Big Lick Soils, Inc.

I am in receipt of your letter dated September 3, 2015 on behalf of the above referenced customer.  Thanks for your notification and for the details of the complaint filed with your agency.I am the President of Big Lick Soils and incorporated the business in 2006. I have been...

professionally involved within land development processes since 1991, have worked in three jurisdictions as a professional land planner, and have been providing soil consultation services going on 26 years. I provide soil consultation services to land developers, real estate agents, land speculators, and private individuals who may desire to build a home, divide land, or otherwise want to know if their land "percs". To perform the services requested by subject client I do so under licensure by the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation as an Alternative onsite Soil Evaluator (AOSE). This licenseallows me to do soils related studies and soft engineering designs in the waste water industry.I personally met with your complainant on June 23, 2015. The purpose of my visit was to locate and design a sewage system to serve a 3 bedroom residential dwelling on a 1.1 +/- acre lot located in Roanoke County. The lot is characterized by a very large sinkhole and all portions of the lot are in the bottom, or within the bowl of the sinkhole. The client did not have a survey of the property, but assured me he knew the location of the lot lines.Three detailed soil borings were performed on the lot and the field data recorded. A drainfield (area where treated wastewater is disposed into the soil) was staked, labeled, and flagged on site delineating the area to be used for such. Based on the topography of the lot, a pump would be necessary to get the wastewater from the house to the drainfield, so additional elevation and distance data was taken in order to correctly size the hydraulics of the pump. My client was with me the entirety of the visit and we discussed locations of the proposed improvements. I also informed him that all portions of the sewer system, by State Health Code, had to be a minimum distance of 100 feet from the "lowest point" of the sinkhole which could limit his desire of house location. At the conclusion of my visit he was well aware that the lot "perced" and was developable, and could make a decision on the purchase of the property.I suggested we get a survey and see what areas we had to work with before solidifying a house location. The majority of my work was complete at this point with the exception of drawing the plans which would be easy to accomplish once we had the survey. My client seemed happy at the conclusion of my visit, paid, and did not contest any charges.I received a preliminary survey of the property on July 17, 2015. After viewing the survey I noticed that the lot lines were not as presented by my client but still workable and the drainfield was on the subject property. I contacted the surveyor to discuss the data points he had taken in the field to determine the "low point" of the sinkhole. I was told by the surveyor that our client may be purchasing additional land and that the client was informed to contact me before he got too far along.On July 23, 2015 I received a phone call from my client who was very combative that I had classified a sinkhole on his property. He also informed me that several others had told him that it was not a sinkhole. At the time of the call I was in a rural area of [redacted] County with marginal cell phone service and our call dropped. By the time I got within service range I had four messages from the client very violent in nature. I called him back to explain what was going on and to be patient through these processes. At the conclusion of our conversation all seemed fine and I was to proceed with finalizing the plans.Early on July 24, 2015 I was told by my client not to design the system, but do provide all the soils and drainfield data necessary for someone else to do the design. I tried to explain to him that we were close to completion but he was upset and would not reason. I started preparing what information he wanted from me.I received an email from my client at 3:21 pm on the 24th that he had decided to acquire the services of another firm and was "going to start from scratch".  Also by same email requested that I send him an immediate "refund or he would see me in court".The amount quoted by me and paid by my client was $1000.00 which was paid in cash at the conclusion of my visit. On July 28 I sent my client a refund in the amount of $250.00 for services not performed which was returned to me with another of his lengthy and hostile letters. In your letter to me on the Complaint Information sheet the $1175.00 amount is incorrect. No more than $1000.00 was quoted or charged. A copy of the invoice and returned check are attached.Never before in my professional career have I experienced a client so discontent and stubborn. I went out of my way to help and guide him through this process. As is common with private individuals that I deal with, I found out a lot of information about him on a personal level. Recently out of graduate school at my Alma Mater, fresh marriage, and a new job within the public school system. I feel that I gave him better service and provided more resources than I usually do for someone developing land for profit.I can provide you with emails, letters, and voice mails between me and my client if you feel necessary. If I can provide additional information or answer any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at [redacted]Sincerely,Jay Carter, AOSE

Demoine Declouette is not a truthful person (OK so he is a liar) He accepted a B2B job assignment and then never showed up to perform the work. He made my company look bad. He is NOT a trustworthy person. If he lied to me, will he lie to you? Will your business transactions be dealt with in an honest manner? Will he take your money and run?

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.This is yet another example of how a business should not be run. Instead of offering any information about the situation at first, instead you decide to fill your response with a lot of pointless information. You are not a part of any land approval, or permit authorizing organization at this time. Therefore, it is not your business to make decisions or tell people what someone else will do when it comes to these areas. You never said anything about the location of the house except that it could not be on the front. It comes to prove that you were wrong. The VDH has since approved of a plan with the house on the front against what you dictated to me. Other professionals in your field completely discredited what you had said and when you were confronted with this you were very unhappy. You claim the "majority" of the work was done. However, having had a true professional take your job over it, has become abundantly clear the lack of work that had been done. I received 5 copies of a 10 page report ready to file with the VDH with the plan that I had wanted you to do. You sent me a small section of about 5 sentences which I have uploaded the surveyor's work next to what I got from you. You did not want to listen to what I wanted to do. You went behind my back to the surveyor to get me to change what my decision was because you had "issues". Why had you not contacted me at any point after receiving the survey? You have admitted that you did not contact me about any issues with anything. Instead you waited for me to call you. That is totally unprofessional. If you want to call me catching you in lies combative, then I guess you are correct. You had lied to me about the house not being able to be put on the front. Again, I have the VDH's APPROVED septic permit to prove that it is not only possible but approved. The extra land has not been purchased and it was approved without the additional land. Again, you lie about the fact you told me it was "close to completion". We were communicating by email at that point, and I can provide that to the Revdex.com with all email contacts. This will then prove you never said anything of the sort. I can also prove you never called me after that point through phone records. How could you have informed me of this if not in an email and you never called me? Again please provide proof your claims. It is obvious you just want to lie at this point to put yourself in a better light. I have attached the email correspondence where you can see you never said such a thing. Yes, with someone that had lied to me on many occasions, asked me "if I had calmed down yet" after hanging up on me, went behind my back to the surveyor (which you have now admitted), and tried to over step the bounds of his job, it was obvious you could not listen to reason. I already had wasted 3 weeks with you not doing any work, and am not going to waste any more time with you by not letting you know the extent I will take the issue. I have the bank record of the money that was withdrawn that day from my bank account, which is something I NEVER do, which can be proven by past bank statements. I rarely write a check or use the atm, let alone take money out through the bank. If you want to claim otherwise, I am not surprised you are just continuing your pattern of lying. The invoice you gave me was printed a long time after the date at which you were paid, because you never gave me an invoice up to that point, but again I don't expect you to be honest. I can provide the only invoice I have which was dated long after you had been paid. I have uploaded the only invoice you gave me dated over a month after you did the work. If you treated your customers better, maybe you wouldn't run into customers that got fed up with your antics. Most people aren't willing to find out if you overstepped your bounds, lied or gave mis-information. Just because someone catches you lying doesn't mean they are "stubborn" nor "discontent". Again you have no problem lying because I am NOT married. So please provide phone records that you called me after I requested you stop the work or provide the email where you said you told me the work was almost complete, because it does not exist. Please provide proof of 4 voicemails.My goal with the Revdex.com is to inform others about this person's ability to lie, cheat, and ask for cash before he has even done any work. He also told me that it "would be cheaper if you pay in cash". It seems this is not the industry standard by all the others I have contacted, and I think people need to be informed of this as well. My hope here is that no one else ever is subjected to his want to pretend he has more power then he truly does, and how he doesn't truly care about people's jobs. He only cares about what HE thinks. I do not expect him to hear reason, nor make any changes. As he told me in an email "I will gladly see you in small claims court", which we do have scheduled. He also then stated that "I would also recommend that you discontinue sending me the misguided
psychoanalytical voice messages and emails, as I strongly feel it
constitutes harassment." Which is uploaded in the email I am attaching. This will show customers exactly what type of service this person provides. This is the extent you have to go through to get a refund from someone like this after he wont do the work he is hired to do. I want others to be protected from his unprofessional and irrational behavior.
Regards,
[redacted]

I had an issue with a roof on a 10 year old manufactured roof and called D&D Construction for an estimate the quote was affordable and told him to please schedule to my amazement he was out the next morning to measure the roof and he scheduled the project for the following Monday he found a total of four Rot spots in decking he repaired and installed a metal roof and the job was complete to satisfaction in the next day.... To say I am positive and to say I am pleased is an understatement... I have already refered one friend to D&D Construction, He is good people.

Review: The person who is in this company and does work has one of the lowest level of customer service that I have ever experienced. He lied to me many times throughout the process and got angry when I confronted him about it. One such lie was how my septic could be designed and where my house could be placed. It turns out the Department of Health has approved the plan that I wanted, regardless of [redacted] insistence that it could not be done. When he refused to do the work that I was looking for, I asked him for a refund. He only offered $250 dollars. This would mean he would make more than 750 dollars for doing next to nothing. The guy is a totally shady character. He also told me that it would "be cheaper if I paid in cash" and then still charged me more than he had quoted me. In trying to get a refund that is appropriate he told me that I need to take it to small claims court, we have our date scheduled as this is the only way he will refund more of the money.Desired Settlement: Refund the money that he was paid.

Business

Response:

I am in receipt of your letter dated September 3, 2015 on behalf of the above referenced customer. Thanks for your notification and for the details of the complaint filed with your agency.I am the President of Big Lick Soils and incorporated the business in 2006. I have been professionally involved within land development processes since 1991, have worked in three jurisdictions as a professional land planner, and have been providing soil consultation services going on 26 years. I provide soil consultation services to land developers, real estate agents, land speculators, and private individuals who may desire to build a home, divide land, or otherwise want to know if their land "percs". To perform the services requested by subject client I do so under licensure by the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation as an Alternative onsite Soil Evaluator (AOSE). This licenseallows me to do soils related studies and soft engineering designs in the waste water industry.I personally met with your complainant on June 23, 2015. The purpose of my visit was to locate and design a sewage system to serve a 3 bedroom residential dwelling on a 1.1 +/- acre lot located in Roanoke County. The lot is characterized by a very large sinkhole and all portions of the lot are in the bottom, or within the bowl of the sinkhole. The client did not have a survey of the property, but assured me he knew the location of the lot lines.Three detailed soil borings were performed on the lot and the field data recorded. A drainfield (area where treated wastewater is disposed into the soil) was staked, labeled, and flagged on site delineating the area to be used for such. Based on the topography of the lot, a pump would be necessary to get the wastewater from the house to the drainfield, so additional elevation and distance data was taken in order to correctly size the hydraulics of the pump. My client was with me the entirety of the visit and we discussed locations of the proposed improvements. I also informed him that all portions of the sewer system, by State Health Code, had to be a minimum distance of 100 feet from the "lowest point" of the sinkhole which could limit his desire of house location. At the conclusion of my visit he was well aware that the lot "perced" and was developable, and could make a decision on the purchase of the property.I suggested we get a survey and see what areas we had to work with before solidifying a house location. The majority of my work was complete at this point with the exception of drawing the plans which would be easy to accomplish once we had the survey. My client seemed happy at the conclusion of my visit, paid, and did not contest any charges.I received a preliminary survey of the property on July 17, 2015. After viewing the survey I noticed that the lot lines were not as presented by my client but still workable and the drainfield was on the subject property. I contacted the surveyor to discuss the data points he had taken in the field to determine the "low point" of the sinkhole. I was told by the surveyor that our client may be purchasing additional land and that the client was informed to contact me before he got too far along.On July 23, 2015 I received a phone call from my client who was very combative that I had classified a sinkhole on his property. He also informed me that several others had told him that it was not a sinkhole. At the time of the call I was in a rural area of [redacted] County with marginal cell phone service and our call dropped. By the time I got within service range I had four messages from the client very violent in nature. I called him back to explain what was going on and to be patient through these processes. At the conclusion of our conversation all seemed fine and I was to proceed with finalizing the plans.Early on July 24, 2015 I was told by my client not to design the system, but do provide all the soils and drainfield data necessary for someone else to do the design. I tried to explain to him that we were close to completion but he was upset and would not reason. I started preparing what information he wanted from me.I received an email from my client at 3:21 pm on the 24th that he had decided to acquire the services of another firm and was "going to start from scratch". Also by same email requested that I send him an immediate "refund or he would see me in court".The amount quoted by me and paid by my client was $1000.00 which was paid in cash at the conclusion of my visit. On July 28 I sent my client a refund in the amount of $250.00 for services not performed which was returned to me with another of his lengthy and hostile letters. In your letter to me on the Complaint Information sheet the $1175.00 amount is incorrect. No more than $1000.00 was quoted or charged. A copy of the invoice and returned check are attached.Never before in my professional career have I experienced a client so discontent and stubborn. I went out of my way to help and guide him through this process. As is common with private individuals that I deal with, I found out a lot of information about him on a personal level. Recently out of graduate school at my Alma Mater, fresh marriage, and a new job within the public school system. I feel that I gave him better service and provided more resources than I usually do for someone developing land for profit.I can provide you with emails, letters, and voice mails between me and my client if you feel necessary. If I can provide additional information or answer any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at [redacted]Sincerely,Jay Carter, AOSE

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.This is yet another example of how a business should not be run. Instead of offering any information about the situation at first, instead you decide to fill your response with a lot of pointless information. You are not a part of any land approval, or permit authorizing organization at this time. Therefore, it is not your business to make decisions or tell people what someone else will do when it comes to these areas. You never said anything about the location of the house except that it could not be on the front. It comes to prove that you were wrong. The VDH has since approved of a plan with the house on the front against what you dictated to me. Other professionals in your field completely discredited what you had said and when you were confronted with this you were very unhappy. You claim the "majority" of the work was done. However, having had a true professional take your job over it, has become abundantly clear the lack of work that had been done. I received 5 copies of a 10 page report ready to file with the VDH with the plan that I had wanted you to do. You sent me a small section of about 5 sentences which I have uploaded the surveyor's work next to what I got from you. You did not want to listen to what I wanted to do. You went behind my back to the surveyor to get me to change what my decision was because you had "issues". Why had you not contacted me at any point after receiving the survey? You have admitted that you did not contact me about any issues with anything. Instead you waited for me to call you. That is totally unprofessional. If you want to call me catching you in lies combative, then I guess you are correct. You had lied to me about the house not being able to be put on the front. Again, I have the VDH's APPROVED septic permit to prove that it is not only possible but approved. The extra land has not been purchased and it was approved without the additional land. Again, you lie about the fact you told me it was "close to completion". We were communicating by email at that point, and I can provide that to the Revdex.com with all email contacts. This will then prove you never said anything of the sort. I can also prove you never called me after that point through phone records. How could you have informed me of this if not in an email and you never called me? Again please provide proof your claims. It is obvious you just want to lie at this point to put yourself in a better light. I have attached the email correspondence where you can see you never said such a thing. Yes, with someone that had lied to me on many occasions, asked me "if I had calmed down yet" after hanging up on me, went behind my back to the surveyor (which you have now admitted), and tried to over step the bounds of his job, it was obvious you could not listen to reason. I already had wasted 3 weeks with you not doing any work, and am not going to waste any more time with you by not letting you know the extent I will take the issue. I have the bank record of the money that was withdrawn that day from my bank account, which is something I NEVER do, which can be proven by past bank statements. I rarely write a check or use the atm, let alone take money out through the bank. If you want to claim otherwise, I am not surprised you are just continuing your pattern of lying. The invoice you gave me was printed a long time after the date at which you were paid, because you never gave me an invoice up to that point, but again I don't expect you to be honest. I can provide the only invoice I have which was dated long after you had been paid. I have uploaded the only invoice you gave me dated over a month after you did the work. If you treated your customers better, maybe you wouldn't run into customers that got fed up with your antics. Most people aren't willing to find out if you overstepped your bounds, lied or gave mis-information. Just because someone catches you lying doesn't mean they are "stubborn" nor "discontent". Again you have no problem lying because I am NOT married. So please provide phone records that you called me after I requested you stop the work or provide the email where you said you told me the work was almost complete, because it does not exist. Please provide proof of 4 voicemails.My goal with the Revdex.com is to inform others about this person's ability to lie, cheat, and ask for cash before he has even done any work. He also told me that it "would be cheaper if you pay in cash". It seems this is not the industry standard by all the others I have contacted, and I think people need to be informed of this as well. My hope here is that no one else ever is subjected to his want to pretend he has more power then he truly does, and how he doesn't truly care about people's jobs. He only cares about what HE thinks. I do not expect him to hear reason, nor make any changes. As he told me in an email "I will gladly see you in small claims court", which we do have scheduled. He also then stated that "I would also recommend that you discontinue sending me the misguided

psychoanalytical voice messages and emails, as I strongly feel it

constitutes harassment." Which is uploaded in the email I am attaching. This will show customers exactly what type of service this person provides. This is the extent you have to go through to get a refund from someone like this after he wont do the work he is hired to do. I want others to be protected from his unprofessional and irrational behavior.

Regards,