The most expensive zip-tie: W5's hidden cameras catch repair company in action
How does a cheap plastic zip tie that’s worth just pennies end up costing a customer hundreds of dollars?
I might not have believed it myself if I hadn’t been watching a fridge repair go wrong in real time -- on a hidden camera.
I was huddled in an upstairs room alongside W5's producers and a reputable repair technician, Adel Gaynutdinov, as we watched what happened via a video feed from cameras set up throughout a Toronto-area home.
Our cameras had been set up to watch what the technician would do when presented with a test: a fridge that sounded like it was on the fritz.
Gaynutdinov had assured us the fridge actually worked just fine, except for a noise made by a zip tie that he set up to interfere with the fridge’s fan.
“Any technician would be able to see that right away,” Adel told us.
The question was: would they just fix it? Or would they have other ideas?
The fridge actually worked just fine, except for a noise made by a zip tie that our technician set up to interfere with the fridge's fan (W5)
The whole operation was set up by our W5 team. We investigated some of the companies that had the most unresolved customer complaints, according to a list shared by the Better Business Bureau.
The list included airlines, online credit companies, gift basket companies and appliance repair services. Many advertise widely, making big promises to potential customers, even though the reality may be quite different.
According to the BBB, the companies that made the list showed little interest in trying to resolve any complaint – often leaving the customer feeling frustrated or cheated.
One of those customers was Laura Snider, whose fridge in New Hamburg, Ont. had been packed with food and gifts from friends to help her get her through her grief after her husband died.
The fridge broke down, putting all of that food at risk. Snider felt she needed to get it fixed quickly. Without her husband to turn to, she called a company she found at the top of a web search.
“He said he could fix it within the next day or two,” she told us. “Perfect.”
The technician took a cash deposit of $1,000 – and then never returned, Laura said. And when she was trying to get a refund, she says she only got a runaround. Eventually someone from the company offered to give her $400 - if she agreed to not file a complaint about it. And, the fridge would remain broken.
“I said, ‘Absolutely not. I am not agreeing to that. There is no way,’” Snider said.
Snider filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. That company was among the list of the companies with the most unresolved complaints.
CTV W5's Jon Woodward (left) and reputable repairman Adel Gaynutdinov look at a video feed from cameras set up throughout a Toronto-area home (W5)
We wanted to see it in action, so we asked them to send a technician our way, to a home in Mississauga, just west of Toronto.
He arrived and greeted associate producer Caitlin Taylor, who was posing as the homeowner.
Caitlin left him alone and our cameras showed him opening panels on the back of the fridge and poking around. As he worked, he moved that zip tie -- but kept going.
The technician (left) arrives to greet W5's associate producer, posing as a homeowner (W5)
According to the technician, the fridge didn't have the proper "voltage" (W5)
After about 20 minutes, he called our fake homeowner with a verdict: it was the fridge’s motor that didn’t have “proper voltage.”
The charge: about $330 with taxes.
The fridge stopped making noise, but our expert Adel said “proper voltage” didn’t have anything to do with it.
He said if it was him, he would have charged just $90 for such a simple fix.
We paid the $330 bill, making that zip tie the most expensive zip tie Adel had ever seen.
Watch W5's documentary 'Customer (dis)Service' Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV, or in our video player at the top of this article after 8 p.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
Police: 3 killed, including suspected gunman, in Minneapolis shooting
Three people, including the suspected gunman, are dead after a shooting Thursday at a Minneapolis apartment complex, police said.
'Why didn't they stop?' Mom asks of driver in hit-and-run crash that killed son
The mother of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Edmonton is begging the driver to come forward.
The northern lights are returning to night skies across Canada this Friday
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
$400K in damages for B.C. woman who had unnecessary mastectomy was 'inordinately high,' court finds
A jury's award of $400,000 to a woman who had a mastectomy after being misdiagnosed with breast cancer has been substantially reduced by B.C.'s highest court, which found the damages were "wholly disproportionate."
Local Spotlight
Video shows driver in Toronto frantically getting out of car being pushed by truck
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Prince Edward Island celebrates first-ever International Day of Potato
Prince Edward Island is celebrating its first-ever International Day of Potato on Thursday.
'Bigger and better and stronger than ever': Covered Bridge Chips president sets sights for late 2025 rebuild after fire
The president of Covered Bridge Chips in New Brunswick is hoping to have his factory rebuilt for late 2025 following a devastating fire last year.
Winnipeg high school helps lead ducks that nested in courtyard to water
Students and staff at Winnipeg’s Westwood Collegiate had a unique problem to solve this month; how do you lead ducks to water from the school’s courtyard when 12 of them can’t fly yet?
Questions and concerns remain after space junk lands in Saskatchewan
Debby Lorinczy remembers her father as an amazing person and as a man who also made an amazing discovery.
Ski jumper Abigail Strate getting a buzz out of working with bees
Abigail Strate is a member of the Canadian national ski jumping team and an Olympic bronze medallist. She's also a certified beekeeper.
Oilers superfan hopeful Edmonton wins so he can get his massive Stanley Cup tattoo retouched
It's been a long time coming, but one Oilers superfan is hoping this will be the year he gets to touch up his massive Stanley Cup back tattoo.
WATCH Alta. man rescues wild foal trapped on steep cliffside
A man's daring rescue of a newborn wild foal that was trapped after falling down a steep embankment was caught on video over the weekend.
'Forgot how fun this was': Winnipeg man competing in World Pinball Championship
A Winnipeg pinball wizard is heading to the granddaddy of them all – the IFPA World Pinball Championship.