Layaou Landscaping Inc.

The customer called our office on April 29, to say approximately pavers have sunk about an inchOne area was an area near steps and another along the side where the edging isThe other area was where the edging along the walkway from the gate is not good and needs repaired. I have
attached the quote we provided the customer to rectify the problem. The first picture I have attached is how we, Layaou Landscaping left the project almost years ago. The pavers on the ground is what Layaou Landscaping was hired to do. The (Brick Edging) bricks standing on end, bordering the paver walkway is what the customer installed themselves. Over the years water has seeped in between and under the pavers and standing bricks (Brick Edging) In the winter months the water has froze, expanded and this causes shifting in the pavers. After the frozen water thaws this will cause a void under or in between the paver and ground. Therefore the next few times someone steps on the paver, the paver will sink till it hits the ground. This usually happens over years. The other problem is when installing the Brick Edging, a professional would have removed the plastic edging and would have cemented the standing bricks. This process is used by every professional to ensure long lasting paver work. The pavers themselves have a life time warranty but the workmanship can not be warranted against acts of GodThe way the water flows through this particular yard is exactly this. Heavy rains run down the customers paver walkway and the Brick Edging blocks the flow of waterLayaou Landscaping ***
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Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
When I initially contacted this company for the patio installation, I also inquired about wind blocking and privacy options. Fast forward, within a month’s time of the patio installation, November 2014, I contacted the company and sent them pictures indicating there was sloping and separation around the edges of the patio. So this issue occurred immediately after installationThey sent someone out to supposedly repair it The grass they installed has grown tremendously around the patio. So for one, this is not an issue that just came about in the spring. During the initial installation, they put this grass down and stated this would support the area around the patio. I explained to them about wind blocking and privacy around the patio and asked about options for that At the same time, we were and have been seeking estimates for privacy and wind blocking options from other landscapers as is our right to do and that was the only reason we asked about additional landscaping. The proposal they sent me indicated bushes on the outer right side and a bush on the left corner with mulching. These are the exact areas of where the issues are. So to us that means it was already known that there was an issue with the patio at that point
We contacted the company a second time and sent pictures in March and heard nothing from them. On the third contact about the condition of the patio, approximately a month and a half later with no response from them in between, they sent two guys out who were arguing and on the phone most of the time. They put regular sand in the separations as opposed to polymer sand which they said is what is needed to bond the pavers together. When I stepped out onto the patio, I noticed that a couple of pavers missed on the left side looking out of the back of the house, they looked at each other like no one wanted to do it. Then one of the guys picked up the paver, moved the sand with his finger onto the grass and put the paver back down and they left like they were in a hurry Before they left, I asked them if they needed to wet the patio down and were the pavers going to even out to the rest of the patio and they stated no water was needed and yes the pavers would even out and the patio would be okay now. We contacted the company again and explained what happened but only received a call referencing the actions of the guys but nothing else not even an apology about the service I received.
My getting estimates for different types of landscaping for privacy and wind blocking is our right to do and had nothing to do with the support of the patioWe have had three different companies come out and survey the patio and all three stated the same thing. The issue is with the foundation not the surrounding grass/landscaping. There are stakes sticking out of the ground as well as some other type of plastic sticking out of the ground around the patio. Upon their inspection, they all stated that there is no support around the sides of the patio; no initial foundation support in order that the pavers would be supported and there would be no sloping if the foundation under and solid support around the pavers was installed correctlyThey also stated that putting bushes and flowers around the patio as the company suggested to support the patio, was like putting trees around a newly built house without a foundation to hold it up. These three companies also stated that you can put grass, trees, bushes and any other greenery you want around the patio but it is not going to support what is supposed to be solid material around the sides and under the pavers. They also stated the reason why the company doesn’t want to do the repair is because they would have to come out of their pockets to fix the problem and obviously this was basically a rush and get-over job without any regard
And at this point, we are seeking our funds back that we paid for this job. We have no confidence that this company can do the job correctly as we would not be at this point if it was quality workmanship. Upon my husband’s return from Iraq, he checked out the patio and is not pleased at all. We have been extremely inconvenienced behind this and don’t feel we should come out of our pockets to fix what should have been installed correctly in the first place

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
When I initially contacted this company for the patio installation, I also inquired about wind blocking and privacy options. Fast forward, within a month’s time of the patio installation, November 2014, I contacted the company and sent them pictures indicating there was sloping and separation around the edges of the patio. So this issue occurred immediately after installationThey sent someone out to supposedly repair it The grass they installed has grown tremendously around the patio. So for one, this is not an issue that just came about in the spring. During the initial installation, they put this grass down and stated this would support the area around the patio. I explained to them about wind blocking and privacy around the patio and asked about options for that At the same time, we were and have been seeking estimates for privacy and wind blocking options from other landscapers as is our right to do and that was the only reason we asked about additional landscaping. The proposal they sent me indicated bushes on the outer right side and a bush on the left corner with mulching. These are the exact areas of where the issues are. So to us that means it was already known that there was an issue with the patio at that point. We contacted the company a second time and sent pictures in March and heard nothing from them. On the third contact about the condition of the patio, approximately a month and a half later with no response from them in between, they sent two guys out who were arguing and on the phone most of the time. They put regular sand in the separations as opposed to polymer sand which they said is what is needed to bond the pavers together. When I stepped out onto the patio, I noticed that a couple of pavers missed on the left side looking out of the back of the house, they looked at each other like no one wanted to do it. Then one of the guys picked up the paver, moved the sand with his finger onto the grass and put the paver back down and they left like they were in a hurry Before they left, I asked them if they needed to wet the patio down and were the pavers going to even out to the rest of the patio and they stated no water was needed and yes the pavers would even out and the patio would be okay now. We contacted the company again and explained what happened but only received a call referencing the actions of the guys but nothing else not even an apology about the service I received. My getting estimates for different types of landscaping for privacy and wind blocking is our right to do and had nothing to do with the support of the patioWe have had three different companies come out and survey the patio and all three stated the same thing. The issue is with the foundation not the surrounding grass/landscaping. There are stakes sticking out of the ground as well as some other type of plastic sticking out of the ground around the patio. Upon their inspection, they all stated that there is no support around the sides of the patio; no initial foundation support in order that the pavers would be supported and there would be no sloping if the foundation under and solid support around the pavers was installed correctlyThey also stated that putting bushes and flowers around the patio as the company suggested to support the patio, was like putting trees around a newly built house without a foundation to hold it up. These three companies also stated that you can put grass, trees, bushes and any other greenery you want around the patio but it is not going to support what is supposed to be solid material around the sides and under the pavers. They also stated the reason why the company doesn’t want to do the repair is because they would have to come out of their pockets to fix the problem and obviously this was basically a rush and get-over job without any regard And at this point, we are seeking our funds back that we paid for this job. We have no confidence that this company can do the job correctly as we would not be at this point if it was quality workmanship. Upon my husband’s return from Iraq, he checked out the patio and is not pleased at all. We have been extremely inconvenienced behind this and don’t feel we should come out of our pockets to fix what should have been installed correctly in the first place

To provide clarity I have included the email chain that I have had with this company to attempt to get this work completed and damage issues resolved
Here is what we would like to see happen
The company needs to provide an exact date and time that they will
delivering the new section of fence that was damaged per our agreement on 9/Based on that email the new fence was supposed to be delivered 9/but as of today 9/this still has not been done and no communication was received from the business to advise when this would happen
2. We would like the complete section that was marked for stump removal to be completed fully. There is still a section that was not completed and we were told that was not done because they were hitting more dirt than stump. Someone from the company marked a bigger section in white paint so it would completely take the stump section out so water would freely flow down our yard. since this was incomplete there is still a ridge where water is being impeded from flowing. I don't have faith that this will ever get done I fully expect to have to do this myself even though this was agreed upon that they would level out this area
3. The staff should invest some time in business etiquette and customer service courses. This may help this from happening to anyone else in the future.
4. The Revdex.com needs to review the accreditation for this business. I used the Revdex.com site to find this contractor and I am sure that this is not an isolated incident. I can imagine based on my experience that this has happened to other people that just did not report this issue. I used an accredited business to try to avoid experiences like this and this has been by far the WORST contractor I have ever dealt with. We hope that the Revdex.com will hold this business accountable for being a representative of the Revdex.com

Hi *** In regard to the above
noted ID # for *** ***, we have now taken the extra wood to him and he is now satisfied If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at any time Thank you! *** ***
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I am writing in response to this claim from *** ***. I wanted to be sure that she was satisfied before responding. We sent a blacktop contractor out two times to seal coat her driveway at no charge due to the scuff marks that our employee left from a piece of equipment. After
the first seal coating the customer was still not satisfied and we had one of our employees fill in all of the scuff marks with black top patch. These patches were darker and noticeable so we sent the blacktop contractor our again to seal coat the entire driveway again
We have repaired the edge of the patio twice. We had installed a Belgium Block border along the edge of the patio initially. We learned later that the customer had a water flow issue where water from rain would flow to one area of the patio and lay, so we removed some of the mortar joints between two Belgium Blocks to let the water flow through.
It has been a few months since the repairs were done. We have not heard any further complaints about the driveway or the patio sinking so hopefully this customer is good now
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Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Regards,

To whom it may concern, My name is *** * *** and I recently filed a complaint with the Revdex.com in regards to the services provided by Layaou Landscaping, IncI am writing this letter to inform you that the business, Layaou Landscaping, Inc, has addressed my concerns and resolved all
ongoing issuesThe owner, ***, personally came out to oversee the completion of the work to resolve all concerns I displayed in my original emailThey have satisfied all of my concerns and have honored their end of their service agreementI am asking that you remove my original complaint from their business profile on the Revdex.com website. Thank you in advance for your assistance with this matter

Regarding [redacted], We refunded $193 for some landscape fabric that she says was not installed per her request.  We are mailing the check today. She agreed to wait until the Spring to see if the tree survives or not as it is not dead, just not looking as good as the others. ...

There is a broken top to the tree which the customer can not explain.  Everything is resolved for now.
 
Sincerely,

In response to the customer’s rebuttal,  the initial estimate did include landscaping next to the patio and the customer chose to only do the patio.  We have photos that the customer sent us in March or April 2015 showing the area adjoining the patio to be dried out, cracking soil that had nothing there – no grass, nothing.  The customer is saying there is lawn adjacent to the patio but that is not what her photos showed that she sent us – it looked like the seed there was not watered and it was just bare, dry soil showing erosion to the soil so bad that there were large cracks in the soil. When we installed the patio, we secured the edges of the patio with proper paver edging which is made of plastic, and paver edging stakes to secure the paver edging.  We did install a proper stone base and sand base.  When our guys returned in April 2015, they did take polymer sand with them to put in the pavers after they repaired the edges that were sinking and eroding next to the dry soil that was eroding. I will have a foreman or Fred Layaou come and look at the patio again within the next few weeks and see what can be done, and what the area next to the patio looks like now.  We will take photos when we go, and I will report back to you. Layaou Landscaping

Our contract clearly states that the adjoining perimeter of a paver patio or walkway needs to have established landscaping or sod on any sides not butted up to a structure or house.  Ms. [redacted] had us do an estimate for landscaping next to her patio but she never did anything.  This spring...

she sent us pictures showing that the soil next to the patio was dried out, cracking from erosion, baron of anything and therefore allowing the edge of the patio to become eroded as well and the paver edging was pulling away as the soil next to it eroded.  We explained again, and advised her that we would come and fix what we could once but that she needed to install landscaping or sod or something next to the patio.  She even had us revise her landscape estimate, and she was saying things that do not make sense, like that she was going to get a bunch of small Arborvitae and plant there, which would over time grow very tall and which are meant to be installed along a property line to provide privacy – she said she is not allowed to have plants that get over 6’ or 7’ tall due to her deed restrictions, so Arborvitae would make no sense and would not be suitable there.  Then she talked about grasses and we recommended some grasses and some other shrubs.  She never had us install any landscaping and never installed anything herself.  Our crew went out and repaired the edge of the patio the best they could and advised her that it was not going to be right until she put something next to the patio.  She was still not happy and as far as we know she has not remedied her situation.  There is just nothing to hold the patio in place and prevent the edging from shifting and pavers to shift with her eroded soil.   [redacted]    
[redacted]

I am writing in response to the Revdex.com complaint from this customer.  This customer went from being very nice and appreciative of our time and our help with their desired projects in the beginning, to totally a different personality by the end of the job.  We even hired [redacted] to come in and do a little computer work in our office. 
 
Later, when they decided to do some of the work, there was some confusion when they came in to sign their contract because the customer did not make us aware that they only wanted to do certain items on the first proposal – we had given proposals for two phases of work.  This sort of flustered one of our new girls, but she got it straightened out so that the customer could sign the contract for only the items that Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] wanted to do.  There were a few minor errors on the contract and invoice by the new girl in our office– nothing that affected the price but there was some paver verbage and plant verbage left on the contract that I promptly removed when I saw it soon after, and I emailed the customers corrected copies and apologized.  These words just did not belong on a contract that was not getting any pavers or landsaping.
 
[redacted] had stopped in the office when [redacted] was in to sign his contract, and [redacted]  told [redacted] that we would probably be out to start the job the following day and [redacted] said that was fine.
 
The next day when [redacted] and the crew arrived, [redacted] was not home, and Mrs. [redacted] was not nearly as nice as when she had been in our office.  [redacted] painted out where the drain pipe was going to go, and Mrs. [redacted] started saying  “That is not where I want the drainpipe – I want it out on the property border”.  [redacted] showed up soon after, and [redacted] went over with him where [redacted]’s design placement of the pipes was going and how it would work, and [redacted] was fine.
 
Right before signing the contract, [redacted] asked if we would do something extra – there was a tree removed on the neighbor’s property that was very close to the property border and [redacted] said that part of the stump was on his property and still in the ground and that it needed removed – We agreed to see what we could do with it at no charge.  [redacted] did not remember from any previous conversations exactly what [redacted] was talking about but we added to the contract that we would remove or grind the stump, seed and straw the area where the grinding was done, at no charge. When we to to the job, [redacted] saw that the ground in this area is heaved up from the tree that used to be there,  and the area where it was heaved up and at a higher elevation is mostly on the neighbor’s property.  [redacted] spoke to the neighbor to discuss what the neighbor had done in regards to his tree and stump so that we had an idea what would have been left on the [redacted]’s side in regards to a stump, and so that we had an agreement with the neighbor where the property boundaries were, and out of courtesy to the neighbor to let him know what we planned to do at the property border. The [redacted]s immediately seemed to be upset over the fact that [redacted] spoke to the neighbor at all, which we did not understand.  The neighbor was very nice and had nothing negative to say in regards to the [redacted] or the work that we were going to do.  He was very cooperative.  The neighbors said that he had had the stump ground out, so he was not sure if any of it was left in the ground on the [redacted] side or not, but said go ahead and check it out, etc.  Mrs. [redacted] said to [redacted] “Why did you talk to our neighbor?!” in a very angry voice. 
 
We installed the drainpipe and still needed to return with a stump grinder to check out the stump area.  [redacted] and one employee stopped out the morning of Sept, 8th  and [redacted] painted out the general area where the stump should be, not knowing exactly where it was.  Later that day, [redacted]’s father and a couple of employees stopped out with a stump grinder, and they were not even barely out of the truck when Mrs. [redacted] came out and yelled at them for not knocking on the door, and [redacted] Sr said “I just got out of the truck”.   Then she asked us why we had people coming to their house in the middle of the night and she accused us of coming out and painting out the stump area in the middle of the night which they assured her was not done in the middle of the night, but earlier that morning.   Our guys used the stump grinder in the area but found very little to grind – The stump grinder found a little of a stump that we ground and then the grinder started hitting dirt which meant there was no stump remaining after they did some grinding.  We cleaned up the area and put down some seed and straw as we agreed to do.  We did not have on our contract to grade down this area, and and the whole yard would need to be rototilled and raked out to properly grade it down.  The neighbor’s ajoining property is still going to be higher from the heaved up area where the tree was.  The [redacted]s had talked about re-grading and sodding their yard, but had decided not to do this work at this time.  The [redacted]s are confused about the paint lines that [redacted] put in the area of the stump – like I said, it was just to mark the vicinity, as [redacted] could not see under the grass where exactly any remaining stump could be, and the grass was very tall that day.  Our guys had to locate the exact area of any remaining stump to do the grinding, but at no time did [redacted] think that the stump would be in this entire area.  We did not agree to dig up the area and remove all of the roots or anything like that.  Tammy in our office emailed [redacted] and said that the area where there was remaining stump ended up “not being as large as [redacted] first thought”, which was wrong information,  and she did not relay to [redacted] exactly what [redacted] said which was that the grass was very tall and [redacted] just marked out the vicinity of where the stump could be within that area, so that our guys knew the general area where to dig and look for a stump in the ground. 
 
The chain link fence was buried in the ground and on a slope and our guys had to move some of the fence to install the drain pipe and put it back, and one section of  the fence had gotten stretched out a little, but our guys were able to fix it pretty good – you could not even tell really, and in fact the day that [redacted] Sr was there, he asked Mrs. [redacted] to show him where the fence was messed up, and she was not able to find it – it looked so good, you could not even tell, but [redacted] wanted a new piece of fence and we agreed to drop off some new fence as the customer requested.  The fence was dropped off on Sept 11th, the same day that [redacted] initiated the complaint with the Revdex.com.  When we went to drop it off, Mrs. [redacted] was very hostile with our employee again, and this time she accused us of dropping off a piece of used fence, when in fact we had just purchased it new for them.  Just within the last week, [redacted] was in the development and saw the brand new roll of fence still laying outside.
 
[redacted] says we are unprofessional and that we were not respectful to his wife.  Our guys did fail to  give a courtesy phone call before stopping out to do the last few minor things, like paint out the stump area, drop off the fence, grind the stump, etc.  and we apologize that phone calls were not made.  [redacted] was just trying to accommodate them and get their job done, and usually customers are just happy to get the job done, and do not require us to call ahead for every little thing we have to come out for,  and our office staff did not call (they are new and still learning), so we do apologize for that, but our guys have all worked for us a long time, and they are very respectful and nice.  [redacted] Sr is older and felt he was being attacked by Mrs. [redacted], and so yes, it is difficult to appear nice and respectful when a customer is accusing you of things that are not true,  or when a customer appears hostile for no reason that seems appropriate to the situation.  [redacted] who went out to the job several times –  including with [redacted] Sr, with the stump grinder,  and then to drop off the new piece of fence is the most courteous and friendliest young man you could ever meet, and is never condescending to women whatsoever – He is always very respectful.
 
It still baffles us how this couple that came in to our office to go over the estimate a few months earlier who were so complimentary and happy could be the same people that we did the job for.  It seems that [redacted] talking to the neighbor upset them from day one, and everything was different after that.  If the [redacted]s want [redacted] to stop out and look at the area again where the stump was ground, we could do that, but the hostility coming from the [redacted]s makes that possibility not likely.  It seems that they do not want us back on their property.  We have a lot of happy customers, but once in a while you have one that no matter what you do, they are not happy, and they do not appreciate everything that goes into providing the services that we offer, whereas most customers are very appreciative.   We would rather resolve any issues that any customer feels are unresolved, and all a customer has to do is remain reasonable and communicate.  There is no reason for this extreme hostility, and we just do not understand it.  We all work very hard, from the office staff, to the guys on the field, and including [redacted],  and his father, [redacted] Sr, who helps out here and there.  Please let us know if anything else needs to be done in regards to this customer.

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 for the time being.  While I am not happy that the tree hasn't been replaced, it is an acceptable compromise to wait until April to reassess its condition and have it replaced free of charge at that time if it is still not healthy.

To whom it may concern, My name is [redacted] and I recently filed a complaint with the Revdex.com in regards to the services provided by Layaou Landscaping, Inc. I am writing this letter to inform you that the business, Layaou Landscaping, Inc, has addressed my concerns and resolved all ongoing...

issues. The owner, [redacted], personally came out to oversee the completion of the work to resolve all concerns I displayed in my original email. They have satisfied all of my concerns and have honored their end of their service agreement. I am asking that you remove my original complaint from their business profile on the Revdex.com website.    Thank you in advance for your assistance with this matter.

In regards to the complaint referenced, we responded to a request for an estimate in September 2013 to suggest work to be done to help the customer’s problem with drainage issues, and we provided a quote for some drainage pipe and soil, grading and seeding.  We did a lot of work in the...

yard that had to have helped the drainage issues – many tons of materials to help the grade as well as some drainage pipe.  The customer shortened the length of the drainage pipe to lower the cost. Many things were discussed that could be done for the drainage issues but the work done was the first work done towards helping the problem.   We did not guarantee that this work would totally eliminate all drainage problems in all weather conditions.  We have had some very wet weather in the past year.  This customer has a property that was one of the first houses built, and all of the neighboring properties are at a higher grade than their property, which we advised the customer of when we met them to do the estimate.  We suggested that they contact NCC Conservation or Land Use to see if they can help them with their situation, as this situation was created by the development of the properties.  We see this repeatedly happen to people due to construction of houses around them. 
 
Other quotes were given to the customer  - one for a berm to build up a landscape area;  another to install more drain pipe – all in September 2013.  The customers said that they were going to install the other suggested drain pipe themselves. 
 
We would be more than happy to meet with the customer at their property and evaluate their current drainage problems. 
 
Sincerely,
 
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Review: In September of 2013, we hired Layaou to fix the drainage issue we were having in the back yard. We paid about $6000.00 for these services. After the work was completed, we continued to have drainage issues. We contacted Layaou and was told by [redacted], the manage and owner who initially provided us with the estimate, that it would be an additional $1000.00. Our drainage problem remains an issue, and it is no better than before the work was done. We had a verbal agreement from [redacted] that they would be able to fix the problem. I do not believe that we should have to pay additional fees for them to solve the problem they were hired to do.Desired Settlement: For the drainage issue in my back yard to be resolved.

Business

Response:

In regards to the complaint referenced, we responded to a request for an estimate in September 2013 to suggest work to be done to help the customer’s problem with drainage issues, and we provided a quote for some drainage pipe and soil, grading and seeding. We did a lot of work in the yard that had to have helped the drainage issues – many tons of materials to help the grade as well as some drainage pipe. The customer shortened the length of the drainage pipe to lower the cost. Many things were discussed that could be done for the drainage issues but the work done was the first work done towards helping the problem. We did not guarantee that this work would totally eliminate all drainage problems in all weather conditions. We have had some very wet weather in the past year. This customer has a property that was one of the first houses built, and all of the neighboring properties are at a higher grade than their property, which we advised the customer of when we met them to do the estimate. We suggested that they contact NCC Conservation or Land Use to see if they can help them with their situation, as this situation was created by the development of the properties. We see this repeatedly happen to people due to construction of houses around them.

Other quotes were given to the customer - one for a berm to build up a landscape area; another to install more drain pipe – all in September 2013. The customers said that they were going to install the other suggested drain pipe themselves.

We would be more than happy to meet with the customer at their property and evaluate their current drainage problems.

Sincerely,

.

Review: The patio the aforementioned company installed needs repair. The patio was installed approximately 6 months ago. Within a month the company had to come back out and make the same repairs. The edges of the patio and to an extent that it extends inward, pavers are separating and sinking to the point where there are weeds protruding and enough separation that there are now ant hills and boroughs that other critters are coming through. The company put the dirt mound and grass around the patio to support the patio, I was told. It blends with the exisiting lawn. The company stated that according to the invoice, you have to put down lawn or hardscaping, which they did (lawn). The company also stated this will be the last time they come out to repair the patio. Which I feel like they are blaming me for the patio's condition. Unbelievable! I have been trying to get this issue resolved going on six weeks. I have been continually told that they will be out and I have not heard anything else nor seen anyone from their company. Do they not stand by their service, products and installation? I am curious as to why the company has not been out yet to complete the repairs. At this point, the patio is non-functional.Desired Settlement: I just want my patio repaired to the point where it will not sink or separate and an apology. I am a paying customer just like every one else and should it not be repaired, I want a refund.

Business

Response:

Our contract clearly states that the adjoining perimeter of a paver patio or walkway needs to have established landscaping or sod on any sides not butted up to a structure or house. Ms. [redacted] had us do an estimate for landscaping next to her patio but she never did anything. This spring she sent us pictures showing that the soil next to the patio was dried out, cracking from erosion, baron of anything and therefore allowing the edge of the patio to become eroded as well and the paver edging was pulling away as the soil next to it eroded. We explained again, and advised her that we would come and fix what we could once but that she needed to install landscaping or sod or something next to the patio. She even had us revise her landscape estimate, and she was saying things that do not make sense, like that she was going to get a bunch of small Arborvitae and plant there, which would over time grow very tall and which are meant to be installed along a property line to provide privacy – she said she is not allowed to have plants that get over 6’ or 7’ tall due to her deed restrictions, so Arborvitae would make no sense and would not be suitable there. Then she talked about grasses and we recommended some grasses and some other shrubs. She never had us install any landscaping and never installed anything herself. Our crew went out and repaired the edge of the patio the best they could and advised her that it was not going to be right until she put something next to the patio. She was still not happy and as far as we know she has not remedied her situation. There is just nothing to hold the patio in place and prevent the edging from shifting and pavers to shift with her eroded soil. [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

Review: I contacted Layaou Landscaping, Inc. last October, 2014, to complete the landscaping for the backyard of my girlfriend's home in DE. This consisted of a paver patio, paver walkway, sod installation, mulch and various perennial flowers and plants planted throughout the backyard. After completion of the paver patio I informed Layaou Landscaping, Inc. that one row of the pavers became loose due to the ground underneath being uneven. They sent out the landscapers to fix the problem (Only put more dirt to the grass side of the pavers, never fixed the causing issue.) The pavers to this day are still loose and multiple people have fallen/tripped over this hazard. Also, two of the perennials they planted on the side of the house looked like they were dead when they were planted and never bloomed in 2014 and never returned in 2015. In November of the same year I asked Layaou Landscaping, Inc. to install a fence and gate with a latch at the entrance of the backyard paver walkway. They installed the fence and gate, but the latch does not secure properly and the fence continuously pivots when the wind blows. When I confronted the owner, [redacted], about this issue he informed I should put something else on the gate to secure the gate and that he personally picked out the latch for the gate. In the spring of 2015 I asked Layaou Landscaping, Inc. to complete the landscaping for the front of my girlfriend's property and to complete the lawn mowing services for the property. They completed the landscaping out front and once again I asked for perennials and shortly after the plants were planted four of them died and never returned for the rest of the summer months. The back and front yard landscaping was paid and I paid over $15,000.00 for these "services" to be completed at my girlfriend's house even though some of the services provided were not met on the providers end. I also emailed Layaou Landscaping, inc. about the dead perennials being planted and never growing and I never received any kind of response in regards to this issue as well. In May of 2015, Layaou Landscaping, Inc. started their mowing services for [redacted]. They quoted me a price of $50.00 per cut and I agreed to the price. I was told they would come typically once every week or depending upon the weather. In May and June the service was considered ok, except for how the mowers blew the grass clippings behind my girlfriend's shed and all over the yard. In July of 2015, I came down to clean up after their cut and realized there was damage to the siding along the base of the house. It looked consistent with damage caused by a weed whacker. I also found fresh pieces of broken siding on top of the freshly cut grass. I immediately took pictures and emailed [redacted] at Layaou Landscaping, Inc. on July 8, 2015. She informed me that she would pass the information on to [redacted], the owner, who was currently out of town and when he would arrive back he would be in contact (To this day I have still not heard from [redacted]). The following week I received an email from [redacted] that she spoke with the mowers and they claimed the damage was present at the first mowing in May (I was at my girlfriend's house for the first mowing in May along with my girlfriend Jillian, neither mower mentioned anything to Jillian or myself about any previous damage. Also, this area was previously mulched with weed barrier underneath and was used for an above ground pool. There was no landscaping or maintaince done in this area until Layaou Landscaping, Inc. was contracted to come in and complete work. [redacted] took before and after pictures of the property and I have pictures of the damage to the siding.) Also in July, I had to send the mowers home because they tried to cut the lawn during a down pour and I did not want the lawn to get damaged due to the sod/lawn being saturated and muddy. I also realized the mowers were cutting the lawn too short to where you could see the dirt underneath the grass. This caused the lawn to burn up during this past summer's heat wave and the mowers still showed up every week with poor weather conditions. This caused the majority of the lawn to die off and I had to spend even more money on miracle grow and other products to try and fix the back yard. The lawn is in extremely horrible condition. Finally, in the beginning of September I emailed [redacted] to cancel the mowing service because of the horrible condition of my girlfriend's lawn and the fact they were destroying the lawn by the "service" they were providing. After the email was sent, [redacted] still sent the mowers to [redacted] to cause more damage to the lawn. I then emailed her again that I wanted to speak with the owner, [redacted], about the condition of the lawn and that I wanted him to bring the picture of when the sod was originally laid so we could compare what the lawn looked like then and what the condition of the lawn is currently in. I received nothing back about any of my concerns, but I did receive multiple emails from [redacted] who works at Layaou Landscaping, Inc. demanding their money for the previous months, even though none of my concerns were answered or addressed for the concerns I had as a paying customer. She also sent me an invoice telling me that I am responsible for the second mowing service she dispatched to [redacted] even though I cancelled their services two days prior to this "service" being rendered that was not authorized by anyone at [redacted].Desired Settlement: I would like a representative from the company to come out the location of the concerns and answer for the damages caused by their "services." I would like the affected areas (lawn repair, repair to the damaged siding, and the dead perennials replaced with live plants) addressed and corrected by the service provider at no additional charge to the customer. Once the damaged areas are made whole I will then pay the outstanding charges ($600.00) to the service provider for the correct services being rendered. I WILL NOT pay for damages caused to the property, the repairs for the damages caused and I MOST CERTAINLY WILL NOT PAY for services in advance or without being completed. I WILL NOT PAY FOR THYE MOWING SERVICE AFTER MY CANCELLATION EMAIL.

Business

Response:

To whom it may concern, My name is [redacted] and I recently filed a complaint with the Revdex.com in regards to the services provided by Layaou Landscaping, Inc. I am writing this letter to inform you that the business, Layaou Landscaping, Inc, has addressed my concerns and resolved all ongoing issues. The owner, [redacted], personally came out to oversee the completion of the work to resolve all concerns I displayed in my original email. They have satisfied all of my concerns and have honored their end of their service agreement. I am asking that you remove my original complaint from their business profile on the Revdex.com website. Thank you in advance for your assistance with this matter.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: In late May, Layou Landscaping performed $20,000 of work for me, a portion of which was planting six 6-foot arborvitae on the backyard slope, at a cost of $1,240. They also were to prep the slope with pre-emergent and landscape fabric, at a cost of $580. They state that their work is guaranteed for one year, including the plantings.

By July 18, it was clear that one of the arborvitae was not taking properly - it hadn't grown at all and was scraggly and sick looking, with some brown spots, while the other 5 had grown and looked good. Also, the bottom third of the slope was covered in weeds, which one would not expect given that pre-emergent and landscape fabric was ostensibly used on the entire slope.

I called Layou and was asked to take photos and email them to them, which I did. I was then told to water the arborvitae, which seemed odd because all 6 have been treated the same way, but I did it anyway; I watered it religiously and kept waiting for it to improve. They didn't address the weed situation at all.

After another 2 months, it was obvious that there was something really wrong with the tree or the way in which it was planted, because it looked no better, maybe a little worse. So on Sept 30 I called, and again was asked to send photos, which I did, and they said they would be back in touch once the receptionist had talked with Fred Layou. A week went by and noone contacted me, so I had to call again. Once again I was told someone would get back to me. I believe it was October 3rd when their schmoozer guy Shawn called me, giving me a song and dance about how they had to take soil samples and send them off, etc., etc., which is ridiculous given that all of the trees are in the same plot of land. I asked when he would do this, and he said he'd let me know. So here it is, almost two weeks later, and no call, no nothing. I don't believe they have any intention of ever doing anything about this - that the plan is to just tell me stories until I give up.

Also, during that same week, I spent days clearing the weeds from the bottom third of the slope, in preparation for covering that whole section with rock in order to prevent regrowth. In doing so, I discovered that - no surprise - there was no landscape fabric there at all. And probably no pre-emergent either. So I had to go out and purchase my own landscape fabric and install it, along with pre-emergent, prior to installing the stone.Desired Settlement: 1) I want them to replace the bad 6-foot arborvitae with a good one, ASAP, before it's too late for planting. This one should come with a 1-year guarantee from when it is planted.

and

2) I want a refund of $193, which is 1/3 of the charge for the pre-emergent and landscape fabric, since they only did 2/3 of the slope.

Business

Response:

Regarding [redacted], We refunded $193 for some landscape fabric that she says was not installed per her request. We are mailing the check today. She agreed to wait until the Spring to see if the tree survives or not as it is not dead, just not looking as good as the others. There is a broken top to the tree which the customer can not explain. Everything is resolved for now.

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me for the time being. While I am not happy that the tree hasn't been replaced, it is an acceptable compromise to wait until April to reassess its condition and have it replaced free of charge at that time if it is still not healthy.

Review: Layaou Landscaping installed a paver walkway with barn stone steps and steps that a capped to the pool area between 6/11 and 4/12 in our backyard. Last summer, 6/14, we started to notice that some of the pavers were sinking especially the one leading to the steps to walk down into the pool area. These pavers are at least 1 inch below the initial 1st step which can cause a huge tripping hazard and someone could fall down the 3 steps. We also had to re-glue the caps to the step on the opposite side of the pool into that area, which this cause the child fencing to be unstable until WE FIXED this. The plastic edging is coming up and not holding in the pavers properly. This past fall, 9/14, we put more sand in the huge cracks to try to remedy the issues. Also the initial estimate called for a special polymer sand which would not allow weeds to grow, well we have plenty of weeds in the joints. All in all, this was a very poorly done job at best.Desired Settlement: We want the pavers all fixed and leveled. We also want the huge cracks to be filled properly and the steps to be leveled. We want the edging to be repaired and properly installed. Additionally remove all old sand in joints and properly resanded. If Layaou cannot properly do the job then I want full compensation to have someone else come in and do it.

Business

Response:

The customer called our office on April 29, 2015 to say approximately 8 pavers have sunk about an inch. One area was an area near steps and another along the side where the edging is. The other area was where the edging along the walkway from the gate is not good and needs repaired. I have attached the quote we provided the customer to rectify the problem. The first picture I have attached is how we, Layaou Landscaping left the project almost 4 years ago. The pavers on the ground is what Layaou Landscaping was hired to do. The (Brick Edging) bricks standing on end, bordering the paver walkway is what the customer installed themselves. Over the years water has seeped in between and under the pavers and standing bricks (Brick Edging). In the winter months the water has froze, expanded and this causes shifting in the pavers. After the frozen water thaws this will cause a void under or in between the paver and ground. Therefore the next few times someone steps on the paver, the paver will sink till it hits the ground. This usually happens over years. The other problem is when installing the Brick Edging, a professional would have removed the plastic edging and would have cemented the standing bricks. This process is used by every professional to ensure long lasting paver work. The pavers themselves have a life time warranty but the workmanship can not be warranted against acts of God. The way the water flows through this particular yard is exactly this. Heavy rains run down the customers paver walkway and the Brick Edging blocks the flow of water. Layaou Landscaping [redacted]