Hi our heat pump ac won't shut down unless we remove the front panel of the thermostat then it cuts off as soon as we put it back on it starts up again... we cant set the thermo to colder or warmer or even change it to heat ,even cutting the thermo off on the switch doesn't do any good.. the thermo is a honeywell and have had it for about 2 yrs now... Any help would be great thank you

Your thermostat sends 24 volts to a relay that engages power to the compressor when there is a call for cooling. This relay is like a solenoid that physically opens and closes a metal contact, this relay can "freeze" shut and would require replacement. These relays are not cheap, about $200.