Suburban Woman Says Warranty Company Refused To Fix Dangerous Botched Repair

CHICAGO (CBS) – A south suburban woman says a botched repair call left her family in danger when she had heating and cooling pipes newly installed.

Fed up with a lack of response with the company she blames, Shameka Levy turned to CBS 2. And she's not alone in her complaints against Home Warranty of America, a popular warranty firm.

Every time Levy opens her laundry door, it bumps into the newly installed pipes.

"I need to be very careful of these pipes, anyone hitting these doors," Levy said.

Those pipes include the aluminum pipes venting deadly odorless carbon monoxide gas from the furnace.

Levy says her biggest fear is "that if somebody come in and hit this real hard I am going to have a carbon monoxide leak … It could be deadly, very deadly, and that's what I'm worried about."

A mother of two, Levy paid $700 annually to have Home Warranty of America Service her household systems. Their contractor installed the heating and cooling upgrade resulting in the frustrating tangle of pipes.

David Meter, from South Suburban Heating and Air Conditioning, gave CBS 2 an independent opinion.

"This can break if this door continues to hit it," he said. "I would think over time it could cause a problem. So does this seem safe? No."

After Levy complained, Home Warranty of America offered to send the first contractor back to fix the problem, but Levy wanted someone who could do the job right.

"And they told me because I didn't want him back here basically, that they're not responsible," she said.

Home Warranty of America has a poor record with the Better Business Bureau for refusing to honor consumer warranties and not being responsive to customer claims. This only adds to Levy's concerns.

"I am having restless nights" she said.

Late Thursday afternoon, Home Warranty of America responded to our calls. They are now working with Levy on a resolution. She tells us they offered to repairs her system and that they are working on a possible refund of her last four years of service.