RLI

Ryans was hired to install new hardscape in our backyard. 12 weeks later, work is nowhere complete and Ryan's is asking for more money to return.We hired Ryan's Inc. [redacted] - Owner) on 25FEB16 to perform landscaping and hardscaping work in our backyard based on Proposal 4198 dated 05JAN16, REV 18FEB16 in the amount of $33,752.00. This work included the removal of the existing hardscape, removal of several trees including the stumps, new retaining walls, pavers, new drainage, steps, lighting and a fireplace. The work was to be completed in 6-8 weeks with a drop dead completion date of 12MAY16 as this was my 40th birthday and we were going to throw a party in our new yard. On 28FEB16 we paid [redacted] $1,500 to secure the logger to cut down the trees. On 14MAR16 we paid [redacted] an additional $3,000 materials deposit and work began on 16MAR16. On 24MAR16, [redacted] requested an additional $5,680 for stone veneer that he stated he had purchased. We paid this in two installments on 24MAR16 and 31MAR16. This material was never delivered and according to the supplier, has not been purchased and the value of it was actually $2,000.As of 31MAY16 (11 weeks later), none of the proposed work has been completed and what little work that is in place is poorly constructed and damage to our property occurred when the trees were cut down. All the tree stumps have yet to be removed, parts of the existing hardscape still remain in place, retaining walls are not complete nor properly constructed, what drainage existed has been damaged and now does not function, no pavers installed and fireplace is partially complete. The skid steer that was used on and off for the project has sat idle in the backyard since it broke down on 02MAY16. It has leaked oil/hydraulic oil in the street in front of my house and has been leaking oil in my backyard ever since. 16MAY16 was the last day any work was completed by Ryan's, Inc.During the course of the project, I had three separate verbal conversations with [redacted] regarding the lack of progress, quality of work, lack of material on site and the upcoming deadline. I wanted to make sure that I was very clear I was unhappy with the progress and worried that the work would not be completed by 12MAY16. Each time I was assured that all the hard work had been done and we were very close to being done. The last verbal conversation I had with [redacted] was on 17MAY16 and requested a completion schedule as well as to have the materials I paid for delivered by 25MAY16. On 22MAY16 [redacted] sent an email stating that he had spent $3,853 in labor and material more than the $10,180 we have paid to date. He then stated that he would not return to work until we paid him an additional $7,296. I evaluated his request for additional money, and determined his calculations were incorrect and erroneous and responded to [redacted] via email on 24MAY16. My response to [redacted] was that based on his lack of performance to date, we believed he did not intend to complete the job and we wanted a cash or certified check refund of $5,889.50 by 12pm on 03JUN16. This amount of $4,290.50 completed to date was derived on the level of completeness of the job by area based on the itemized proposal 4198 provided by Ryan's Inc.. In the event that the above resolution is not honored, I will employ a registered engineer to evaluate the work in place and determine its quality vs building code. If any portion of the work is deemed inadequate, I will seek further compensation from Ryan's Inc. to cover the costs of the engineer as well as the cost to remove and replace any deficient work. I have already reached out to other landscaping companies and have received quotes to remove the tree stumps. Because of the state Ryan's has left by backyard in, extra work needs to occur just to make the site accessible to remove the tree stumps. One quote was as high as $4,000.Desired SettlementRefund of $5,889.50 by 12pm 03JUN16 and removal of equipment with no further damage to my property. If this does not occur, I will employ a registered engineer to evaluate the work in place and determine its quality vs building code. If any portion of the work is deemed inadequate, I will seek legal counsel to gain further compensation from Ryan's Inc. to cover the costs of the engineer as well as the cost to remove and replace any deficient work.Business Response I entered into an agreement with this customer. The total job was $34,000 to complete hardscape projects. I require a 50% percent deposit to begin working so the job will be properly financed and run smoothly as do other contractors on a job this size. He gave me a $1500 check initially, since he was a referral from another satisfied customer I decided to work with him. We began work, removed walls, built a chimney, built walls, extensively graded. During this time we had close to 8 working weeks in the project. Due to extensive rain 2 of the weeks were not possible to work, the job is located on the side of a hill. At this point I had collected about 10k of the 17k deposit required. I kept asking the customer to pick out stone colors over the 2 month period so we could continue working. Finally they chose a color and demanded I get that material on site. I responded to the customer that I had 14k in labor and materials on site to date. I was not a finance company, he had only paid 10k of the 17k required after 2 months. If he paid me the remainder of the money we had personally in the job I would order the materials and begin working again. I have sent the customer a schedule of all days worked and materials cost. No company can work and not be paid accordingly or in a timely manner. We have to pay our employees weekly, pay for materials, etc. I will work and do a great job for anyone who pays us per our agreement. At this point we are close to 4k in material and employee pay in arrears. I stopped working on the job and pulled my bobcat and equipment. Thank youConsumer Response Ryan's response is completely false so and I am finding it difficult to write a rebuttal. We initially gave Ryan's a $4,500 deposit to remove our trees and stumps and begin work on our project. We agreed to paying for all materials that were on site. In the first two days of the project, Ryan's worker dropped a tree on our trampoline and another tree on our swingset, destroying both of them and leaving our yard a complete mess. With damage to our property and tree stumps still in the ground, we became extremely nervous about moving forward. We were assured the project would go smoother and promised a credit for the damage. During the 2nd week of work, the contractor persistently asked for $5,680 because he had ordered the stone veneer for the retaining walls and fireplace. Since he only works on cash and refuses to accept a credit card, we gave him the money within a week and advised that we wanted material on site. He never delivered the materials and after taking $10K in cash from us, he started no showing or dropping workers off for a 2-3 hour day. When we asked about our stone being delivered, Ryan's advised that they "didn't make that color any longer" and that we needed to pick a different color. We had a stern discussion with Ryan's at this point - we were upset that we were falsely told stone had been ordered, when it hadn't. We had noted walls built poorly and in the wrong places, lack of any grading or any drainage and most importantly, tree stumps still in the ground. When presenting Ryan's with the drawing he sold us, he had nothing to say about the walls being completely wrong. Deep down, we knew the walls had been constructed in the wrong location because the tree stumps were in the way. We demanded that the tree stumps be removed and that grading and drainage be completed before anything else happened in the backyard - Ryan's promised us completion and advised he would fix the walls. Over the next several weeks, Ryan's skid steer sat broken down and leaking oil through our backyard, his workers would show up for 2-3 hours a day - they would urinate in our yard, take naps, play on their phones and periodically use a shovel and sawsall to try and remove the tree stumps. Ryan's kept asking for a stone color choice and we were struggling picking the final color since our yard was in such disarray and we were concerned about stone being put onto walls that were poorly constructed and in the wrong location. Finally, we picked a color and advised [redacted] that we wanted the stone and a completion schedule delivered in one week since the project had already surpassed the promised completion date by several weeks. At this point, Ryan's responded that he wouldn't give us a schedule or our stone until we gave him another $7,000 - he advised he was in arrears and had spent all the previous funds on material, labor and gas. Obviously, the contractor's bookkeeping is not accurate and his time management is very poor. When demanding an additional $7K to give us a completion schedule and our stone that we paid for 2 months prior, he sent a hand written log of work and materials. The log stated that he worked on days that he did not show up, including days that it rained. He also added into the log two weeks that did not exist. As for the materials, we verified quantities of stone needed on our job with Ryan's and called his supplier. We were advised that the value of what we needed was about $2,000 and verified again that no stone was ever ordered. The supplier also stated to us in writing that Ryan's has a cash only account with them and that when he picks up material, it is non job specific. So, we found it unnerving that his hand written log had material costs when he doesn't purchase materials by individual job. The more we think about it and get over the emotion of losing our money, we realize that Ryan's needed our money to finance his other jobs that he had poorly run. Additionally, we don't believe he ever planned to finish this job which is why he never cared for drainage, grading or stump removal. After refusing to give an additional $7K, we received an email from Ryan's that the part to repair his skid steer that had been broken down leaking oil in our yard for over a month was in and he was going to repair it. He took everything and has abandoned the job. We are out $10,180 of hard earned money and have been left with a backyard that has no drainage, tree stumps still in place, partial retaining walls that are not only poorly constructed but in the wrong locations and oil spilled in my backyard and in the road in front of both mine and my neighbor's house. My children cannot play in the yard and their trampoline and playset have been destroyed from the negligent contractor we hired. Our backyard is no longer safe for use. Our children have not been able to go into their own backyard since early March. This project passed its deadline by 4 weeks and it was only 13% complete when Ryan's demanded more money. Our position has not changed. As we stated in our letter to Ryan's on 22MAY16, we had destructive testing performed on the walls and deemed them inadequate as they lack footings, reinforcement and grouting therefore they must be demolished and removed. We are now left with no choice but to pay another contractor to remove the tree stumps, remove the defective work and perform actual grading to make the yard safe to walk in and keep it from further eroding away. We have bid out this work and the lowest bid received was $4,000 to remove everything. Then, we will have to save up and start all over again. We gave the contractor the opportunity to refund monies due to us and he has refused and abandoned the job and our contract. Therefore, I am seeking a 100% refund as well as the money that I will be forced to spend to remove the incomplete and inferior work to make my yard safe. Specifically, $14,180 which doesn't include my destroyed swing set and trampoline. I will also have to beg for mercy from the HOA to not fine me for the disaster Ryan's Landscaping has left me with. I wish I had researched the Revdex.com prior to hiring this contractor, I wish I had trusted my gut when he didn't finish the initial and most critical part of the job, I wish I had never hired Ryan's - he took our money and completely destroyed our yard. Final Business Response Bottom line is I have the hours logged when we worked. Receipts for materials. We are in arrears $3600. I am due this payment for materials and services performed.

I had a contract with [redacted] with to build Koi Pond. He failed to finish project. I gave him $ 3617.00 on 4/14/14 to begin contract. He started on 5/5/14 delivered rocks. worked total of 40 hours and quit on 06/02/14. Texted he would be back next day, but never came back. Would not pickup certified letter or answer any text message. The major problem with design was the stream which would run into pond was a foot below top on pond. I believe he just gave up because he would have to start over to correct problem. I hired another contractor which re-designed the project and started on 07/02/14. I had to pay $ 3000 additional dollars to dig another pond and refill his errors. I want some money returned to correct his mistakes. Desired Settlementi expect $ 3000.00 refund. The monies I had to pay to correct to mistakes made by [redacted].

I contracted Ryan's Landscaping ([redacted], owner) to build an outdoor fireplace and wood fired pizza oven. The three week project took six months. There were problems with construction and function. Mr [redacted] failed to address my concerns. I filed a claim in Wake County small claims court and won a judgment against Ryan's landscaping. ","neg-2

We contracted with Ryan's Landscaping, Inc., owner [redacted], in September 2015 to construct a paver patio and fireplace in our backyard. [redacted] and crew broke ground on the project on October 23, 2015. After 7.5 months of slow progress, poor quality work, and a yard littered with construction debris, we fired [redacted]. Which was the smartest thing we could have ever done. We discovered that the caps on the retaining walls had not been glued down. Then we discovered that the retaining walls were not pinned. The entire wall of both sides of the fireplace shifted out almost 2 inches in a matter of weeks. The pavers were separating at approximately 3 feet from the edge of the retaining walls and huge wash outs were forming behind the retaining walls and stairs. We hired a mason to rebuild the retaining walls, pull up the entire paver patio, bring in additional materials, and relay the patio. At that point, our new contractor was able to finish the project. If we had not fired [redacted], we believe not only would our patio still not be complete, but that it may not in fact be standing. We shall see what the future holds for the quality of the fireplace construction. That is the only thing [redacted] built that we have not rebuilt to date. Our project ended up being more than $6k over budget and extended over 9.5 months. Stay away from [redacted] and Ryan's Landscaping. Stay far far away.","neg-1