Kirkham Handyman Services

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:Please see attachment for comments in regards to the statement given by [redacted] I feel he did not live up to verbal commitments, or any where near the agreed upon scopes of workRegards, [redacted]

April 15, From: *** ***
letter-spacing: 0.3pt;">Owner, Kirkham Handyman Services RE: Complaint ID #*** In response to the aforementioned complaint against my company, please refer to my account of the transaction, which is documented clearly in emails between me and the customer: The Complainant hired my company on an hourly (time plus materials) basisI made it clear that our hourly rate does not include the performance of tasks which require a licensed tradesman (namely electrical and plumbing work), and informed the customer that if he would like for my company to manage the performance of such work, I would be glad to gather estimates from my licensed subcontractor contactsIn spite of this, the customer tried many times to either have my craftsman perform work which he is not licensed to do within the City of Austin, or to have me pay my electrician and plumber out of pocket to perform said work My initial request for deposit money was based on a scope of work that was presented to me upon my initial meeting with the customer, which was weeks prior to our first day on the jobAs that scope of work was changed and our list of tasks smaller than originally planned, I notified the customer that we would not be likely to need the full deposit check which he left in an envelope on the jobsite for us on the first dayFor this job (as with most of my jobs), [requested a 50% deposit ($1500, in this case)When I told the complainant that the deposit check was likely to be larger than was necessary, I was telling him that I did not foresee that our labor would total to twice that amount ($3000)I offered to return his check to him in exchange for a renegotiated, smaller deposit check, but the customer declined and authorized me to deposit the check into my business checking account Though the Complainant was free to relieve us of his employ at any time, he instead authorized my craftsman to work at his property for four full work daysAt the end of that period, as per our initial agreement, we had exhausted the initial deposit amount for labor hours performed and materials purchased and providedI sent the customer an invoice, and it was at this time that he raised complaints regarding the work doneAlthough I stand by my craftsman's work ethic, I disliked that the customer was unhappy and offered an additional hours of labor at no additional cost in order to finish some tasks which the customer felt should have been finished within the number of hours loggedThe customer declined this offer, made it clear that he would not pay us the amount we were owed as per our initial agreement, and instead demanded either half of his original deposit refunded, that I pay licensed tradesmen out of pocket to perform plumbing and electrical work, or that I or my craftsman perform that work ourselves I understand that the Complainant has a firm theoretical idea of how much time the work performed should have taken to complete, but as is often the case with miscellaneous construction/repair-related tasks, the work took longer in praxis than in theoryI consulted with my craftsman about how his time was spent, and in keeping with a long history ofgreat work from him, I left that conversation assured that he had performed in a workmanlike mannerWith our company being in the red on services rendered and materials purchased and provided on the job and the customer both (a)being unhappy with the amount of work accomplished and (b)declining my offer to complete a number of tasks at no additional charge, we had no choice but to move on to our usual mode of business, working for customers who appreciate our service and honor their promises to pay us according to our explicit agreementsServices were rendered and materials were purchased in good faith, and the customer was invoiced in accordance with our explicit agreement to work for him on an hourly basisIf the customer felt that our hourly rate was too high for the scope of tasks that we handle, then he should not have agreed to hire us at our hourly rateIf he felt that my craftsman was not performing in a workmanlike manner, then he should not have authorized four full days of workThe Complainant's assertion that we were operating under an agreement to accomplish a fixed set of tasks at a fixed price runs contrary to our explicit, well-documented agreement, and his repeated insistence that my unlicensed craftsman should have performed plumbing and electrical work runs contrary to the statutes under which I and all contractors operating within the City of Austin must followThank you very much for your time and attention to this, and please feel free to contact me with any further questions or information regarding this matterSincerely,*** *** Kirkham Handyman Services ###-###-#### kirkhamhandyman@attnet

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:Please see attachment for comments in regards to the statement given by [redacted]. I feel he did not live up to verbal commitments, or any where near the agreed upon scopes of work. Regards,[redacted]