Howard's Home Repairs

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.1) The home owner was aware that the old arched door and old arched frame had to be removed from the encased mortar and brick. When installing the newly updated door which is wider and taller, the bricks had to be removed in order to accommodate the new updated door.RESPONSE: Nowhere in our email exchanges, nor in the final contract, was anything mentioned about removal of an arched door or frame.  I have provided a picture of the original door that Howard replaced.  It is NOT arched.  The brick wall on the OTHER side of the door, the brick wall which is the original exterior wall of the home, included an arch built above the door. A similar brick arch can be seen  over my neighbor's window.2) An arched door was not in the home owners budget therefore I was instructed by the home owner to go ahead with an updated insulated steel door and frame.RESPONSE: An arched door was never discussed.  Again, I have provided a picture of the original door that Howard replaced.  As anyone can see, it is NOT arched.    We discussed a door with glass in it, which Jackie stated would cost significantly more according to Howard, so we chose a steel door only.  The door that Howard installed should have had raised panels according to the contract, but does not, as evidenced by the photo.3) The pictures shown in the homeowners attachments are pictures taken after the door was installed but before the brick and mortar work was done.This is untrue.  Two sets of pictures were included in the original complaint, the first set of pictures show after the door was installed by Howard, with the bricks displaced from the wall.  The second set of pictures show how the door was left, after Howard stated that he was finished.  I have included two photos of the area above the door with a newspaper dated January 21st, 2015.  This is two days AFTER Howard completed his work.  One photo is close up, so that the date can be seen, the other shows the current condition of the wall.  The brick work above the door was done by Howard.4) On the last day I was at the home owners home and was cleaning up, I asked the home owner like I ask all home owners, was everything to their satisfaction and they said yes, I am very happy.RESPONSE: When Howard left, he told me not to open the kitchen door for a few days until the bricks had a chance to set due to the possibility that they might fall down.  Rest assured, if I had known this was the finished result, I would not have been happy at all.  I communicated via email, prior to his last visit, that it was my expectation that my wall would be repaired.  I am unable to share the email here due to attachment limitations.5) As far as the homeowners statements regarding the phone calls and emails, my secretary has contacted the home owners several times and had to leave messages that were not returned for days. RESPONSE: I have proof that I returned all phone calls.  I also sent an email, to the same email address which was used to work out our contract and arrange dates, I received no response.  I did all of this before filing a complaint.
Regards,
[redacted]

Review: I hired Howard [redacted] of Howard's Home Repair to complete a list of tasks in my home. One task was replacement of a door in my kitchen. Mr. [redacted] replaced the door, and subsequently damaged my brick wall in the process. I communicated with Mr. [redacted] that I expected my wall to be repaired back to its original state.

Before the door was replaced, the wall was without defect. Now, there is exposed brick above the door and on both sides. Mr. [redacted] placed an uneven layer of bricks above the door, directly onto the door jamb, without a proper lentil in place, and left the wall as I have described it.

I communicated with Mr. [redacted]'s wife, [redacted], to try to resolve the issue, have traded voicemail messages, and have sent email outlining the issue and desired outcome.Desired Settlement: My request would be to file a claim through the insurance for Howard's Home Repair or receive payment for the restoration of my wall to it's original state. I am amenable to mediation to resolve the issue.

I would also request that they communicate with me via email, since we have had so much difficulty reaching one another via telephone.

Business

Response:

[redacted] Howard's Home Repairs 13 Kings Bridge Court Newark, DE 19702 [redacted] This is my response to the above case. The home owner was aware that the old arched door and old arched frame had to be removed from the encased mortar and brick. When installing the newly updated door which is wider and taller, the bricks had to be removed in order to accommodate the new updated door. An arched door was not in the home owners budget, therefore, I was instructed by the home owner to go ahead with an updated insulated steel door and frame. The pictures shown in the home owners attachments, are pictures taken after the door was installed but BEFORE the brick and mortar work was done by me. On the last day I was at the home owners home and was cleaning up, I asked the home owner like I ask all the home owners, was everything to their satisfaction and they said yes, and that they were very happy with the work. As far as the homeowners statements regarding the phone call and emails, my secretary has contacted the home owner several times and had to leave messages that were not returned for days. [redacted] Howard's Home Repairs

Consumer

Response: