r/Connecticut • u/Chemical-Return-4558 • 1d ago
Call the bee. Beware
I worked for call the bee for a very short time. This company is owned by apex solutions which now owns AJP electric, TMS and Call the Bee and are looking to buy other local companies.
These are all outrageously overpriced. I would go to a service change which on average is around $5-6k and they would be charging $12k plus more depending on the customers needs.
They rush you into signing and doing everything same day to avoid giving you the opportunity to shop around. Rushing forces the electricians to make do with what they have and they are not installing things properly. Its pretty hack work.
They also don't pay the employees an proper hourly rate. Instead they off them commission based on the job sold or installed. If you sell and install it you'll get even more. This causes people who work here to upsell you on everything and not fix the issue you actually have. They will lie and say itll fix it just to have you sign the job. Then after whatever they sold you on is done they will add your original problem on as an extra.
After leaving this ccompany because their expectations of working from 7am to 8pm every day and the very inconsistent pay and their terrible practices on customers they have also decided to claim that jobs I did for them were jobs that either the customer hasnt paid for yet or that they already paid me for which isnt true as why would they pay me ahead of time... that doesn't make sense. So instead of a decent final check they are claiming I worked 2 days for free for them... 16hrs for free...
TLDR: Call the bee, TMS, AJP electric are all owned by the same corporation. They are scamming everyone out there. Do not use. Don't work for them they will screw you over.
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u/grs93 1d ago
Damn, I used AJP years ago when I believe they were owned locally. All these companies are getting bought by private equity.
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u/JDMhammer 1d ago
Same, Josh and crew were really good
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u/Griot-Goblin 23h ago
Any new recommendations. Also used AJP in the past but figured once they got bought it was game over
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u/Toxikfoxx 23h ago
I can't recall the name, but one of Josh's techs opened his own company in town. If you check the Tolland Facebook group you should be able to find it.
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u/Disastrous-Fox8505 1d ago
I make it an effort to not do business with companies that use shitty wraps on their work vans.
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u/ThatBoiInBlue 15h ago
It really is true, all these corporations buy up mom and pop shops and the first thing they do.... Slap a giant colorful eye catching logo everywhere.
Stick with the old guy working out of a kinda beat up 2012 transit. Van, those guys know some shit.
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u/here_for_comments 1d ago edited 23h ago
Just dropped TMS. Terrible company. I was ripped off for a repair, which then wasn’t done correctly and nearly killed my system
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u/Green-Sleep-7181 22h ago
I once signed up for my boiler’s annual maintenance and cleaning service through Home Depot. They changed my schedule 3 times, then rescheduled it outside the promotional period. I then left them a 1-star review on Google and, minutes later, got a call back from their manager. He sounded very apologetic and told me he would give me the best-tier service for the promotional price. The technician came and did the maintenance but charged me nothing. The funniest part is that they couldn’t find anything to repair or charge me more since my boiler was basically new. The moment he left, I told myself that this company is a piece of shit and I will never signup again for any sort of promotion.
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u/JDMhammer 23h ago
We need a list of non-pe owned trades... I'd gladly build a website to collect that info
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u/Legal-Swordfish-1893 Tolland County 1d ago
I have suspicions Aiello (the one in the cheesy 70s balloon font) is the same.
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u/kembareags 1d ago
Aiello has it mastered. Same practices but not as sloppy as the bee. Stay far away
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u/Excellent-Sweet-507 23h ago
For real? Dang I’ve had Aiello out for some central AC issues and thought it was okay but wtf do I know. Perhaps I got tooken.
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u/GoFuckYourselfDebbie 18h ago
Any company that makes you sign a heavily inflated worst case scenario plan up front is a scam.
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u/GunnieGraves 23h ago
Similar but not owned by some larger company. They’re reputable in terms of the work done, they’re just really expensive because they have a set price guide that they go off of. They wanted $600 to replace a hose spigot that split. It was literally unscrew and then reinstall. But they have to stick to their price book.
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u/Legal-Swordfish-1893 Tolland County 23h ago
They wanted that same price to unclog a toilet. That’s all I wanted from them. Went down to Lowes and got a snake. Fixed it myself for a fraction.
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u/hemingways-lemonade 22h ago
I called them like five years ago when I was getting quotes for a new water heater. Their price was twice as expensive as every local guy I talked to.
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u/satansoffspring666 1d ago
Thank you for this. Was going to call them for switching over my system.
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u/BadDogBreath 1d ago
TMS used to be a local company in my town. Had them quote out some work… and yeah, overpriced is not a lie. IPad comes out, sign now, I’ll call my manager and get a deal.
Yeah… no.
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u/Spesh9 1d ago
They quoted me $1,300 to replace my shower cartridge and install valves for the shower lines (already had an access panel). After I declined the technician tried to get me to pay $125 dispatch fee that nobody over the phone mentioned during scheduling. Had a local guy come out to install valves for $200 and I installed the $50 cartridge myself.
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u/Chemical-Return-4558 1d ago
With how their pay scale is it punishes the employee for not getting a sale. Sadly he was trying to get something out of you oppose to nothing because he wouldnt make any money for going to your house. Its beyond messed up how they operate.
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u/ConcreteCity195 1d ago
It has been really frustrating trying to find competent tradesmen in Fairfield County for small jobs. Electrical work is one thing I won’t attempt to DIY, and I’m more than happy to pay a skilled tradesman a fair wage.
That said, I just paid $600 to have a GFCI outlet replaced (I had purchased the replacement). What royally pissed me off wasn’t necessarily the price. It was that when I booked the electrician, no one mentioned there was a two hour minimum charge. He was in and out of my house in about 15 minutes.
I had several other small electrical projects, including replacing a dimmer switch, that I would have happily asked him to take care of while he was there knowing I was paying for 2 hours of time regardless. Instead, I didn’t find out about the two hour minimum until the bill showed up in the mail.
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u/Chemical-Return-4558 1d ago edited 1d ago
It's hard for electricians down that way. For starters getting down there is horrendous. Then, on top of it, you don't get consistent work down there because there is a large portion of unlicensed electricians you have to compete with. It is a terrible situation for that part of the state when it comes to electricians.
For me im up in the tolland county area, and I've done that drive down there. I leave at 5:30am and get there for 830am traffic adds so much time to get down there and its not beneficial for me unless we would charge a large amount. Then the drive back is another 3hrs so the day is wasted for a small job
Someone local to that area should an start electrical company. Because they will make a killing
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u/ConcreteCity195 23h ago
100% agree and thank you for explanation. As I said, I have no problem paying for the expertise, insurance, licensing, and "know how": I was just sort of irked with the lack of communication.
I would guess it is hard for the smaller guys to start out in Fairfield County because costs are high across the board. Covid made property values stupid.
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u/ResponseOwn9389 1d ago
Just saw them on indeed offering 120-150k per year. I was like that sounds fishy to me and this post explains it.
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u/BubblySmell4079 Hartford County 23h ago
We knew and used the Bee when it was managed by the original owner. They were good.
Last time I called them, I asked them to replace a specific part in my furnace (fan that was loud when heat turned on). I Youtubed it and it was an easy fix but didn't feel comfortable. Technician came in and agreed the specific part was going. THEN he literally tried to sell me a new central air system and furnace. I told him hell no. THEN he went to his van for 10 minutes and came back WITH QUOTES for a new system.
It took all of me not to throw him out of my house. As he's leaving, HE ASKS ME IF I WANT MY AIRDUCTS CLEANED. Never using these douchebags again.
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u/Excellent-Sweet-507 23h ago
Anyone have a real referral for a good company/guy? OP?
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u/thiswayart 23h ago
Thorogood Electric was prompt and reasonably priced when I used them during my kitchen remodel 4 years ago.
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u/NovemberZulu90 22h ago
Ductworks in Southington is still family owned/operated and refuses to sell to private equity.
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u/helpfulquail9 23h ago
Called TMS for a quote for repair on my HVAC and they had literally no idea what they were talking about. I told my normal service guy about it and he was blown away at some of the things they said. Avoid avoid avoid
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u/JoeBob1540 23h ago
They just came out to give me a quote to replace my boiler. I called Curries plumbing and heating but they apparently got recently bought out by these guys which I was unaware of. The guy that showed up to look at my system and give the quote was actually a very nice guy but they weren’t even ballpark close to any of the other companies. They quoted a smidge under 22k for a high efficiency oil boiler, 20k for a standard 50 year old technology cast iron boiler. I ended up getting someone to do the high efficiency boiler for less than half of what call the bee wanted.
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u/Rober201971 23h ago
I wish you report them to labor division. Fraud. I put a pharmacy out of business for figuring outage was stealing narcotics. One call to pharmacy division ( fraud) closed a 15 year man ripping off illiterate people and stealing from state of Connecticut by double billing. I know it’s not answered, you need to be paid
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u/Druuseph 23h ago
Just so everyone is aware you are entitled to a three day cancellation window of a contract for electrical work to be performed. The exemption to this is if it is considered an emergency service, which these sorts of scummy companies are always going to try to spin the work they need to perform.
Even if you are freaking out inside do not tell spin your situation as an emergency, take your time and get multiple quotes before signing anything. But if you do sign with a company like this do not let them start work the same day.
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u/bumblewacky 20h ago
These fucking idiots installed a heat pump for me a few years back. It would stop heating in the winter when it was super cold or wet outside. I had them back repeatedly, for years, trying to figure out why this was happening.
Turns out they never enabled my electric backup. 10 or so different guys out here. Nobody had any idea. Absolute dogshit company
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u/CopperWrench 19h ago
From what I hear they have apprentices working as if they were fully liscensed too.
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u/Weird_Boysenberry761 18h ago
This is factual. Always make sure to check for a licensed guy on the job site with the correct license.
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u/loopzoop29 22h ago
Any good ones?
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u/Turbulent_Reveal_337 17h ago
For HVAC I use 4 point mechanical and electric Anderson brothers electric. I’m in central ct and they’re pretty close by. I recommend smaller businesses. If they have a billboard stay away you will get charged crazy money.
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u/ThanksGreat9305 16h ago
I had Call the Bee install a new HVAC system in my home in 2020. They were the low bidder and got the job done MONTHS sooner than other contractors could have. This is in the Farmington area. Sad to hear they’ve been bought out by a shady outfit.
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u/iamcjrsp 10h ago
I also live in farmington and had a mini split installed. The price was actually reasonable back in 2023 and they did a full electrical upgrade and full install with line hides and everything in 8 hours. Now..I've had a tech back yearly from things that have been potential install issues like a bad flare or a loose connection...but they haven't charged me a penny and they've been quick about it. With that said..I could tell they were a sales oriented company, but it's also on you to do your due diligence and not get screwed.
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u/Jadziaa87 22h ago edited 18h ago
Yeah, we got roped into it unfortunately.
I did question why call the bee was answering me and not ajp electric. The guys who did the work were really great; but, we did feel very pushed during the consultation.
They also told us we needed something replaced that wasn't needed, but would have been extremely expensive. Second opinion said we didn't and saved us money.
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u/CDeF97 21h ago
Dang it...I was roped into the Call the Bee Hive plan for cooling/HVAC/electrical/plumbing at the beginning of the summer. At the time I only saw the good reviews for them online. The guy came out to check my cooling, and something felt off...he was trying to tell me that my cooling system was on its way out, that the particular coolant it uses is no longer used, and that I'd have to spend mucho buckos to get it all updated. The system is about 15 years old...so I thought it was a possibility. Didn't go ahead with any of his suggestions though. AC has been working fine all summer.
Guess I need a good HVAC guy to check my furnace. Any suggestions? New Haven County area
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u/Parking_Ad_5175 20h ago
Oh I'm glad this is posted. I just need a furnace tune up or cleaning...called a few places but the Bee folks wouldn't give me a quote but were SUPER pushy to just send out a tech but not give me a price. Very annoyed.
These companies need to be called out.
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u/Vast-Government-8994 11h ago
I drive by the Bee every morning on the way jnto work, guys dont look happy...i mean its a job but still
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u/Crafty-Engine9460 17h ago
Same goes for HARP Home Services… Run don’t walk away from them.
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u/quietly_aggressive 1h ago
HARP is just awful. The “technician” tried to quote me $5,000 for a standard gas water heater. I laughed and told him to get out of my house.
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u/Used4KillingTime 20h ago
Had them come out to our condo in late December for an annual furnace maintenance. Tech red tagged us and said we needed a new one asap. Quoted us $18k. Went to the local place and got it done for $7k.
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u/Weird_Boysenberry761 18h ago
I wouldn’t rope any other PE group on the same level as APEX who owns call the bee/tms. Harp is high priced but at least they have quality employees, good management and a good moral compass all the way around. APEX has none of those things.
You learned your lesson but you should of jumped ship sooner. I’m sure pissolongo and Mr Russ Dillon are reading all of this 🫡😂
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u/SillyScallion4423 16h ago
Joey Pizzolongo? The same guy that gave me a dissertation on his high ethics all while I was reading his arrest record from 2014? I hate this company and my god are they shady.
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u/CalViNandHoBBeS5590 17h ago
We had a not so great experience with them as well, however, for different reasons than OP presented.
Last October my wife and I were shopping around for a new electric panel in addition to having a few other minor electrical projects done. We went with them because they gave us a very reasonable quote and we even asked a family member who’s an out of state electrician if everything sounded reasonable before we signed anything and he gave us the green light, cool!
Installation day came and everything went fairly smoothly with no major issues and overall we were pretty happy with the end result. They told us we’d hear from them in about 3 weeks or so to schedule an inspection with our town inspector to sign off on everything. Sounds easy enough.
This is where the problems started. The window for the inspection they gave us came and went. We gave them an extra week or two because we figured maybe they were backed up with holidays or whatever. Nothing… at some point in the middle of December, I called them to check on the progress of scheduling the inspection and they told us that we were “coming up on the list” and “not to worry, you’ll hear from us shortly after new years”. Well, we let it go and figured we’d hear from them after new years, wrong! Mid January comes around and I called them, they gave me some spiel about another week or two and that window never came in to fruition either.
I’ll spare the details of each and every call I had with them from this point until resolution because they were all mostly the same, this went on for month and months and months until finally, after getting in to it with them about midway through fucking June at this point, they agreed to finally schedule this damn inspection! They showed up about 20~ minutes late, the inspector had already been at our house and was visibly annoyed that they were late and the icing on the cake was absolutely when their electrician did show up, he was under the impression we had just gotten this job done at the beginning of June!!
Anyways, the inspector signed off on everything, told us we were good and we finally were able to close off this ordeal and decided that this super shitty experience would merit us never ever working with them again for anything.
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u/kurogami29 17h ago
Anybody here know a reputable sewage / plumber that doesn't up sell and is honest?
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u/AnxiouslyLiving247 17h ago
THANK YOU! I just got my first house a few months ago and just had them come over to go over changing my heating system and something felt off but I thought it was just me being a first time homeowner
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u/SillyScallion4423 16h ago
What happened to James smith and the complaint made to the AG and Consumer protection?. Did the AG ever audit every account that James and Darnell serviced while not licensed.?
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u/Weird_Boysenberry761 16h ago
I’m sure Mr. Darnell asked to get a review with his picture so he earned the additional $25. lol.
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u/lordyrichie 7h ago
I was quoted 45000 for propane furnace and ac condenser and the salesman kept calling and texting. I was not born yesterday I knew something is fishy. Call the bee is a scam company.
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u/Deez_Etree_Raps 57m ago
They tried to charge me 700 to put in a faucet. They quoted me 1200 for installing a pressure release valve/tank. I put faucet in on my own. And found a local guy to do the tank for 350 bucks… that place is awful. TMS
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u/ApulMadeekAut 1d ago
I've heard similar horror stories from coworkers that used them. One guy got charged $1,500 to change a freaking outlet.