From Thumbtack Customer
Elite Rooter
I would not recommend Elite Rooter based on my experience. The job was extremely overpriced, the repair quality was poor, and the communication was almost impossible.
The scope of work was replacing the tub waste/overflow and P-trap/dirty arm, plus replacing a toilet flange/closet bend. However, the total invoice was $3,707. During the initial conversation, Keith gave me the impression that because this was an insurance-related repair, most of the labor cost would likely be covered and I would mainly be responsible for parts. The leak was affecting important living areas in my home, including the kitchen and bathroom, so I wanted to get it fixed as soon as possible. Because of that urgency, I trusted what I was told during the initial sales conversation. Based on that understanding, I moved forward even though the price seemed very high. In the end, GEICO only covered about $1,200, and I had to pay roughly $2,500 out of pocket. Later, I contacted several reputable local plumbers, and their estimates for similar work were around $800–$1,500. In my opinion, Elite Rooter used the insurance situation and my urgent need to restore normal use of my kitchen and bathroom to justify an inflated quote, and the way the pricing and coverage were presented felt misleading.
The repair quality was also disappointing. The first repair did not properly fix the pipe underneath the toilet, and one of the connections was still leaking after the initial visit. A second technician came out, but instead of properly redoing the connection, he simply applied a large amount of pipe glue around the outside of the joint. Of course, the leak still continued. It finally took a third visit before the issue was properly repaired. For a professional plumbing company charging this much, I expected the leak to be diagnosed and repaired correctly the first time.
The communication and scheduling process was the worst part of the experience. After I paid the full amount, it became extremely difficult to get anyone to come back for the second and third repair attempts. Keith was very hard to reach: calls were not answered, messages were not returned, and appointments were very difficult to schedule. At least three times, we had a scheduled appointment and nobody showed up. Each time, I had to take time off work in advance and stay home waiting, only to have no technician arrive. When I followed up, I was given different reasons, such as another job running late, illness, travel, or other excuses. I have text message records documenting these scheduling problems.
What should have been a straightforward plumbing repair turned into a two-month process, with most of that time spent waiting, following up, and feeling completely stuck. The experience was stressful and extremely frustrating.
Overall, this was a very disappointing experience: an inflated price, misleading insurance-related sales communication, poor workmanship that required multiple follow-up visits, and repeated no-shows. I strongly recommend getting multiple quotes, demanding a clear written scope, and confirming exactly what insurance will and will not cover before agreeing to any work. Hope this can help anyone looking for a plumbing repair using insurance.
