Groundwork Enterprise LLC

Complaint Information:
On June 11th , Groundwork Company accepted a deposit of $to begin a tree removal job for one pine tree and one hackberry tree for a total cost of Project was scoped to take 1-days and work was to begin June 17thJune 17th the job begun as plannedConcerned with condition of customers driveway Groundwork company chose to use a light weight electrical lift that would not cause damages to pavement , however the lift was not able to reach the desired height safely to make cuts for topping the pine tree which is located to the right side of houseOwner of Groundwork Cochose to call the customer at this point and explain the situation which could be resolved by using a different lift but required use of neighbors property for accessAt this point customer acknowledged the work could be completed but would be required to have a return date when lift is available , so in mean time Groundwork was to continue with removal of hackberry tree and a reschedule date would follow for the pineHalf way through the topping process of hackberry tree which was located in rear of property overhanging driveway and a newly installed fence ." Which wasn't present during time of quote", Owner of Groundwork Codiscovered a live nest that wasn't visible during time of estimateAgain putting a halt to the process because of concern for wildlife, Groundwork Co owner decides to end the day and explain to property owner that since the company is needed to return to finish the other tree we needed to postpone the remainder of this tree until the nest has been successfully removed by the Ct Wildlife Div"DEEP"The customers spouse arrived home around 5:pm and after having explained the following to him , also pointing out that during the cleaning up process a piece of wood had rolled into the new fence and broke a post ; the company offered to reimburse or repairHe wanted to discuss with his spouse and that they would be getting back to meIn the meantime Groundwork Cowould contact the wildlife division and resource another lift to perform job awaiting the correspondence of the Ct Wildlife DivOn June 19th Groundwork Coemailed the customer to explain that as stated above the Groundwork Cowill not return until the Wildlife Divhas giving the ok to soAlso explaining that due to company policy of scheduling and job completion percentage the company would not be reimbursing a deposit at this time but has offered to pay $for damages to fence

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
 
First of all when groundwork called at around 10:30 am on June 17th to let us know that the lift was not reaching the pine he explained it was having electrical problems, that normally it raises to 45ft and it was only raising to 30ft. [redacted] assured me that he had a different lift at another job that could do the task so we agreed they would begin work on the hackberry. Concerning the fence, it was not present during the initial quote given back in April, however it was present when the company was asked to come give us a second quote in May. Initially we were going to trim the hackberry tree that overhung the drive way. That estimate was going to be $250.00. When we asked for a new estimate in May we decided to have the whole tree removed after obtaining permission from the neighbors. I discussed the fence and was reassured by [redacted] that the fence would not be an issue. The estimate for the the hackberry removal was 1075.00. On June 11th when groundwork was given the deposit of 875.00 cash we again discussed the fence. [redacted] came to the house to pick up the deposit and we spoke about the fence at this time.  I expressed my concerns for the fence and he assured me they could work around it there was plenty of room to lower branches in the surrounding area. As far as percentage of job completion the hackberry branches overhanging the driveway were trimmed, the trunk and half the top remain. Less then 25% of the total job was completed. As quoted in the first estimate about $250.00 worth of work was completed. Therefore, the remaining deposit should be returned to us (875-250 = 625 + fence repair). I am awaiting a quote to have the fence repaired. Also, not one but two posts were damaged. The concrete bases need to be removed and replaced which is likely to cost more than the $100.00 he offered.
 
Finally, the large nest in the center of the tree was present and clearly visible during both estimates as this tree had not bloomed. I'm not sure why [redacted] felt this was a new issue. It is a squirrels nest; not a robins nest. [redacted] told my husband that evening it was a robins nest as evidenced by the presence of eggs. When my husband inquired on the time frame for completing the remaining work, [redacted] offered no definitive answer. My husband asked if he would be available by phone later in the evening to discuss what to do next. [redacted] replied to give him a call after we spoke. A  couple hours later we called [redacted] and he did not answer. We left him a voice message the next day and no received reply. The next day (June 19th) he sent an email stating that he would not be able to finish the job (see attached) 
 
I attached to this response a copy of the e-mail [redacted] sent to us on behalf of groundwork stating that he doesn't feel the job can be completed safely. If he didn't feel like his company could complete the job safely he should have never given me an estimate and accepted the job. We have witnesses that state groundwork did not take care in lowering the branches as they watched them drop branches on concrete (which is part of the driveway)  and surrounding areas. This is also evident by damaged concrete curbing. The witnesses also watched the large branch that bounced off the ground and slammed into the fence. If a company cannot complete a job they started or as contracted they should return the deposit to the customer. It is unprofessional and unacceptable to decide to keep the remaining deposit if you didn't complete enough work to earn the whole deposit. I also attached both estimates that we received from Groundwork in April and again in May. 
Sincerely, 
[redacted]