Gas Line Repair Puts Homeowner at Risk of Economic Shock
Shannon, a Southern California Gas customer, was at risk of economic shock when learned she had a problem with her gas service line. Service was temporarily discontinued to her home after a leak was detected.
“The gas company could detect that there was extra gas being used,” Shannon said.
An Unexpected Repair is an Unexpected Expense
Without gas service, Shannon was unable to enjoy many of her home’s basic necessities in the interest of health and safety. Returning service would cost thousands of dollars, putting her at risk of economic shock.
Shannon’s situation isn’t unusual – more than 50 percent of American homeowners needed a home systems repair over a 12-month period, according to the Winter 2019 edition of HomeServe’s Biannual State of the Home survey. These situations can cause economic shock, a large and unexpected expense that negatively impacts a household.
Economic shock is even more common than emergency home repairs, with 60 percent of U.S. households having experienced economic shock, such as emergency home repairs, within a year, according to The Pew Trusts. Unfortunately, more than a third of homeowners have $500 or less set aside for home repairs.
A repair like the one Shannon needed could cost, on average, $20 to $30 per foot, but up to $75 per foot, depending on the work done. Luckily for Shannon, SoCal Gas had partnered with HomeServe, a leading provider of home repair solutions, and Shannon had enrolled in HomeServe’s service line protection program.
HomeServe Offers a Solution
“When we found out there was a problem and the gas was turned off, we called HomeServe,” Shannon said. “They contacted a plumbing company to come out and determine the problem.”
HomeServe dispatched a licensed and insured network plumber, Frassica Inc., to Shannon’s home. The line was old and deteriorated – dating to the late 1960s when the home was constructed – and needed replaced from house to meter.
“[HomeServe] does whatever they can to make sure the customer’s necessities are met,” John, a Frassica technician, said. “HomeServe goes above and beyond to do what needs to be done; the best warranty company that you could work for.”
The job included extensive concrete work and 250 feet of trenching, which would have cost $10,000 to $15,000, a substantial economic shock.
Save Money and Worry With a Policy
“With HomeServe, they are saving a tremendous amount of money,” Ken McCarthy, Frassica owner, said. “We’ve had to cut multiple sections of concrete and dig trenches. Some people couldn’t afford to pay for this, but that’s the value of HomeServe. For a nominal monthly fee, they’re covered when projects like this come up, and they get good value.
“These types of plumbing failures happen. I own a plumbing company, and I also have a HomeServe policy. Anyone who is a homeowner has experienced plumbing failures or will.”
Shannon knew the job would be large but didn’t realize the extent of the work.
“It was a much bigger job than we anticipated, but there was no out-of-pocket [costs],” she said. “The entire repair is being covered by HomeServe.”
Shannon was happy to have service returned, free of the worry of economic shock.
“I’m very satisfied with HomeServe,” she said. “I would absolutely recommend this type of warranty because you truly don’t know when something is going to go wrong. They came through for us and saved us a lot of money.”
