Are Technicians told to find a problem even when there isn't one?

[Anonymous]

Are techs told to find a problem or insist a repair is needed even when it isn't? We are just entering June and between mine, parents, sibs and friends homes ranging from new builds to several decades old, but well maintained, we are already in tech insistence/upsell fatigue.
I'm not talking about those companies that once Memorial Day passes they go door to door to try and sell you a new roof/ siding/ gutters/ windows/ water heater etc. (all of which we have replaced in the past 5 or so years because we knew it needed to be done, not because someone left a tag on our door or mailbox or approached us at a big box store, so we send those salespeople packing or in 1 or 2 cases, running).
I'm talking about when you have to get something serviced in your home and the bill is say under $750, yet upon further inspection the tech insists there is a bigger, urgent issue unbeknownst to the homeowner that they insist needs to be fixed asap to the tune of 5-10-15k.
Every house in the dmv cannot need new pipes, a new chimney, a state of the art water softener or addition to their existing one that is only a few years old, new ducts, duct cleaning or flushing or scouring or whatever, a new or updated this and that, and they are not giving companies 5-10-15k to do the work!
Is this a standard, yet seemingly shady practice? Find a problem and say or do whatever you have to say from lowering the price or inventing discounts to make the homeowner think they are getting a deal to scaring the bejeebus out of a homeowner trying to convince them that their house will collapse if they don't get a service done just to get $$$$?

[Anonymous]

Congratulations, you discovered the free market. Create a problem and sell a solution.

[Anonymous]

Yes many companies do this. The technician gets a commission if he/she upsells something. A friend's son just recently started working as an HVAC tech for a large chain. She told us he had been trained to upsell.

Recently, we had an HVAC tech that came recommended to us to repair our air conditioner. When he was working in our home, he told me that his previous company really pressured him to upsell services and he felt like he was stealing from people when he sold them something they didn't need. He couldn't in good conscience do that anymore and decided to go into business for himself.

[Anonymous]

I think franchises do. They are told to sell sell sell. Use a privately owned business.

[Anonymous]

Only when its off warranty.

[Anonymous]

If there is a financial incentive to do something, you can be assured that it will happen.

Behavior follows incentives.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes many companies do this. The technician gets a commission if he/she upsells something. A friend's son just recently started working as an HVAC tech for a large chain. She told us he had been trained to upsell.

Recently, we had an HVAC tech that came recommended to us to repair our air conditioner. When he was working in our home, he told me that his previous company really pressured him to upsell services and he felt like he was stealing from people when he sold them something they didn't need. He couldn't in good conscience do that anymore and decided to go into business for himself.

Interesting, this explains why they suggested we get a new system instead of a relatively expensive repair on pretty new system. We switched to an independent guy who said we definitely don't need a new unit. He fixed it and it's been working fine for years since.

I had assumed they were just afraid of a cascade of expensive repairs themselves so they'd replace it like a lot of people do with cars and told me to do the same.

[Anonymous]

Yes. All those $99 HVAC tune up specials are really just a foot in the door for a sale.

[Anonymous]

HVAC companies are being bought out by private equity who aggressively use (and incentivize) these tactics. We only use locally owned firms now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. All those $99 HVAC tune up specials are really just a foot in the door for a sale.

+1

[Anonymous]

Yes, and all those "codes" the cities requires, often help these unscrupulous contractors. They work together to scam the public.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:HVAC companies are being bought out by private equity who aggressively use (and incentivize) these tactics. We only use locally owned firms now.

This. And when the locally owned firms get bought out, then it is time to switch companies. Same concept exists with plumbing and electrical, btw.

[Anonymous]

All the time. HVAC companywanted me to upgrade our entire HVAC system coz of "problems" which in hindsight I am now 100% sure they created - we called another locally run family owned company and turns out.... we just had to replace our ecobee.

[Anonymous]

They all try upselling. Eg UV filter for air.