ABCORD ELECTRICAL: MAD, BAD AND DANGEROUS

When my earth leakage unit tripped, leaving me without any working plugs, I did not know that this was due to a faulty external cable. Instead, I turned to the Yellow Pages. Abcord Electrical was one of the first Cape Town firms listed, with several branches.

'Tazz' and 'Gervase' promptly arrived, claiming I had been very fortunate that my 'fire protection switch' had worked (otherwise my house could have burnt down, since my distribution board was 'from the time of Jan van Riebeeck.') Nonetheless, 'Tazz' installed a new earth leakage unit, charging an astronomical R2713.20 in total. I could pay only in cash or with a credit card.

When I then contacted other firms for quotes on a new distribution board - having been quoted R6340 by Abcord's owner, Adam Combrie, I discovered the following. a) The new earth leakage unit had been incorrectly installed, bypassing everything to which it was supposed to be connected. It was now useless as a safety device: useless in protecting me from shocks or my property from electrical hazards. This dangerously sloppy work was perhaps because the unit continued to trip if correctly installed. b) Abcord's 'new' earth leakage unit, for which I had been charged R1985, was dated 2005. It had perhaps been a defective unit removed by Abcord from a previous client. c) Neither my earth leakage unit nor my distribution board needed replacement. What was needed instead was replacement of the external cable. d) Pirate electrical companies, operating as call centres dispatching unlicensed electricians for emergencies, were common. Excessively high cash or credit card payments would be demanded; tracing these firms was often difficult.

Despite Abcord's outrageous practices, obtaining a refund was difficult. All the phone numbers, supposedly belonging to 6 different branches and head office, seemed to lead to one man, Adam Combrie. Not only did he initially refuse to refund me: he also threatened to take me to court, for defamation and 'rudeness.' As I tried to organize a credit card chargeback, he dispatched 'Gervase' with R2400 in cash. (VAT could not be refunded, Combrie declared.) 'Gervase' claimed that he did not have his licence card as an electrician on him, because he was off-duty.

In all: in my experience, Abcord Electrical is mad, bad and dangerous, and deserves a negative star rating .