This is a long story with a surprising and disappointing end. It started off with the technician being an hour late. No one called me to let me know, I had to call to find out what was going on. Once he arrived I left him to do the work as I had things to do. He told me when he would be finished. I came back and he had left. I called him, he had gone to get lunch. At this point I just needed to pay, and I didn't want to wait around for him. I was no longer living in the house, so I left and figured I could call the office to pay.
My contractor let me know a few days later that the work had not been done properly. There were visible drips in the enamel, and it had not been cleaned. The company did mention that they would need to come out a second time, but when I called to tell them of the issue, they said this was normal. At that point, I decided I was not going to pay until the work had been properly completed.
This is when the story gets a little weird. We had trouble with scheduling this additional appointment. The office person was rude and condescending every time I called. One time I arrived five minutes late and the technician had supposedly left. He never called to see if I was on my way. Another time we were supposed to meet and when I called I could not get in touch with him. Later I received a message that he was going out of town and would get back the next week. I missed an appointment once or twice on my end as well. So it was frustrating, for everyone. The owner of the company left me a voicemail, and we also spoke on the phone about rescheduling.
Then one day, he shows up at my place of business. He cursed at me about giving him his money. He tried to take a picture of me. I was glad that there were people around because he was very threatening. He said something that let me know he had been by my old house. I just kept thinking that this man would have shown up at my house to threaten me and I would have been very vulnerable. So scary!
The mistake they made was assuming that I was trying to avoid paying them - that was NEVER the case. I mean, it was less than $400. What kind of business, A. sends a representative (the owner, no less) to harass people for money?, and B. is so desperate for such a small amount of money that it is messing up their business?
Last I checked, a legit business is not supposed to be run by thugs who threaten young women for chump change. If they did need to take recourse, there are legal and much more ethical means of obtaining payment. This company should not be in business. When my partner called to reschedule and told the woman what had happened, she defended his actions.
The technician came out the next day and finished, though there is still some enamel on the tile of the wall and floor. I paid the bill, because, frankly, I was a little scared of this guy. So, in the end, his bullying tactics worked, but is that really the kind of business you want to support? read more