First let me say, they are capable of doing excellent work. The problem is getting them to show up and do it.
The man who runs the show, Michael, is unprofessional, unreliable and dishonest. He initially quotes a reasonable estimate for work. He then hems and haws about scheduling, repeatedly setting dates and then not showing up, not answering calls or responding to emails. IF he ever finishes the job -- a very big if, as he left our project half-done and wasn't heard from again for 3 months -- the invoice he eventually sends is more than twice the estimate he quoted. In our case, he double-billed us for materials that we purchased ourselves and had delivered, at his request. He tried to charge us for them again, but with a mark-up over the price we paid to the supplier.
When you request a statement outlining costs and services, he whines about how his time is too valuable for him to spend documenting his statements, and that you just have to trust him that you owe the amount he says you owe. It's difficult to trust someone who told you on 4 different occasions he would come to finish the job and never showed up at all.
Michael left us with a half-finished project we then had to contract with a more reliable company to complete. In the meantime, we just had to live with the mess. read more