Getting reimbursed for my electric bill?

Question

I just bought a manufactured home (same as a mobile home I think?), and the people who sold it to us said that they would give us a 90 day warranty on the heating and cooling. The day I moved in, I discovered the AC wasn't working right, the thermostat read over 100 degrees inside the house. The people who sold it to us said they would send HVAC guys to check it out.

It turned out that the heating was running at the same time as the cooling, so they disabled the heating for the meantime, and will have to come back to fix it. It took them two weeks to do this, but at least things finally cooled down.

Well the next day after they came, I was sitting on my porch, and I noticed cold air coming from underneath. One of the neighbors looked around and said there was an open duct under the house, and the HVAC people need to come back and fix it, otherwise my electric bill will be outrageously high. They came by the next day and said I just needed new filters, and I don't even think they looked under the house to see the open ducts.

I called the people to tell them what was going on, and that they have to send the HVAC company back out to fix it. So far no one has come back to fix things. I got my electric bill today and it was $600! My neighbors have the same type of home as me and they only pay $200, $300 maximum. It shouldn't take these HVAC people a month to fix an open duct!

I refuse to pay the electric bill in full. I did my part by calling and telling them the problem, and they never fixed it. I was persistent in calling the people who sold me the house, since they are responsible for paying the HVAC people. Who should pay the electric bill?

Answer 1

I would  go after the company that sold you the home. I would pay my lawyer $600 to make the company pay for the differance in my power bill. They wanted to sell you a home...they wanted your sale...the salesperson wanted there commission....and they got it. Now all you want is the service they promised you.

Answer 2

You are responsible or the electric bill.  Once it's paid, you can try to get reimbursed by the HVAC company but if you don't pay the electric bill, the power will be turned off.

Answer 3

You will have to pay the bill or the electric company will turn off your power. You'll need to sue the person that sold you the home as the HVAC people were their agents. They might then sue the HVAC company, but you can't sue the HVAC company as you never hired them.