Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Service Reviews 

A total rip off! Should have hired a handyman to snake the clog for about $70/hr, instead paid $400 for clearing the clog, camera inspection and 6 month warranty on their job. The technicians who cleared the clog and did camera inspection are different, who came on 2 different days. Upon camera inspection by Jonathan, things seem to be all fine with sewer lines, so we called upon the previous technician (Patrick) to send the receipt for payment with the promised 6 month warranty. That's when the game has changed!!! Jonathan called us back, explaining that there are sewer line issues, there are hangers, etc and our 6 month warranty is voided due to this. Upon asking him for more details on the area of inspection, exact location and some pictures, now he says that he cannot send any such details and need to pay extra ($800) and he was not sure if he has inspected the right location (seems like communication issues between Patrick and Jonathan). Upon clarifying things, he hung up the phone saying that there is a communication problem and someone from the company would call us to sort it out. There was a text message after a while that someone would call us from the company but there was none, so far.
We approach big companies to help customer's resolve their problems, help us understand the unknowns but not ripping us off, whenever possible!

Replaced unnecessary parts and billed $950 when in fact all I needed was 2 toilet fill valves ($15 each at Lowes). Tech. Robert Heisner mentioned that he would have charged $900 anyway for 2 fill valves and labor!!!! Stay away, you're better off with Bowman or McClure.

Gave a high quote but had to get it fixed so agreed on the quote - then they charged an additional $4000 saying the "Scope" was larger than expected... Then job ended up being smaller than they initially ended up doing. I contested it and they said I signed a contract and to pay up. Then tried to talk to managers and got nowhere and they reported me to a collection agency. Total racket - stay away from these guys - Now I have it on my credit report even though I just ended up paying in full to wash my hands of these crooks.

Trustpilot should allow 0 stars as an option. Liars. I was told by the office staff "Free estimate" at time of booking the appt. The first thing I'm told while at the appointment is there is a $250 diagnostic fee. NO ONE TOLD ME OVER THE PHONE, and he couldn't even handle the issue or provide a quote so he told me they would need to reschedule and will waive the diagnostic fee because he couldn't help (which they shouldve anyway because they lied) not to mention at this point they've already wasted my time once.
2nd appt - first thing tech says is "so I have no notes on what's going on and the diagnostic fee is waived but there is a $250 crawl space fee....." NOT MENTIONED AT ALL AND I TOLD OFFICE STAFF IT WAS A CRAWL AND THE PRIOR TECH SAW IT WAS A CRAWL MADE NO MENTION...long story short they refused to provide a quote because "there was no sort of payment" Day 2 of wasting my time complete...and this was on a house 25 mins away from my primary residence. They wasted hours of my time.
NO DONT WASTE YOUR TIME LIKE ME!!! UNPROFESSIONAL AND STRAIGHT FACE LIARS. TERRIBLE BUSINESS. WILL NEVER USE ROTO-ROOTER EVEN THOUGH THERE IS A POTENTIAL ONLY THIS OFFICE IS FULL OF LIARS.

Your agent was very disrespectful, kept shaking his head no while I was talking,then told me to be quiet for 5 min so he could talk also was told there was a $125 visit fee but if I had work done it would be applied to the cost of work. He said no and charged me for all. I didn't argue with him bec
ause I'm 82 yrs old and live alone so didn't need confrontations more than we already had. Needless to say but will NEVER EVER use them again.

I called them because i had a water back up in the basement, they arrived and charged me almost 1200 dollars to snake the drain and inspect the drain with the camera which they did and told me that i have cast iron drain which is damaged and needs to be replaced right away to prevent a flooding. they told me that they will need to replace 25ft of the cast iron pipe and gave me an estimate of 6500 $. after discussing with them they brought the price down to 6100$. when they started the job they said there was no cast iron because the previous owner already replaced it but there was a problem in the unused line below the HVAC that was bringing mood in the main line and because of the HVAC and also because line was useless they just needed to eliminate that line. They did not replace even one inch of the line, they dogged just about 5ft.
I called the guy and asked him to change the price because the work he told me is not what they did but he said NO. (before they already made me sign the financing paper)
I feel like they ripped me off because what they told was the issue to scare me was not true. these people are not to be trusted. I advise anyone to stay away from them.
if they know that you are in distress they will use the opportunity to rip you off.
I have to add that they did not allow me to see what ever they were doing. when i wanted to see they said that they don't allow customers in the working area and they will get me the pictures. but I never saw any picture.

I might have occasion to use them in the future but they are not cost effective.. I got a 615.00 quote to snake a drain.. But at least they did quote and did NOT charge for the visit.

another person did it for under 100 dollars and was in the house for 15 minuetes.

Edit: Had to file with BBB. RR called and said we'd get 200 back cos they quoted that up front and thatsnwhat we should've paid. Then on BBB they said they'd give is 100! And their POLICY is to charge over 1000 extra for parts, then ask for even more for labor after you agreed on a quoted price! Then they say it's fair. Plus they refuse to take a coupon when their site says they take them! SCAM!

First, the guy who did the job did it well. No complaints against him. My mother (senior) and I (disabled) needed our sump pumps battery backup replaced. He came out and suggested do the whole thing for $1700. He looked stuff up on his phone and gave us a qipuote of $2000.We agreed to that. He called before he was scheduled to install it and said he hadn't found one yet and didn't wanna get a cheap one at Lowes of Home Depot. Another day or so he said he got one but was more money than he thought (which is hard to believe in his profession he wouldn't know the costs) and didn't wanna say the price til he came back. We insisted on knowing beforehand. He said $2500. We said never mind and he said $2300. By then we wanted it done so we agreed. He gets here with the paperwork and says it came to $1980 and was charging us $2000 afeterall, but said that's only $20 for labor. He asked if we'd pay an extra $200-300 for labor. We agreed to $2300. Wouldn't apply the $75 off coupon we had. We got the model number (one whole part with main and backup as one). Looked it up online at stores nearby. That exact model is listed for average of $830 or so. At Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes and the supply place in Jessup he said he got it from. Called a supervisor and were told that's just the markup and basically "that's just how it is." You're gonna mark up a part over a thousand extra dollars?! And then guilt us into paying even more for labor because you guys can't pay your employees better but will rob customers by overcharging for parts?! I would never recommend this company to anyone!

Terrible. $550 for a quick snake through main drain. Took 20 minutes although tech sat in the car for an additional 1 hour.

Totally lied and scammed us, told us if this doesn't fix problem you don't have to pay, total crap service and people

The technician damaged my water heater valve and overcharged for the new part. They left the water meter lid open. The parts and labor are overpriced. The customer service is bad and harsh.

If you ever had a water damage, DO NOT USE this company and instead call a restoration service on Yelp with high ratings. I came here to leave a review only to find many with similar experiences as ours.

We called under emergency situation. The staff came, and after examination they told us things will be billed to our insurance company (and very likely my insurance company will accept it). The team then moved on to install drying equipments in our place, yet did not told us that the equipment are charged DAILY -- even during the period they wait for insurance approval, air tests and abatement. We ended up not getting insurance approved, and the team moved slowly during the waiting process until we found out we're billed daily at an EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE RATE. We were shocked and frustrated, and as a result shifted to work with another company to finish the job. We were even more shocked when Roto Rooter billed us $12,200+ for the water mitigation job which was barely started; and the staff argued that the charges were for the mitigation service done on day 1 and the machines installed throughout the waiting time (for "preventing further damage"). The other company (with proper license) charged us less than this for the entire mitigation job.

Never telling the price upfront until they in your apartment. Charged 320$ for a 5 sec work. I can live with that, but they destroyed the inside surface of my toilet and said its ok. Unbelievable.

Called due to clogged toilet. Wanted sewer line cleared. They Augured the toilet leaving a lot of scratched porcelain. Said they could not clear the sewer line because I had no clean out. They could install a clean out for only $3400. They also said I should have my pipes replaced with their trenchless method. Only $12,500. However to do the new pipes I would have to go under my driveway and my neighbor's driveway and tap into his sewer connection because I had no direct connection. That I was already using his connection.
We have city utilities--I called them. They showed me where my sewer connection was (straight line to street--maybe 30 feet) and uncovered the grass that had grown over my cleanout.
RR could charge for an extra 30 ft of piping by connecting to my neighbor (not sure if that is even legal) and the cleanout they proposed to put in was no where near my sewer line--like 20 ft away.
They did come back to repair the damaged porcelain.

This is not a company for normal people. Only for the very rich! They are shockingly overpriced. It cost me $1200 to repair two toilets - one to mend a leaking wax ring and the other to replace the valve and flapper in the cistern. They charge based on a corporate pricing model and when they are in your home they use tactics to then sell unsolicited repairs. Do NOT use Roto-Rooter.

Way Overpriced. Run! They charged $754 to unclog a drain. I have always used Roto Rooter in the past and had great results. Naturally I called them and I did not think to ask what they are charging because they were always reasonable... but not anymore! Thomas and Galbraith would have done it for $100. RIP OFF SCAMMERS!

I recently had the unfortunate experience of dealing with Roto-Rooters (Livermore, CA) and I cannot express how disappointed and outraged I am with their services. If you value your hard-earned money and your peace of mind, I implore you to steer clear of this deceitful and unscrupulous plumbing company.

My nightmare began when I had a plumbing emergency at my home. Desperate for immediate assistance, I contacted Roto-Rooters (Livermore, CA) expecting a trustworthy and reliable service to help resolve my issue. Little did I know that I was walking right into their trap.

First and foremost, their so-called "emergency" service came with a ridiculously inflated price tag. They took advantage of my vulnerable situation and quoted me an exorbitant amount after talking to my insurance and convincing me that insurance had confirmed to proceed with the repair and that Roto-Rooter would directly deal with insurance. But that was just the beginning of their deceit. It's evident that they care more about squeezing every penny out of unsuspecting customers than providing quality service.

In the end, I felt like a victim of a scam. Roto-Rooters (Livermore, CA) exploited my emergency, convinced me to sign contract documents in their favor, tricked me into paying an outrageous sum, and left me with subpar workmanship. It's disgraceful how they take advantage of people in need.

I strongly advise anyone reading this review to avoid Roto-Rooters (Livermore, CA) at all costs. Do your research, find a reputable plumbing company that values honesty and integrity, and spare yourself the distress and financial burden that I endured. Roto-Rooters (Livermore, CA) should be held accountable for their unethical practices, and I hope this review helps others avoid falling into their trap.

THEY CAME OUT FINALLY AFTER 3 CANCELLATIONS. CHARGED ME $458 TO TELL ME WHAT I ALREADY KNEW. THE DRAIN WAS CLOGGED. A FOLLOW UP SUPERVISOR WAS SUPPOSED COME BY TO DISCUSS OPTIONS AND SOLUTIONS. THEY NEVER DID. EVEN AFTER FURTHER REQUEST FOR FOLLOW UP, I WAS TOLD THAT THEY WOULD. BUT THEY NEVER DID. SO AFTER ALMOST 2 MONTHS. FINALLY THEY CALLED BACK AFTER 2 ADDITIONAL CALLS WITH NO RESPONSE I FINALLY FOUND ANOTHER COMPANY WHO CAME OUT AND DID WHAT ROTO ROOTER FAILED DO.

Reference Number
RN49208
New Orleans la

Efficiency, Problem-Solving.
I've worked with them before. The plumber was knowledgeable about problem.

Paulus & Raymond were excellent from the time the arrived, very professional, assessed the work to be done, quoted and executed in a very professional way, I would recommend them for their professionalism in undertaking the task at hand, well done guys, it was a pleasure working with you, warm regards. Omar