September 11, 2014To Whom it May Concern:When Mr [redacted] called and requested an estimate of the cost to winterize a home over the phone, he was told it would be approximately $260, including the trip chargeThis was based on the requirements of a typical city residenceHowever, when the plumber arrived and learned this house was on a well, he informed the customer that the cost of winterization would necessarily be higher for such a houseThough he was displeased at the increased cost, he agreed to have Hartlaub Plumbing proceed with the work, both verbally and in writing.With regard to the time that it took to perform the work, our firm does not charge on a time and materials basisRather, we charge a flat-rate per each task we perform, labor and material includedThis method is fast becoming the industry standardThe pricing we use comes from a third-party vendor, who serves the plumbing industry in this capacityThey formulate pricing based on a wide variety of factors, including over-head costs, time studies related to each task, etcWe believe this system is fair to both parties and we are up-front about being a flat-rate firm.It is unfair for Mr [redacted] to file a complaint about the price, after he accepted the terms of the workWe did agree to apply our standard discounted trip fee to his bill but he decided that he had been wronged and demanded the return of $or else he was going to file a complaint against usAgain, he was given the adjusted estimate before any work was done and he agreed to itHe was free to decline and seek other bids but by his own admission stated that it was inconvenient for him to do soTherefore, we believe that we performed this work in good faith and that Mr [redacted] understood exactly what he was getting for his moneyAs such, we feel that this complaint is nothing more than a vindictive attempt to exhort money from our firm, after we provided exactly the service that we were contracted to provide.Respectfully Submitted, [redacted]
I spoke last night to Mr [redacted] regarding the complaint We have refunded him a check in the amount of $ Thanks!
September 11, 2014To Whom it May Concern:When Mr [redacted] called and requested an estimate of the cost to winterize a home over the phone, he was told it would be approximately $260, including the trip chargeThis was based on the requirements of a typical city residenceHowever, when the plumber arrived and learned this house was on a well, he informed the customer that the cost of winterization would necessarily be higher for such a houseThough he was displeased at the increased cost, he agreed to have Hartlaub Plumbing proceed with the work, both verbally and in writing.With regard to the time that it took to perform the work, our firm does not charge on a time and materials basisRather, we charge a flat-rate per each task we perform, labor and material includedThis method is fast becoming the industry standardThe pricing we use comes from a third-party vendor, who serves the plumbing industry in this capacityThey formulate pricing based on a wide variety of factors, including over-head costs, time studies related to each task, etcWe believe this system is fair to both parties and we are up-front about being a flat-rate firm.It is unfair for Mr [redacted] to file a complaint about the price, after he accepted the terms of the workWe did agree to apply our standard discounted trip fee to his bill but he decided that he had been wronged and demanded the return of $or else he was going to file a complaint against usAgain, he was given the adjusted estimate before any work was done and he agreed to itHe was free to decline and seek other bids but by his own admission stated that it was inconvenient for him to do soTherefore, we believe that we performed this work in good faith and that Mr [redacted] understood exactly what he was getting for his moneyAs such, we feel that this complaint is nothing more than a vindictive attempt to exhort money from our firm, after we provided exactly the service that we were contracted to provide.Respectfully Submitted, [redacted]