Mr. Handyman of SW Minneapolis and SW Suburbs

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/08) */
Monday, June 8,
The facts and timeline from our perspective:
On April 16, one of our technicians did an estimate for work to be done at this customer's homeIt included repair of an entry door unit and some exterior painting
and scraping of upper dormersThe total estimate for work to be done based on what we could see at the time was $665-
On our estimate form, it clearly says estimate multiple timesIt further says, "this is an estimate, not a firm bidMrHandyman performs all work on a Time and Materials basisClient will be charged only for the hours worked and materials providedHourly rate: $per hour + materials + van travel fee"
On May 8, two of our technicians worked at the customer's home for hours each, a total of hoursNo payment was made at that timeThe total invoice for that day was $We had already agreed to reduced labor rates for this customer
On May 20, two of our technicians completed the work at the customer's home and worked for and hours, a total of additional hoursThe total invoice for that day was $(subsequently adjusted to $due to billing error) At the end of this day, the invoice for this day was paid by the customer in the amount of $
On each of these days in which we worked at the customer's home, they signed one of our work order/contracts that clearly states the time worked, work done, materials used, amount being charged, and the rates and terms of our service, which includes our hourly rate
Most of our estimates are very accurateThere are, however, times that it just takes longer than we anticipated, or there are unforeseen problems that are encountered as the work progressesIn cases where our estimate is not accurate, we do our best to communicate well with the customer that it will take longer and cost moreThe customer always has the option of stopping work at any time
In this case, our technician communicated that the work was taking longer, and that the repair on the entry door was more extensive, as the interior rot was much more extensive than what was visible before pulling it apartAlso, the customer was informed that the paint for the exterior dormers (paint provided by customer) was not covering in one coat, and would require a second coatHe agreed to this additional work saying that he wanted the job done right
We attempted to communicate the changes/additions to the customer, and our technician was confident that the customer understood these changesBut even if there was a slight breakdown in communication, or customer misunderstanding, it was quite obvious that there was significant additional work being done and additional time involvedUnfortunately, in this case we believe the customer assumed wrongly that our estimate was a firm bid, and that all the additional work requested would be included
At the end of the second day of work, May 20, 2015, there were some unfortunate assumptions and possible miscommunication on both sidesOur technician, on completion of that day's work, presented the customer with the invoice for that day, assuming that the previous invoice (for the work on May 8) had been already paid, which it had not beenUnfortunately, the customer thought that this amount from the second day were the total charges ($663.00) and that we would not be charging them for the first hours of workOur technician never would have communicated that this was the total amount for entire job, though he did think that the previous invoice had been paid and that this was the remaining balance to be paidHe was well aware of the total charges as he had been on site while all the work was being done and had filled out all the paperwork himself
So, due to these unfortunate assumptions the customer was surprised when we informed them on Thursday June 4, that there was an unpaid invoice for work at their homeWe tried to explain the situation from our perspectiveUnder the circumstances, and considering the possible miscommunication, we would have been glad to make some sort of reasonable concession, but the conversation never got that farThey got increasingly angry and repeatedly made it very clear that they were not going to pay us anything further for the work done at their home and that they thought we were trying to "scam" themIt was only at that point in the conversation that we mentioned that one option we pursue for customers who refuse to pay their bill is for us to file a lien against their homeAt that point they continued to express their negative views of us quite adamantly, had no interest in listening, and we felt it best at that time to discontinue the conversationThe conversation was not reasonable or productive
After this difficult conversation, we immediately prepared a letter offering some financial concessions as an attempt to settle this matter quickly, fairly and amicablyWe value our customers and our reputation both locally and nationally, and always do our best to work with unhappy customers to settle these mattersThis letter/offer was mailed (and emailed) in good faith on Friday June 5,
It is still very much our hope that this matter can be settled fairly and amicablyWe look forward to further communication from the customer with a response to our offer
Copies of documents in attached PDF
March 16, Estimate form
May 8, work order
May 20, work order
Copy of check for $
Customer statement with reduction offer
Letter to customer June 5, 2015, pages
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/06/08) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
The case was settled to mutual satisfaction

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to meAccording to Sherman Williams paint the deck has to try at least hours.The stucco was splashed with paint.Also painter missed large sections Celling was included in kitchen painting and was sitting right there on the counter.It was a very unacceptable paint job.It was not discussed and agreed by me.I believe our son was in to much of a hurry to get back to his own job"BUT" I also wish to have a handyman that is well experienced not the same one.He was very rude on top of everything else *** ***

I went to the home and met with their son. I offered to come back and fix what I viewed as very fixable items. They didn't want us to come back, so I offered to refund about half of their payment. Their son did not accept my offer at that time, but called our office later in the day. I assumed...

that he had discussed this with his parents. I explained to their son that most professional painters do not use tape when cutting in. I rarely use tape. Also, the deck was stained with Sherwin-Williams Super Deck stain, which is an excellent product and is water-based. It requires a clean, dry surface, which the deck was in that it was a very hot sunny day. We are still willing to come back and address any problems that have arisen.

On time - on budget; our two main concerns! They did a nice job with our wall demo, drywall repair, carpet removal and painting project. In fact, we added on two more projects: painting another room and additional carpet removal.