Collective action against HydroSolution: while he was deprived of hot water for 42 days, he was asked to pay $1,000 for his water heater

A Laval resident in the storm Debby has not spared is in good shape. His water heater did not survive the torrential rains of August and the company that rented the device is asking him for $1,000, which is illegal, according to a lawyer who has just filed a lawsuit.

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“They came, they said it stank and they left,” protests Steve Jones about HydroSolution. This quick visit to the 70-year-old retiree took place on August 16, seven days after the storm, when he was just finishing emptying his flooded basement.

HydroSolution is a former subsidiary of Hydro-Québec privatized in 2005 and sold in 2022 to Ontario interests. Many Quebecers rent a water heater from him for $10 to $20 per month.

The company is the target of a class-action lawsuit filed last month. She would have taken advantage of the storm Debby to terminate the contracts of its affected customers and charge them from $400 to $1,000 for the purchase of the broken water heater.

“They act like cowboys. Their goal is to make a cash pass by forcing customers to include the water heater in their insurance claims,” argues lawyer Joey Zukran.

Steve Jones went 42 days without hot water while he battled with HydroSolution. He can’t believe the company’s attitude.

“They don’t care about my flooding, they just want the money,” says the resident of number 6^e Street, in Laval.

Its neighbors were also flooded on August 9, when 145 millimeters of rain doused the Montreal region, a quantity of water never seen in 30 years.

Debby flooded more than 50 municipalities and at least 260 residences in Quebec, the storm forced the evacuation of more than 400 people, nearly 170 roads were damaged and 8 municipalities declared a local state of emergency.

Illegal?

One day before the busy employee’s visit, on August 15, Steve Jones received an invoice for $1,026.58 from HydroSolution for the purchase of his water heater.

Without explanation, his rental contract was terminated. Neither replacement nor repairs of the device were offered to this Quebecer who had been paying $13 per month for the service for two years.

The company thus committed an illegal act, pleads Joey Zukran, because it did not respect its commitments.

“It’s written everywhere in the contract that repairs are free, it’s even written on the water heater!” he exclaims.

HydroSolution’s contract does not require its customers to purchase water heater insurance. It is the company’s choice, insists the lawyer, because “it could very well have demanded it”.

While Joey Zukran tries to convince a Superior Court judge to punish HydroSolution, Steve Jones has had enough. Last week, he went to Home Depot to buy a new water heater for $1,000.

“They didn’t tell me it stank when they came to install it,” laughs the retiree, who does not intend to pay his $1,000 bill received on August 15 and who has just registered for the action collective.

The authorization request affects all people who have rented a water heater from the company. Affected clients can go to the LPC Avocats website to register.

“Given the nature of the allegations made, we will firmly contest them and defend ourselves,” Journal HydroSolution in an emailed statement Thursday.

HydroSolution, a regular with complaints

Quebecers have complained 74 times about HydroSolution’s practices to the Consumer Protection Office (OPC) in two years, a high figure, indicates the organization.

For 10 years, from 2015 to 2024, the company has had 237 complaints in Quebec. From 6 per year in 2015, this increases to 36 in 2022 – date of purchase by Enercare – then to 30 in 2023 and 37 in 2024.

The contract is often criticized by customers, along with billing, collections, customer service and installation.

HydroSolution also received a slap on the wrist. In July, the OPC sent him a notice of violation.

“The very nature of a property rental contract implies that the lessor regains possession at the end of the contract. Your water heater rental contracts provide for their installation. They necessarily cause their uninstallation,” writes the organization.

The HydroSolution contract lasts 12 months, then renews each month. However, a fee of $150 is required if the contract is broken or terminated during the first five years to uninstall the device.