All Granite and Marble Corp.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
All written in the response is not true, except two men trying to clean stains from the material that should be, like they say stain resistance. Second  man who came to my house said  it's not stone. I never have a chance to even see the slabs. I hired the lawyer,  who will deal wit this case. I'm out of patience.
Regards,
[redacted]

Review: The install the material ( stone in my kitchen) which is not what I ordered. Instead of Quartz it's some kind of plastik. I need money back. It costs to much to fix it for me ! They scamsDesired Settlement: Refund all my expenses

Business

Response:

June 30, 2015 [redacted]Revdex.com Serving New Jersey1262 Whitehorse-Hamilton Square RoadBuilding A, Suite 202Hamilton, NJ 08690 Re: Customer Complaint, [redacted], ID [redacted] We are in receipt of [redacted] above referenced complaint. As a leader in the industry, All Granite and Marble Corp. (“All Granite”) performsapproximately 10,000 installations per year. All Granite is proud of its accomplishments, andits track-record. On the rare occasion of dissatisfaction from a customer, we make every effort to ensure eachcustomer’s concerns are heard, and a fair resolution is reached so that the customer ispleased with the outcome. In this case, we have carefully examined the contents of the complaint, and we have come tothe conclusion that the complainant is not entitled to a reimbursement based on the factsbelow. In regards to the complainant’s allegation that the material is not what the complainantordered, and that: “instead of Quartz it’s some kind of plastik [sic],” it is submitted in replythat this allegation is false. The results of our investigation into this matter showed with100% certainty that the stone slab that the complainant chose at the All Granite facility wasindeed the very same material that was delivered and installed in the complainant’s home. It is All Granite policy that the customer personally selects which stone slab he/she wants,and which sections of the stone the customer would like cut into the final products in theprocess we call the “final slab selection.” That process entails that the customer select a stoneslab from our inventory of hundreds of stone slabs, then proceeds with “taping off” thesections of the slab he/she wants cut with masking tape in accordance with themeasurements taken by the measuring technician at the customer’s home. No cutting occurs 1 before the client “tapes off” the areas of the slab he/she wants cut on the stone slab he/shepersonally selects. After the process of “final slab selection,” and prior to the actual stone cutting, the productionmanager always meets with the customer to ensure that the customer has no concerns withthe stone products they have selected to be cut. This process is our “fail safe” policy to ensurecustomer satisfaction because it is company policy that no cancellations can be made afterthe stone slab is cut. In this case, it is not practicably possible for a different stone slab to have been installed otherthan the one selected by the complainant because the chosen slab was immediately markedso that no other customer choose the same slab. In addition, the slab was also marked withmasking tape by the customer as aforementioned in the process of “final slab selection” sothat the customer knew precisely which sections of the slab she would receive. The material that the complainant selected was an engineered stone that was imported fromone of our foreign manufacturers. The said stone is one of our most popular quartz stones,which is known by the trade name, “Herostone.” Our engineered quartz slabs are made by various manufacturers in unique processes thatbinds composite material made of crushed quartz stone together with a synthetic adhesivethat forms a hard enamel-like finish. The composition of the adhesive, and method offormation of the final engineered stone product is typically a proprietary trade secret of themanufacturer of the engineered stone slabs. It is the unique composition of the adhesive andmethod of formation that is responsible for the distinctive qualities and final appearance ofthe stone surface. The engineered quartz surfaces offer advantages over conventional granite and marblesurfaces in that they are much harder and stronger than marble and granite; they require noresealing; they are highly resistant to scratches and stains; they are resistant to manyabrasive chemicals and microbial growth; and they are also available in a large variety ofcolors. Based on the wording of the customer’s complaint, it is possible that the “kind of plastik [sic]”the customer is displeased with is the hardened resin adhesive that contains the crushedquartz stone. If this is the case, the complainant may not have fully appreciated the extentthat the engineered quartz surface would contain a synthetic enamel-like component alongwith the crushed quartz at purchase. All Granite endeavors to educate all customers as to advantages of the wide variety of stonesin our showroom at the time of purchase so that the customer makes the best choice so thatthe final product meets their aesthetic and practical goals. All Granite appreciates that thischoice is a very important decision because countertops can last a lifetime, and we thereforego out of our way to assist clients by providing highly knowledgeable and experienced salesprofessionals; offering informational brochures and videos; and even encourage the 2 customers to take home a small stone sample before purchase to be 100% sure that thechosen stone will match their cabinets, walls, and floors. Regardless of our efforts, the customer always has the final say as to what stone product theywant installed. On the rare occasion where a client is displeased with their final stoneproduct, it is almost always because the customer did not choose an appropriate stone tomeet their aesthetic and practical goals and/or did not heed the advice of our salesprofessionals. Here, if the customer did not desire a synthetic look to her stone product, sheshould not have chosen an engineered stone. It is for this very situation that All Granite protects itself legally by stating in its terms andconditions that, ““once the final price of the project is confirmed and we proceed with cutting, nocancellations can be made...” The terms and conditions are designed to protect All Granitebecause each stone slab that is cut into a custom stone product represents an irrevocableprocess. In regards to the complainant’s statement: “it costs to much to fix it for me! [sic],” the facts ofthe matter are that All Granite agreed twice to dispatch a technician free of charge to removestains that arose on the complainant’s stone products from allegedly accidental spills. Inboth instances, the stain was successfully removed, resulting in a completely unblemishedsurface. As stated previously, the particular surface the complainant purchased is highly resistant tostains, and it is therefore highly unusual that stains should occur twice within a few weeksafter purchase when the vast majority of purchasers of these products do not have any issuesfor years after purchase. In conclusion, it is submitted that All Granite acted fairly and ethically at all times during thetransaction. Consequently, it is submitted that the complainant is not entitled to a refund. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact me.Yours Sincerely, Administrative ManagerAll Granite and Marble Corp.

Consumer

Response:

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

All written in the response is not true, except two men trying to clean stains from the material that should be, like they say stain resistance. Second man who came to my house said it's not stone. I never have a chance to even see the slabs. I hired the lawyer, who will deal wit this case. I'm out of patience.

Regards,

I am a customer at the Rochester, NY location. Their sincere interest in accommodating our selection(s) as we redesigned a house under renovation helped us make the best decision and we are so pleased with our choice. The rep who came to the house to make measurements was also very helpful, explaining to us what the next steps would be and making us feel confident in our choice. A very good experience.

Review: My husband and I went to the [redacted] location to purchase granite countertops. We picked out the colors we liked and went into to sales area to discuss pricing and options with Marcin, the gentleman helping us. During our tour of the quarry, we were asking questions about the stone colors, and variations, and voiced concerns about slabs they had in the quarry. After deciding on the one color we both liked, I traveled to this same location to discuss concerns about sizing for our island and support for this island area. This trip was only due to the fact that Dan, the location manager, had not returned my call for almost a week. Once there, the guy helping me, did not have the answers, and was asking another person my questions. The other person ended up being, Dan, the person who was ignoring all my phone calls [which I let him know]. We discussed my island concerns and the fact if we needed a support system for this area, since it extended over the 12" allowance. After our discussion, I felt good about our decision, and scheduled a templater to come out and measure our countertops. During this visit, I asked questions, and discussed our countertops, what the corners were going to look like, and also discussed the sink and faucet issue. This gentleman told me that we had the wrong type of faucet for our under mount sink, and we needed to get another faucet that did not have a plate on it, but three individual units. Originally, he thought our sink was not an under-mount sink, but did read where it said it was top mount or under-mount and told us we were fine with the sink, but needed to replace the faucet with a different one. We went out and purchased several options, and decided on one that matched out stainless steel sink. During the installation of the countertops, 11 days later [when I was told it would be 3 to 5 days], the one gentleman asked me for our faucet, because he wanted to make sure it fit into the area that they just drilled. I gave him the faucet, and walked back into the living room. He came over and said, "I had to drill the sink a little, because the holes were not lining up, and the faucet width would not fit into the area". I went into the kitchen and asked what had happened that these holes did not line up, because the templater took the full size diagram with him, and knew exactly were the holes needed to be, and where the holes were on the predrilled sink? He said that he needed to cut the hole back a little, because if he went too close, he could have broken the granite, by getting too close to the area where the sink area was already cut out. So I continued to ask, "how did this happened, and what are you going to do now". I said, this will void my warranty with the sink manufacturer, [redacted], because you altered the original product that we just purchased brand new? I was aggravated, because he did not tell me this ahead of time, but after it was done, and my husband, whom I was texting told me, "don't let them drill the sink", and I replied, he already did.

The second problem was during this time, and after this time, I pointed out an area on the island, which had a deep scratch, which you could feel with your fingernail. I asked them what happened and how were they going to fix it? The came over, tried to buff it out, and smooth it over, but I could still see it. So the attempted to fix it again, but it did not work.

The third issue was a problem with the amount of space from the countertop to the wall, where the tile would not cover the large gap in some areas because the countertop was not laid down evenly, and measures were not precise. Along with this issue, the seams that were put together badly, rough, and looked horrible to see. Along with that, the color variation that we discussed with them on our first visit and my second visit was exactly what we did not want in our stone. We had a big white blotch in our countertop, which ran about two feet to the right. It looked as if it was bleached.

At this point, I called the office to speak to Dan and no one answered the phone. I called again, and same thing happened, and I finally asked the installers to call and have someone pick up the phone, they finally did, but it was Bart, not Dan the manager, who I was trying to get a hold of. I explained everything to Bart, about the color variation in the countertop, to the seams in front of the sink, to the installers drilling our sink, and the scratch in the island. He said that they would look into it, and have the installers take photographs, which they did. I then tried to call and email Bart several times, and he would not respond. I then called another location and spoke to the Service Manager, and explained what happened. He said that they will fix the issues, and make everything right. He also agreed that the installer should not have drilled the sink as well. However, now my concern was that they were paid in full, I had problems with my product that was installed, and no one was calling me back, or replying to my concerns. Unfortunately, you hear to many horror stories about companies not following through with things like this, and I did not want to be a victim. I then had my husband call, from another phone [since they clearly have caller ID] and asked for Bart. We finally got him on the phone and were able to discuss the issues, and that I did look up my sinks warranty and that what they did, voided my lifetime warranty on my new sink. He said that they may be able to give a small amount off, in order for us to keep the countertops that we had, and still come back and fix the seam, and also fix the scratch in the island. My response was that it would have to be a significant amount more, since we would have to pay out of pocket, more money to our contractor, in order to get the walls where they needed to be, from the 'shoty' installation of the countertops, and that they were not the same distance away from the wall in all areas. Also, I still wanted them to address the issue about the sink, which they would not.

That following Monday, Bart called me back and said that they were going to replace the whole countertops "L" shape, which is where the sink was, and the problem where there was uneven distance from the countertop to the walls, all the way down. What this meant was that they needed to tear up the whole section from our cabinets, and sink area, and replace it. Bart then asked me to send him the warranty, which stated that it was voided because the sink was altered. Instead of sending him that, I called [redacted] myself, and spoke to service personnel, who contacted a technician, who confirmed that we did not have a warranty on this sink and that from him tampering with it, it could have left it in an unstable condition, and it should be replaced. I took that email, and forwarded it to Bart for review. Bart then called me back and said that they were not replacing our sink, and that he spoke to Dan, the location manager, and their general manager, Tom and they all said that the sink was okay and nothing was wrong with it. However, the sink still was not hooked up, so none of us know if there is an issue or is not. However, they REFUSED to replace the sink that they tampered with, without my permission. At this point, he stated that the new countertop would be ready for reinstallation by Thursday, and this was Monday - and the countertops were being shipped from their New Jersey location, to their PA location, but everything would be ready by Thursday. I told him we needed an installation time, after we got out of work, since I already took a day off for both the measuring and original installation, and this error was their fault, and I should not be put out for this error. They called on Wednesday evening, and said that our scheduled installation was set for Thursday, between noon and 3 PM. As you can see, my request for after work went unheard again, and this company, just continues to do what they want, without taking into consideration what the customer is saying to them. After speaking with my husband, he decided to take the day off, and be home when they came. By the time I got home, they were gone, and the first thing I noticed was the seam in front of the sink, the one that I originally complained about still was not smooth, it had chips where the both sides of the granite met, and deep scratches that you could feel with your fingernail right smack dap in front, where you can see when you are near the sink area. They never did anything with the sink, so we paid almost $300 for a brand new [redacted] stainless steel sink, and by them installing this, and not doing this in a more professional manner, they ended up voiding our lifetime warranty on our sink, so if anything happens with workmanship, faulty product, etc., there is nothing we can do, since we no longer had this warranty in place - due to All Granite and Marble, installing this. And lastly, the scratch in the island is still visible, and it looks like they used some type of marker or something that is giving this area an iridescent glow, but the scratch is still there and is still visible.

So now, we paid this company for brand new countertops, that should have been installed professionally, and without any marks, dings, dents, errors, scratches or scrapes. Also, they damaged our property, which they had no right or permission to do, and left us with a potential increased charge, if something were to happen to our sink. This companies responsiveness, customer service, and ability to deal with errors that they created, made this one of the worst experiences ever. We paid for new countertops, and ended up with ones with scratches, and damage to them, and not to mention damaging property that was not even theirs, without permission or consent. I have dealt with Bart during this problem, and have called Dan [[redacted] manager], and continued to contact Thomas the general manager, asking him to call me back, and received no call, even though he read and received every email I sent to him. I even tried to reach out to the owner of the company to let them know what was happening, but was unable to find their phone number. This experience has been totally ridiculous, unnecessary, and a huge inconvenience to both my husband and me.Desired Settlement: I would like to receive a full refund on my sink, which All Granite & Marble, tampered with and voided my warranty. We purchased this item, because it was a better quality of sink than the ones All Granite & Marble gave for free, and this came with a lifetime warranty - plus [redacted] is one of the best companies in this area [$300], plus the scratch on our island, and scratches on our countertop. We paid for a brand new, non-damaged countertop and that is not what we received. These scratches will always be there, and should not be. If someone were to buy a brand new car, and it had a scratch on it, they would either get money off, or insist on a new one. Even though they replaced our "L" shaped countertop, they still scratched the new one - leaving it noticable. For that, we would like to be reimbursed another $500. We would like a total cash refund of $800.

Business

Response:

October 29, 2014Dear [redacted],We are in receipt of [redacted]’s above referenced complaint.Please be advised that we

have carefully examined the contents of the complaint, and we have decided to

compensate [redacted] for the total amount she requested in her complaint.As of the date of this

letter, All Granite has already contacted [redacted] to offer her the

compensation, and she has graciously agreed to accept it and to take no further

action against us in this matter.As a leader in the

industry, All Granite performs approximately 10,000 installations per year. As

our track-record indicates, the vast majority of customers are satisfied

customers who are pleased with the product, as well as the customer service

they received. It has been determined that

the root cause of [redacted]’s complaint was a regrettable breakdown in

communication between [redacted] and All Granite. [redacted]’s problems with

her natural surface coincided with our Stroudsburg location manager’s time off

from work for a vacation. A location manager’s duties includes receiving

customer complaints, and dispatching crews to fix the problems. Because any

natural stone installation is a major undertaking, it is not uncommon for crews

to be re-dispatched to “touch up” a project to a customer’s satisfaction. All

Granite usually does this free of charge to ensure customer satisfaction.As a result of the location

manager’s absence, All Granite was unfortunately not able to appropriately deal

with [redacted]’s problems with her natural surface when they arose. However,

as a result of the complaint, All Granite has made systematic changes in policy

so that this does not occur again by ensuring that emails and phone calls are

re-routed to the main office when a location manager is away, instead of to a

subordinate employee at that location. All Granite has conveyed

its regrets to [redacted], and [redacted] has, in fact, told us that she

intends to proceed with more projects with our company. Please feel free to

contact [redacted] to hear her account of our resolution.If you have any further

questions, do not hesitate to contact me.Yours

Sincerely,