SILVIS, Illinois – Silvis homeowner, Katrina Pettit, says she’s been waiting for a Geneseo company to come fix her furnace for weeks.
Pettit moved into her home four months ago. She knew when she bought it there could be a problem with the furnace, which is why she purchased a home warranty plan with American Home Shield. They contract with JK Plumbing and Heating in Geneseo and after little communication she feels left alone.
Buying your first home is supposed to be exciting, but for Pettit it’s been the complete opposite. She bought her house knowing the 20-year-old furnace wasn’t in the best of shape.
When she bought her home, her realtor advised her to buy home warranty to save some money.
Pettit purchased a warranty plan with American Home Shield and when her furnace stopped working a month ago, AHS called JK Plumbing and Heating.
“He came on October 1st to check on my furnace,” Pettit recalls.
She says he didn’t fix the problem that time and told Pettit he would put in a work order. Since then, Pettit has been warming up her home with space heaters. She says the contractor came one more time two weeks later.
“He came, he was here for maybe 15 minutes, and said that I needed another part,” Pettit says. “He was going to run to the store he’d be back in 15 minutes and he never came back. I never heard from him since.”
Ronald Keegan, Pettit’s stepdad, has been with her every step of the home buying experience and says he encouraged her to own a home.
“I feel like I let her down,” Keegan comments, he's more upset with how American Home Shield picks their contractors. “They scrape the bottom of the barrel, which they clearly did in this case."
Friday morning, Pettit got some closure on a call with AHS and the contractor through JK Plumbing and Heating.
“How soon can we get someone there to put the board there?” the AHS representative asked the JK Plumbing and Heating employee.
“I will have someone there at 2,” he replied.
Keegan doesn’t have any confidence they’ll show.
“I’m 75% sure it won’t happen, just from what I’ve been reading – he’s been known for it,” Keegan comments.
Pettit says a different contractor showed up two hours later than they originally said. AHS says the contractors have repaired the furnace.
In a statement to News 8, AHS says the contractor who first came to Pettit’s home tried calling her yesterday to finish the repairs, but there was no answer. Pettit says she never got that call. AHS also says the contractor has worked with them before and has positive reviews from customers.