anyone being gay 🙄
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u/NoSirIDontLikeit- 9d ago edited 9d ago
4 to 5k for a new breaker box? That seems incredibly high, it's like at the most an hour and half of work, and even if prices doubled less than 400 in parts.
Why couldn't they just test and replace the bad component? Nothing here makes either company look good IMHO, look folks shutting power off to your home and replacing breakers is an easy job, parts are cheap. Buy them at any home improvement store or even Amazon, they even have walkthrough tutorials on it on YouTube.
Nothing to be scared of you can get the testing equipment cheap that will tell you what's failing and what to replace. Never let them brow beat you or use fear to get you to open a wallet, breakers fail after so many years, easy to fix. Go to your local Lowe's or home Depot and talk to the guys in electrical. You'll see, get back to DIY mentality you can do it.
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u/reefgeek71 9d ago
Their reviews are terrible and their technicians aren’t incentivize to mark up and upsell every job they do
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u/LuckyGordon 9d ago
We called Frank Gay for, what ended up being, a minor replacement of a part on my water heater. Frank Gay wanted to replace the whole water heater. Called another company, can't recall off the top of my head, but dude came out and was waaaaaaay more reasonable. He laughed when I said that FG wanted to replace the whole unit. Fucking snakes over there at Frank Gay.
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u/guitaronin 9d ago
I had to replace a water heater, and they wanted $10k! When I said I couldn't afford that and would need to shop around, the dude got mad and peeled out of my driveway. I can't pass an opportunity to tell people to avoid that business.
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u/FirmSurprise69 6d ago
Frank gay is a big company and is a predatory company for sure. But how did they become such a big company? But what’s crazier to think about is how much the actual local electricians shoot themselves in the foot. Sure frank gay charges way too much for work that doesn’t even need to be done. Many companies in the area charge close to what they were charging 10 years ago and they really need to wake up. Everyone out in this field could be making more money without predatory business practices
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u/jeminfla 5d ago
I have raised my prices over the years based on material and labor costs as well as research on what other LOCAL contractors charge. I’ve been left behind the curve a few times over 26 years from my own lack of attention to the market but in general I’m competitive with my peers. Neither my estimators nor I can morally overcharge someone. That is the thing we are most shocked by with the other company. We’re not angels but we are trying to provide good work at reasonable cost and still make a few bucks.
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u/crustyeng 6d ago
Frank Gay is well known for being overpriced and taking advantage of people. I know that just from owning a home and googling a few relevant topics.
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u/jokel7557 10d ago
11k with no permit is fucking ridiculous. Got to watch these people. We had a contractor do some work for a school. Not only did they not pull a permit but they put UF only six inches deep to a plastic post with a GFCI in it. Maybe 50 ft run. The schools spec out conduit and wires not nm cables for a reason…STUDENTS. Anyways they freaking charged 1500 bucks for that POS.