Summary: Avoid this company like the plague
Amerigas has on multiple occasions allowed us to run out of propane mid-winter (we use propane for stoves, water heater, and furnaces). They have a system for estimating tank levels that also allows the customer to update the tank level. That system works.
However, what fails with Amerigas is their ability to actually schedule and deliver propane. Our local office, in Post Falls Idaho, has been so eviscerated by corporate cost-cutting driven downsizing, that they have so few drivers that they only deliver to our area once a week, and their office staff (also understaffed) is unreachable by customers, or even by Amerigas's own customer service agents.
Locally Amerigas branches use what the central office calls "Delivery Coordinators". The central customer support cannot reach these coordinators, and can only leave them notes on their inter-departmental system. Unfortunately these notes do not make it to the local delivery coordinator.
So how does this disfunctionality impact customers? I our case, we live in a rural location. In the winter we get snow. We have a 2 mile stretch of road that I plow for our access, and for access by various delivery services (e.g., UPS, FedEx, and, theoretically Amerigas). For this reason, deliveries must be coordinated, so the road can be plowed. Other companies (again, such as FedEx and UPS) have systems in place that convey to customers when delivery attempts will be made. Now, one would think that Amerigas, and their "Delivery Coordinator" (who should have received a note to coordinate delivery with the customer, who needs to plow his road), would, oh, I don't know, maybe coordinate a delivery to make sure said delivery can take place, and not be prevented by something like 2 miles of unplowed road during a snowstorm? Unfortunately, one would be wrong in thinking this.
So, what happens? First Amerigas does not refill a tank when it is getting low, even if the customer requests it. (Driven by the fact that their local office is understaffed and lacks the drivers to deliver except after situations become emergent.) Second, the delivery is "escalated" (after the tank level is critically low). The customer is assured that delivery will be made within three days (but they are unable to state which day - so that, maybe, a road can be plowed). Third, since the understaffed office can only deliver once a week, the delivery can take up to a week. Meanwhile propane is almost gone. Fourth, the company randomly chooses a day for delivery, the customer is uninformed of the delivery, and a snowstorm has hit that day. The customer, not expecting a delivery, has not plowed the road (perhaps because it is still snowing and he wants to wait till it stops falling). Fifth, the delivery driver manages to slide his truck down the road as far as he can, but ultimately cannot make it due to the unplowed road. Sixth, the customer tries to reschedule. And steps two through five repeat. Seventh, the customer runs out of propane, and has to live without head and hope that his pipes don't freeze.
The above is just an example of the problems that in real life arise from Amerigas having so cut back their operations (centralized customer support from foreign countries, insufficient drivers and local office staff to service the need, who are unreachable by customers) that they cannot perform their basic function.
The problems with Amerigas don't end with their inability to supply propane (although ultimately that is the deal breaker). Their online billing statements are inaccurate - designed to promote over-payment, and their rates per gallon are above the local competition (by consistently over 30% what I can get with a local dealer - whom I will be shifting to).
So, perhaps this company will work for you. However, if you look at the reviews, you will see either all 5 star or 1 star reviews. If you are naive, you will believe that all those 5-star reviews are from real customers, and not bogus plants. The real reviews, for any company, are the 1, 2, and 3 star reviews, because a company won't pay people to leave those. So, whenever you see a company with a lot of 1 star reviews, you know there is a real problem. Like is the case with Amerigas. read more
