Kerivan-Lane, Inc.

We have been using Kerivan since November 2013. They provide our oil for the house. This has been a good experience — we never have an issue.
Our boiler failed last year in the house. We meet with many companies regarding the boiler and boiler replacement. However, Kerivan was the only company that sized the boiler correctly for our house. Sizing the boiler correctly for your house is actually more difficult than I thought because we got companies telling us many different things. However, based on our research — Kerivan got it right. And now that we have had a year with the boiler — it is perfect even in the «polar vortex».
Now we are in the midst of two mini bathroom remodels. Kerivan is assisting us with those remodels and their experience and knowledge has been invaluable.
Kerivan has earned my trust and respect.

My attempt to do a job w/​Kerivan Lane started out well enough. They were responsive to my initial phone call and had a nice, professional style. But it went downhill from there to such a low point that my advice is stay away from this company! Here’s the gist: my boiler broke suddenly in late fall. One of their guys came out quickly to take a look. He was nice enough but ultimately made some major mistakes. First, it turns out he was a salesman rather than a technician (I only found this out later in the process). He «assumed» that I wanted an oil heating system rather than gas and never offered the option to switch to gas (gas is cheaper and much better for the environment). (When I eventually asked one of their real technicians why he didn’t offer gas as an option, the guy said, ‘We’re an oil company so that’s what we focus on’– which I hear as ‘let’s not think about the environment or the customer; let’s try to keep this company making money.’). The second red flag was the estimate, which included a vague and open-​ended statement about hourly costs for replacing some pipe. The pipe that needed replacement could readily be measured, but somehow this company was unable to come up w/​a final figure on that cost. Other companies had no problem providing a solid figure for that same pipe issue. So if you read a Kerivan-​Lane estimate, my advice is: watch for this sort of open-​ended loophole and make sure you only accept a final, real, maximum quote. Basically they underbid on the job and then this is where they’d make their $ back (that’s my read on it). The third red flag was that they were going to install a boiler that was bigger than we needed (here again based on what i learned later from other companies); a bigger boiler = more money for Kerivan-​Lane; or a more benign interpretation is that the salesman just didn’t have the technical knowledge to correctly identify the right size of the boiler. Finally, and here’s the ultimate in «customer disservice”– given that we had no heat and i had finally sorted out enough knowledge of the situation to finalize a plan with them, i told them i was ready to move forward. I was assured that the job could start in 2 days. Well, 2 days later, they mysteriously and suddenly said they would not honor the quote nor the promise to install the new heating system. I was on my own and now– in the midst of cold weather– had to find a new installer. In the end, that was a great outcome as i found a vastly better company (JM Mechanical, who was old-​school honorable, fair, and great, with none of these problems). So bottom line: if you’re someone who is willing to close your eyes, not ask questions, and just write a blank check, definitely Kerivan Lane is for you! If not, look elsewhere.

I had the best experience with Kerivan-​Lane. They were very patient with me and helpful. I had them do plumbing work in my new bathroom. As soon as my fixtures were in they came right out. They installed faucets, toilet, shower faucets. They were very neat and professional. I would recommend them to everyone I know. I wish all contractors worked like this.

I’ve been going to Kerivan Lane gas station almost every day for the past 7 years for my business. They offer a great Depot store with cold drinks and coffee snacks ect. They have friendly, and helpful employees who operate the station. They offer the cheapest diesel, off road diesel and gasoline in Needham. As well as offer a business house account, which is very rare these days. Chris the owner is always very delightful to see in the morning, always greets me or my crew with a «hello» or a «Good Morning». Overall I could not be happier to purchase fuel and supplies then from Kerivan Lane.

These guys, (Keith) sounded like they had a good deal going at first. But when oil prices every started dropping and their prices were still high or even went up at one point, I knew something was wrong. I made several attempts to get the prices lowered and they refused. So I finally I called to cancel and my buddy Keith says «Well did you know that if you cancel before April, there is a $ 400 penalty?» No I didn’t Keith! I wouldn’t have called to cancel if I did, that’s because you didn’t tell me. It’s my fault didn’t ask, and my fault I didn’t read the fine print and that’s only reason I’m giving them 2 stars.
Buyer beware I guess.
Do not do business with these guys.

We used Kerivan Lane to install our new boiler and convert from oil to gas and we had a great experience. They gave us a better price than other companies in the area. They were extremely professional, showed up on time, did high quality work and took care of us right through the end of the job. They were flexible when we had scheduling challenges with the gas company. They were friendly to my dog. I would definitely recommend them.

We had them install central ac for us (ductless AC) and they were very professional, very polite, and efficient. After a month we needed to call them about one of the units that didn’t work. The manager called my wife and they came over the next morning and replaced the unit. That’s great customer service!

Horrible customer service. If you ever speak with Christopher Lane, you will find out that he is the most rude and racist person. I tried to understand by billing statement line by line and he got furiously angry that I did not trust them. I had my oil service only for 8 months and I paid roughly $ 4.35/gallon, the most expensive price you can pay in Needham. After 8 months, I converted my oil to gas and the estimate they provided me was 35% higher than 3 other estimates I collected. In general, if you don’t want to be humiliated by Chris Lane for inquiring about your services, please avoid this business at all cost.

Worst customer service we have ever come across. DO NOT DO BUSINESS HERE Spend your money elsewhere!

I’m pretty sure the lady in the office Megan is an escaped mental patient. RUDE. DISHONEST. CRAZY. OVER PRICED. These are all adjectives that describe this business.

Wonderful service. Great start up contract pricing!!! Rate can’t be beat and believe me I compared. Service is wonderful too. I use them for two properties. Need to have an oil tank replaced and will be using them for that as well. They have been very responsive. No issues here. Would highly recommend.

Kerivan Lane recently installed a mini-​split ductless heating and A/​C unit in my condo. They were professional, on time, explained everything and cleaned up beautifully. Highly recommended.

Honestly this is one of the worst companies I have ever done business with. We inherited them when we began renting an apartment and had several issues with them and their customer service is non existent. They once were working on our oil tank and took excess oil and threw it in the snow in our back yard. We wrote the company several times about ALL the issues we were having and try didn’t have the common courtesy to call or write back. Much better companies out there who charge reasonable prices AND care about their customers and want to retain them!

They would not fill my tank on the fixed price while we were under contract. The office guy literally could barely speak English so resolving the issue went no where! I’ve checked and their price usually seems significantly higher. Oh yeah and more hidden charges than any big bank I’ve even seen. Random $ 50 here random $ 20 there. For services I never asked for. They said they put something extra in the oil and then charge me without asking? I think not: /

We have been Kerivan-​Lane customers since we bought our house more than 30 years ago. They have been an excellent company for us that entire time. Their plumbing service is excellent, but more importantly they kept our 55 year old boiler running for many years. Three years ago we replaced the boiler and oil tank. They did such a nice job plumbing associated with the new boiler that I enjoy looking at because they not only assured it worked right, but made it aesthetically pleasing. This is a family-​owned business that takes tremendous pride in their customer satisfaction. I highly recommend them

The best gas prices anywhere. Today, May 12, 2009 the gas price average around 2.20, but at Kerivan-​Lane, aka Charles st depot a craaazzzee low $ 2.09. That’s the way UPs. The Down, only two pumps and they’re only open from 8 – 5 M-​F. I know, pretty lame, but I’m saving over 10 cents/​gall.
Now that rocks!

Had one time experience with this company. They install new toilet in my apt. two months ago. The price was reasonable and service was excellent. No complaints!

First of all — ALL of the positive reviews for this company are from one-​time posters. Hmm, interesting… Just sayin.
My experience: A decent price with the budget plan, but once the friendly folks here set up my account, they sucked every step of the way. EVERY MONTH I had to call them because they charged my card automatically (I had set it up with them that I would send them a check each month). Multiple times, I had already mailed the check when they charged my debit card… and they went ahead and cashed my check too, overdrawing my account… THANKS.
I continuously received bills that were completely wrong, including either last months amount, despite paying on time, or with a bogus «pay this amount.» Despite my verbal and written requests to stop my budget plan and close my account, they still tried to reactivate my budget account and sent me a bill for my first budget payment for the 08 – 09 winter a couple of weeks ago.
Don’t bother.

Not a bad oil company, if you like to deal with a company that does not keep their written word! Their new customer agreement promises a certain flat rate through a certain date. Easy enough? Not really. There is no fine print on the agreement, but if there were, it would say… NOT SO FAST… we won’t *really* give you this price for a full year, even though it clearly states this… blah, blah, blah.
Outside of them not sticking to their promotion, they are a standard oil company with decent repair people and service levels. I wouldn’t recommend them as you can find plenty of oil companies who have will honor their promised prices.