Without air conditioning, extreme heat is deadly.
By mid-August, heat killed or contributed to the deaths of 96 people in Maricopa County so far this year.
Many people living in Arizona not only rely on air-conditioning to stay cool, but to stay safe as well. So, what can consumers do when theirs stops working?
Let ABC15 Know viewer, Dee, says her home temperatures skyrocketed after the A/C stopped working. Her husband is sick and the increasing temperatures quickly became dangerous. Dee has an air-conditioning contract with an appliance company. The company sent a tech out, but the fix didn't last long. She was told it would be about two weeks before another technician could come take a look.
Desperate, Dee reached out to Let ABC15 Know for help. Our volunteers jumped on the case, working with the company to see what options were available. Within 24 hours, Dee's A/C was fixed and sending cool air throughout her house.
Dee's not the only one dealing with a broken A/C. Let ABC15 Know viewer, Chantelle emailed us writing, "It's 93 degrees in our home". Chantelle rents and says the property management was not responsive. Our Let ABC15 Know Better Business Bureau volunteer, Roxanne, quickly got to work trying to help. She stayed in continuous contact with the property management company to escalate the case. The company sent Changelle portable cooling units to help. Then a few days later, great news! Chantelle emailed, "We finally have working A/C after 12 hot days".
Our Let ABC15 Know Better Business volunteers work daily to help solve consumer cases like these. However, if you're in a similar situation with A/C problems there are steps you can take as well!
Renters have rights if their air-conditioning unit breaks during extreme heat.
Notify your landlord with a written notice via certified mail or by a process server that your A/C is broken.
You also have the option to give your landlord a 5- or 10-day notice to make the repair. If the unit isn't fixed you have the option to file a lawsuit, terminate the lease and leave, or fix the problem yourself and receive reimbursement. Each of these options requires giving specific notice and citing specific language required by statutes.
For example, if you’re exercising your rights under the self-help repair statute — which entitles you to bring in a licensed contractor — you need to include specific language in your written notice.
You can read more about your options online or reach out to programs like Phoenix's Landlord and Tenant Program or Community Legal Services for consultation.
For homeowners, resources to repair or replace broken air-conditioners for people with low to moderate incomes in Arizona are limited but do exist.
- Arizona's federally funded Weatherization Assistance Program is designed to help with the costs of repairing or replacing air-conditioners for income-eligible families. For example, a family of four will have an annual income of less than $62,400 to qualify.
- The non-profit Wildfire has a listing of appliance repair help programs in Arizona.
- Maricopa County has an HVAC repair and replacement fund that helps those who qualify to fix their A/C units.
- Habitat for Humanity has an emergency home repair program for households in the West Valley.
- Some cities have programs that help homeowners with higher incomes. 211arizona.org has information for programs around the state for heat relief weatherization and home rehabilitation programs as well as heat relief utility assistance.
