Driveway Concepts Incorporated

To whom it may concern,Attached is the original proposal which shows the options offered to the [redacted]      The [redacted]'s were given 3 options to repair their driveway. A photo of the contract with the options is attached. Two of the options contained patching.   ...

        Option 1: This is the option which they paid for and was completed.      Option 1 was $575 to repair blacktop and band aid the situation. By no means was this to correct grading or water runoff. It is simply a patch to remove existing poor asphalt and replace with new by removing the broken pieces. This was the option they chose and we completed as requested. There is no change in the grading of the asphalt when only patching.      Option 2: was just sealer only.      Option 3:  $2755.00   That option is what was needed to correct their driveway issues, but they chose not to do that because of various reasons on their end. The [redacted] block curb along the property traps water and this is a major repair that requires extensive work that the customer did not paid for.      We completed the work that they agreed to and paid $510 for (which was discounted).  We can not give a customer the higher priced work unless they agree to and pay for it. That is why we give our customers options, so they can choose the work they want and can afford.       SO IN GOOD FAITH, we went out on several occasions and even cut another patch along with the one we did for them the first time that extended and enlarged the first patch. We made every attempt to make them happy within the scope of work they agreed to pay for.     So, we will not provide a refund. They requested a patch and they received the patch per scope of work. I WILL credit THE MONEY TOWARDS DOING option 3.   Besides option 3, which was NOT requested nor paid for, there is no further recourse that DCI will follow in regards to making the [redacted] happy or returning their money.      Sincerely,Joseph M[redacted], CEO

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Revdex.com:Thanks first of all to the Revdex.com. You helped me get this situation resulted.
Regarding this complaint, although I do not agree with the last response from the business(DCI), this may have been sent prior to them coming out to fix my problem. They did come out yesterday and fixed the cracks and re-sealed the driveway. The person from DCI stated to me that the job was not done properly the first time. This was definitely a challenging situation for me as a consumer and could have been easily avoided a few months ago by someone at DCI coming out to review the sloppy job that was done the first time. I am glad that that DCI finally came out and fixed my situation and I am very satisfied that the driveway looks like it should for the original amount I paid DCI.You can close out this complaint ID [redacted], as I am satisfied that my driveway was done properly this time.
Thank you,
[redacted]

We have explained to [redacted] that DCI could not redirect her water with a cold patch.  She would need more than DCI could give to her.  We also explained that she would need a patch to redirect the water.  DCI could not do that for her because her driveway was too damaged.  She...

was not happy with that response.  Please let me know if you need any further information from me.Joe M[redacted]DCI President

These guys repaved my driveway 5 years ago. That whole process went ok, however they "splashed" a fair amount of blacktop on my lawn. I got over it and the lawn grew back. Two years ago I called them to come seal it... the never showed up or called. Last year, I called again for sealing and they still had my quote from the year prior. Again, they never showed or called. I'm kind of thick-headed, so I called them again this year. The quote went up, which I didn't argue with. They told me they would call me Sunday May 3rd with a specific date for that week. I had to call them on May 5th and they told me I was on the schedule for Saturday (gee, thanks for letting me know and/or checking if that was ok). We had a big bbq planned for that day and they said that they would come on Sunday May 10th instead. They also said they'd call the day before to confirm. Well, the whole weekend passed with no call and no sealing. I called them this morning and am still waiting for that call back. These guys are terrible. How they manage to still be in business is beyond me. I don't think they ever once called me or called me back. All I did was chase them down. I'm slow, I know, but I am finally moving on...

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]Hello,
I am rejecting this response because:When I called this company DCI they came out to do an estimate, I asked whether I need to do a repave now or if I could wait and just get a ceiling done with crack filler. I was told that if I get there alligator coating(extra cost)it would seal the cracks and hold me for a few years and that it would look good. I spent the extra money for that service. What I found was that many of the cracks were not filled properly or at all and the parts that were done were sloppily put on. They simply seal coated the driveway and crack filled some of the cracks, however it looks bad with many cracks not filled.
So I can't see spending more money to have additional paving done. I want  this company to come out and use the crack filler as they had originally said they would and fill the cracks and reseal the driveway. This should not cost me additional money since it wasn't done correctly the first time.
I have had my driveway coated numerous times before and have never had issues like this where I feel compelled to reach out to the Revdex.com. All I'm asking for is the driveway to look decent and for this company to do the job they originally told me they would do for the price I originally paid. I would be happy to provide photos to the bureau as to how my driveway looks. You would see from the photos that there are many areas that were not even filled with the crack filler; and where it was crack filled, it was not done properly.
Regards,
[redacted]

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:The process and materials as explained by the owner's sales representative is not how the process was performed. He represented to me they could do the job with materials that would not pull up or show tire marks. 
Regards,
[redacted]

[redacted],
We can have a truck out this week to touch up some of the cracks.
However, with a driveway as deteriorated as yours, the cracks will not be even, nor will they all be "filled". It is not possible to fill ALL the cracks or your price would be 3 x's the price. It was not a sloppy job, it is a badly deteriorated driveway. You have hollow areas underneath that until it is ripped out and replaced with new asphalt, we can not and will not be responsible.  You asked for a sealcoat and some crack repair which we provided.  Our terms reinforce our policy on crack repair. We continue to stand by the work performed given the extent of deterioration of your driveway.

We have spoken to the customer to address any additional areas of concern. We will be sending someone out again to finish the touchups.

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If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  BUT CLARIFICATION is needed.  Yes this business, DCI did complete the job but it was NOT a "touch up".  They never completed the job on their 1st visit.  They were paid in full & left an incomplete job.  Took 6 weeks to resolve but yes, the job is completed now. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I want to get passed this so I am accepting the response to close out this complaint.  The bill has been paid although I am not satisfied.
Please close out this complaint.
Thanks,
[redacted]

We had DCI do a driveway overlay of asphalt on 9/14/2014 at a Cost of $3,600. With DCI recommendation had them sealcoat the drive on 5/19/2015.. our driveway has began to have cracks after the sealcoat also the driveway began to "flake" in front of our garage door they said it was from turning into the garage. We complain to DCI they sent someone out and basically we were told "so sad to bad" I don't believe that if the if it were good mixture of asphalt not only wouldn't we have developed these cracks(width wide of driveway) but the turning of tires would have made the driveway flake... I look at all the streets that have been just "blacktopped" and I don't see these type of problems and the streets have very heavy traffic.. Others neighbors who have had their driveways resurfaced by different companies don't have these problems with ....

[redacted]'s driveway is in need of repaving. He was informed that the alligatored areas on his driveway can not be resolved through the process of sealcoating. Sealcoating is a liquid that is applied as a maintenance step to help prevent further damage to a driveway. It is...

not new asphalt. Just as liquid paint can not repair a crumbling wall, Sealer can not fix crumbling asphalt.Representatives at DCI, including myself have told [redacted] that he needs to either have the broken areas ripped out and patched or he needs to have the whole driveway resurfaced with new asphalt. We offer both those services at a substantial difference in cost. [redacted] informed me that he did not want to spend the additional money to repair his driveway properly and so DCI was hired to sealcoat and perform minor crack repair to help prevent further deterioration until he can afford to fix his driveway appropriately. After a conversation with [redacted], I offered to sealcoat his driveway again next year- for free, to maintain good customer service, but ONLY AFTER he patches his deteriorated areas. As liquid sealer mirrors the surface it is applied to, if [redacted] does not repair those broken areas with asphalt, then his driveway will continue to look the way it currently does only with the sealer aiding in slowing down the deterioration.
DCI has been in the business of Paving, Sealcoating and asphalt repair since 1995. We are one of the largest purchasers of sealer in the area. We understand asphalt and we have many levels of service options to help customers maintain their asphalt. Sealer is not a cure-all. It is a preventative maintenance measure. If damage is already present only costly asphalt patches and or a new overlay of the driveway can cure those issues.   
As for his neighbors driveways looking better, DCI has sealed 7 of his neighbors driveways in the past. Many have been customers for years. If their driveways are in better condition than that may be attributed to the maintenance service they receive from our company.
Thank you,
[redacted]

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved] Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
[redacted] -
Nowhere in my complaint do I state the rain was a fabrication.  In fact, I confirm in my complaint that it did rain later that evening.  My complaint states that even with the pending rain, you asked your crews to push forward with the work, rather than rescheduling the last two homes that day (my house and my neighbor's).  As a result, the quality of work was poor.  The crews rushed the job and skipped several of the steps [redacted] indicated happen for every sealcoat job.  As for the timing of your crews departure from my home, we just won't agree on that.  I have a message from my wife on 3:52PM confirming the crew just arrived.  They were at my place a minimum of 45 minutes, then went on to my neighbor's house.  I doubt they finished his home in less time, since my neighbor's driveway is larger than mine.  Regardless of actual departure time, the key point for me is that you pushed the crew to do the job knowing the pending rain was coming and would impact the quality of work. 
As for the subsequent repairs, I talked to the same people and their feedback was the crews came back out and did repairs.  I would not call the reviews following the repairs "rave."  A comment I heard was crews came back out and sealed cracks but did not reapply sealcoat.  The same individual mentioned he would not recommend DCI moving forward. 
Yes, I do question the service.  The true measure of any service provider is solving  problems when they come up.  In my case, I was told someone would come out to my home and talk to me after my initial complaint.  No one came out or called me.  I found out from my neighbor that someone came to his house and talked to him.  This courtesy was not extended to me, and the lack of follow-up highlighted the continuation of mismanagmeent and poor communication in your organization.  That is when I told [redacted] not to bother with a follow-up service.  Based on the repair reviews that I have heard, I made the right decision.
You offered in your response to do a clean-up.  What exactly are you offering?
It's really a shame since I see the work you have posted on-line and the pictures I have of my driveway look nothing like that.  [redacted] has them so please take a look and you tell me if the work is up to your standards. 
All of this said, I will contact [redacted] tomorrow to process my payment.  I am incredibly dissatisfied, but I will meet my end of the deal.
Good luck with your business.
[redacted]Regards,[redacted]

Hello [redacted],
Sorry we didn't get back to you right...

away on this. Our crews returned on the 26th of Sept to finish the cleaning of the sealer and to address his issues.
Thank you,
Lisa M[redacted]

Due to our service being weather oriented we occasionally are backlogged and touch ups can be delayed. However, this customer's issues have been addressed and her touch ups completed.

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's...

response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
Regards,
[redacted]

[redacted],
First, thank you for your payment. That was a very honorable act. 
I am sorry that we can't agree on the timeline. However, I assure you, we use a digital time clock with proximity badges. The employees MUST be present to clock out. 
As for canceling, we made the best decision we could given the information available at the time. Hind sight is 20/20. It may seem to you like we pushed , however, clean-up and resealing driveways is expensive and not a "risk" that we take lightly.
That brings me to the next thing. As I am writing this, we are in your development resealing the very people that weren't resealed (yet). Your information is incomplete. Repairs are not finished. Unfortunately, we are not working on your house because you continue to belabor the process. If you could simply reserve opinion until the process is complete, you might find yourself pleasantly surprised. We are doing everything we can at considerable expense to make everyone happy.
Final topic, communication. We have always been and remain in communication with Wendy, the head of this project for your community. As for the repairs, our estimator walked the property with Frank not individual homeowners. The scope of repair was discussed and that plan is in motion. I really don't know what else I can do. 
[redacted]

We would like all our customers to be satisfied with the maintenance and repairs for their driveway. We have a work order for this customer and we will be more than happy to work with this customer to resolve any issues. We do require pictures to be sent in order to expedite the process so we know...

what areas to show our crews to touch up. Without photos our crews will not be able to correct the issue. Please send pictures of the area in question to [email protected]. Thank you.

Review: I had my driveway sealcoated and quite honestly, it looked better before DCI seal coated it. I had complained that they didn't cover the cracks and when I calld and complained about this, they did come back and attempted to seal the cracks but the job was not done properly. I now have ugly black stripes in at least 3 places on my driveway. I have repeatedly called DCI and [redacted] the office manager at first was rude to me and kept interrupting when I was trying to tell her that I was disatisfied. All I wanted ws ford someone to come out and inspect the shoddy work. [redacted] had promised that someone would come out and re-look at the driveway but to date, no-one has and this work was done back in April. I did threaten to report them to Revdex.com but they said they had a 5 star rating so I guess they really are not concerned about 1 customer and providing good service. I would like these mistakes corrected. I paid for a sevice that was not provided and the least they can do is re-seal my driveway in a satisfactory manner.Desired Settlement: Re-seal my driveway correctly

Business

Response:

[redacted] c/o

Revdex.com

50 West North Street Bethlehem, PA 18018-5789

Complaint ID# [redacted]

Dear [redacted];

Thank you for your letter via the Revdex.com of August 28th describing the perceived problems that you have been having with Driveway Concepts Inc. (DCI). I appreciate your eagerness to resolve your issue. Please accept my sincere apologies for any part we may have played in your dissatisfaction.

We are not taking your dissatisfaction lightly. However, as every story has two sides, I would like to share ours. Our initial contact was on 3/29. At that time we scheduled the property for seal coat and crack repair. On 4/26, after the service was completed, we spoke and collected payment of $ 160. A price that reflected sealcoat but NOT crack repair. We did not perform crack repair because the damage was beyond the customer’s description. On 5/2 we were contacted and asked for a “touch-up”. We responded on 5/6 and provided $80.00 worth of the crack repair at no-charge in an effort to resolve the

issue.

Our position is, and remains, that we provided the proper services at a great price. I understand that the driveway may be less ascetically pleasing from crack repair. However, the purpose of sealing and crack repair is to provide a barrier against the elements, NOT to beautify the drive.

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

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Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

No-one bothered to follow up with me. [redacted] had said on 2 occasions that some-one would come out and inspect again.

A courtesy call would have been nice.

Also had I known previously that the crack repair would make matters worse I would not have agreed to it. They could have said that I would end up with black stripes.

I still feel this was handled unprofessionally and [redacted]'s attitude on one of the calls was less than polite.

I don't think much of their customer service.

Regards,

Business

Response:

From: [redacted] [mailto:[redacted]]

Sent: Monday, October 28, 2013 11:22 AM

To: '[redacted]'

Subject: RE: Complaints Case #[redacted] – This is troubling to me. [redacted] scheduled a sealcoat with us but declined crack repair. After the work was completed, she called to complain about the lack of crack repair. Accepting that it was just a possible miscommunication, we returned and completed the crack repair FREE OF CHARGE. She then proceeded to call and complain that the crack repair was ugly. It may be true that it is not the most appealing type of repair but it is very effective and it was done properly. [redacted] desires a free sealcoat and that is beyond what is fair.

Review: I complained to Driveway Concepts that the work done on my driveway does not look good. I was told before they did the coating that it would look good. After the fact I'm being told that there really isn't much they could do. I asked if they could at least recoat it, however they are saying maybe and I have spoken with several people there with the same result. I have neighbors who have gotten their driveway done by other paving companies and theirs looks good. Having spent $350, I only want them to re-coat the driveway. Again, they don't seem to be able to fix the situation telling me it is normal. I saw the folks who actually did the work and it was Sloppily done.Desired Settlement: Recoat driveway to improve the way it looks. They actually did this last time when I had similar issues and it does improve the look.

Business

Response:

[redacted]'s driveway is in need of repaving. He was informed that the alligatored areas on his driveway can not be resolved through the process of sealcoating. Sealcoating is a liquid that is applied as a maintenance step to help prevent further damage to a driveway. It is not new asphalt. Just as liquid paint can not repair a crumbling wall, Sealer can not fix crumbling asphalt.Representatives at DCI, including myself have told [redacted] that he needs to either have the broken areas ripped out and patched or he needs to have the whole driveway resurfaced with new asphalt. We offer both those services at a substantial difference in cost. [redacted] informed me that he did not want to spend the additional money to repair his driveway properly and so DCI was hired to sealcoat and perform minor crack repair to help prevent further deterioration until he can afford to fix his driveway appropriately. After a conversation with [redacted], I offered to sealcoat his driveway again next year- for free, to maintain good customer service, but ONLY AFTER he patches his deteriorated areas. As liquid sealer mirrors the surface it is applied to, if [redacted] does not repair those broken areas with asphalt, then his driveway will continue to look the way it currently does only with the sealer aiding in slowing down the deterioration.DCI has been in the business of Paving, Sealcoating and asphalt repair since 1995. We are one of the largest purchasers of sealer in the area. We understand asphalt and we have many levels of service options to help customers maintain their asphalt. Sealer is not a cure-all. It is a preventative maintenance measure. If damage is already present only costly asphalt patches and or a new overlay of the driveway can cure those issues. As for his neighbors driveways looking better, DCI has sealed 7 of his neighbors driveways in the past. Many have been customers for years. If their driveways are in better condition than that may be attributed to the maintenance service they receive from our company.Thank you,[redacted]

Consumer

Response:

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Review: [redacted]Hello,

I am rejecting this response because:

When I called this company DCI they came out to do an estimate, I asked whether I need to do a repave now or if I could wait and just get a ceiling done with crack filler. I was told that if I get there alligator coating(extra cost)it would seal the cracks and hold me for a few years and that it would look good. I spent the extra money for that service. What I found was that many of the cracks were not filled properly or at all and the parts that were done were sloppily put on. They simply seal coated the driveway and crack filled some of the cracks, however it looks bad with many cracks not filled.