Mr. Hardwood

From: MrHardwood [mailto:***] Sent: Saturday, August 05, 9:PM To: Revdex.com *** Subject: Re: You have a New Message from Revdex.com Serving Connecticut Regarding Complaint #*** Please contact me mondayThis is fraudulent and
customer is threatsning my reputation to gain a reduced rate Contract / estimate was sent for no stain for stainCustomer has no contract stating Customer was asked for deposit before work startedHe argured he wanted stain for I told him to hire someone elseHe stated time constraints and I offered a reduced rate of Job started on time and finished on time with stellar resultsI have whitnesses as to cuatomers satisfaction of job Customer complained of dust...I explained we are sanding and process is not dust free Customer then asked what he owed "if anything " when I repliedhe said "you.obviously dont care about your reputation, im going to post negative reviews " Key has been returned via certufied mail Rob G*** MrHardwood.com *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

From: MrHardwood [mailto:***] Sent: Saturday, August 05, 9:PM To: Revdex.com *** Subject: Re: You have a New Message from Revdex.com Serving Connecticut Regarding Complaint #*** Please contact me mondayThis is fraudulent and
customer is threatsning my reputation to gain a reduced rate Contract / estimate was sent for no stain for stainCustomer has no contract stating Customer was asked for deposit before work startedHe argured he wanted stain for I told him to hire someone elseHe stated time constraints and I offered a reduced rate of Job started on time and finished on time with stellar resultsI have whitnesses as to cuatomers satisfaction of job Customer complained of dust...I explained we are sanding and process is not dust free Customer then asked what he owed "if anything " when I repliedhe said "you.obviously dont care about your reputation, im going to post negative reviews " Key has been returned via certufied mail Rob G*** MrHardwood.com *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:I suppose I should not be surprised that his response was full of lies and distortionsAt least we can easily prove them to be falsehoods.1) The contract was sent after the work was begun and was for the incorrect amountWe asked for it to be corrected, (and have the emails to prove it as does he), but he never sent another contractAnd we never signed a contract, as he can confirmSo I'm guessing right there his business practices are proving questionable.2) We were not asked for a deposit "before the work was started." And THAT was the problemHe told us the $2,was going to be $3,after the majority of the work was done, thereby backing us into a cornerWe are where we are because we were asked for a higher deposit than we were quoted after the factSo his point #is untrueWe can provide phone and text records to prove this as well.3) We did indeed complain of dust because his website advertises his services as being "dust-free." So his advertising and marketing is misleading at best.4) He wrote ""you.obviously dont care about your reputation, im going to post negative reviews " in quotation marks, perhaps assuming you would think that was a direct quoteIt is of course a lieI wrote this: (And the quotation marks indicate a direct quote) "You are going to read an EPIC review on Yelp (where you already have stars) and Angie’s List, as well as a complaint to the Revdex.comAnd we will of course take to Facebook and Twitter warning our many friends to run when they hear your nameYou ripped us off, and did a mediocre job even according to your own websitePeople need to fully understand what they are getting themselves into when they deal with your unprofessional and below-average companyAnd as a businessman you must know how one rave review travels to 10-peopleBut an atrocious review spreads like wildfire." I was and am well within my rights to tell people about our horrible experience with this vendorSo I didHe threatened to call his attorney on me (which I assume he never did as I never heard from anyone).5) He said the key was returned via certified mail, which is trueWe received it last Thursday, more than ONE MONTH after the work had been completedHe was holding it hostage, an implicit threat that he retained the ability to enter our home for so long that we were forced to pay a locksmith to change the locks on our house.6) The complaint was not "fraudulent," as he stated, and he failed to show any proof of fraudAnd he said "the customer is threatening my reputation to gain a reduced rate," but again he shows no proofHe showed no proof because there isn't anyWe feel we were taken advantage of, and we let lots and lots of people knowNot to gain a better rate, but to educate the public.I am continuing to press this matter because MrHardwood has an A rating from the Revdex.com, and I believe you need to address thatIt is an implicit endorsement from your organization that this is a quality vendorIt is notThe fact that we have no signed contract, the price kept changing, and that he held our house key hostage for more than a month is ample evidence that his A rating is undeserved.
Sincerely,
*** ***

Im responding to a customer complaint from *** *** As the attached text messages show, I entered into an agreement with the homeowner to refinish her hardwood floors Because she was experiencing some hardships when
moving into her home, the text messages show she needed a new furnace, I agreed to accept part of the money up front ($1000)then the remainder of the money ($600) days later I was in communication with the homeowner *** *** throughout the entire week prior to the start of the projectI indicated to the homeowner that the project would take days due to the staining process He mentioned that he wanted to forgo the staining process to save on cost as they had to replace the furnace We arrived at the home and got right to work As the day progressed the homeowner called to tell me of the stain colorI was confused as we agreed there would be no stain to save costsKeep in mind the homeownes didnt have enough to pay to begin with, now they're expecting me to extend my offer another $for daysThis made me very uncomfortable. When I attempted to collect the funds she came up with a complaint and filed with the Revdex.com Once the text messages and contract are read you will see holes in her story and therefore she is lying about the entire agreementFor example there is no mention in the contract nor the text messages about any repairsHowever her complaint mentions repairs She mentions putty several times in the complaintWe do not use putty between joints, as she suggests because it is forced out when the floor expands in the warmer months damaging the finishShe even denies owing $as the text messages with *** clearly show! I also have audio testimonial from the referal source who referred her to me, her husband's brother *** ***In the audio message, *** *** says he has been at the home several times and has NEVER heard a complaint from either *** *** or her husband *** *** *** *** has agreed to speak on my behalf regarding this issue, if necessary. I would like to go line item for line item and dispel every one of her comments and complaints however I simply don't have time for this This is taking me months to get the time to upload all of the text messages the contracts and try to respond to all of her complaintTherefore if the are particular issues which remain unclear, please feel free to request clarity I run an honest and up front business and put customer service firstIm frustrated that this customer would try to ruin my reputation to save a few dollars The text messages and original contract can be found here; *** *** ***
*** *** ***
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Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:I suppose I should not be surprised that his response was full of lies and distortions. At least we can easily prove them to be falsehoods.1) The contract was sent after the work was begun and was for the incorrect amount. We asked for it to be corrected, (and have the emails to prove it as does he), but he never sent another contract. And we never signed a contract, as he can confirm. So I'm guessing right there his business practices are proving questionable.2) We were not asked for a deposit "before the work was started." And THAT was the problem. He told us the $2,500 was going to be $3,750 after the majority of the work was done, thereby backing us into a corner. We are where we are because we were asked for a higher deposit than we were quoted after the fact. So his point #2 is untrue. We can provide phone and text records to prove this as well.3) We did indeed complain of dust because his website advertises his services as being "dust-free." So his advertising and marketing is misleading at best.4) He wrote ""you.obviously dont care about your reputation, im going to post negative reviews " in quotation marks, perhaps assuming you would think that was a direct quote. It is of course a lie. I wrote this: (And the quotation marks indicate a direct quote) "You are going to read an EPIC review on Yelp (where you already have 2 stars) and Angie’s List, as well as a complaint to the Revdex.com. And we will of course take to Facebook and Twitter warning our many friends to run when they hear your name. You ripped us off, and did a mediocre job even according to your own website. People need to fully understand what they are getting themselves into when they deal with your unprofessional and below-average company. And as a businessman you must know how one rave review travels to 10-20 people. But an atrocious review spreads like wildfire." I was and am well within my rights to tell people about our horrible experience with this vendor. So I did. He threatened to call his attorney on me (which I assume he never did as I never heard from anyone).5) He said the key was returned via certified mail, which is true. We received it last Thursday, more than ONE MONTH after the work had been completed. He was holding it hostage, an implicit threat that he retained the ability to enter our home for so long that we were forced to pay a locksmith to change the locks on our house.6) The complaint was not "fraudulent," as he stated, and he failed to show any proof of fraud. And he said "the customer is threatening my reputation to gain a reduced rate," but again he shows no proof. He showed no proof because there isn't any. We feel we were taken advantage of, and we let lots and lots of people know. Not to gain a better rate, but to educate the public.I am continuing to press this matter because Mr. Hardwood has an A rating from the Revdex.com, and I believe you need to address that. It is an implicit endorsement from your organization that this is a quality vendor. It is not. The fact that we have no signed contract, the price kept changing, and that he held our house key hostage for more than a month is ample evidence that his A rating is undeserved. 
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Im responding to a customer complaint from [redacted].     As the attached text messages show, I entered into an agreement with the homeowner to refinish her hardwood floors.  Because she was experiencing some hardships when moving into her home, the text messages show she...

needed a new furnace,  I agreed to accept part of the money up front ($1000)then the remainder of the money ($600)  30 days later.     I was in communication with the homeowner [redacted] throughout the entire week prior to the start of the project. I indicated to the homeowner that the project would take 3 days due to the staining process.  He mentioned that he wanted to forgo the staining process to save on cost as they had to replace the furnace.   We arrived at the home and got right to work.  As the day progressed the homeowner called to tell me of the stain color. I was confused as we agreed there would be no stain to save costs. Keep in mind the homeownes didnt have enough to pay to begin with, now they're expecting me to extend my offer another $400 for 30 days. This made me very uncomfortable.    When I attempted to collect the funds she came up with a complaint and filed with the Revdex.com.  Once the text messages and contract are read you will see holes in her story and therefore she is lying about the entire agreement. For example there is no mention in the contract nor the text messages about any repairs. However her complaint mentions repairs.  She mentions putty several times in the complaint. We do not use putty between joints, as she suggests because it is forced out when the floor expands in the warmer months damaging the finish. She even denies owing $600 as the text messages with [redacted] clearly show!  I also have audio testimonial from the referal source who referred her to me, her husband's brother [redacted]. In the audio message, [redacted] says he has been at the home several times and has NEVER heard a complaint from either [redacted] or her husband [redacted].  [redacted] has agreed to speak on my behalf regarding this issue, if necessary.    I would like to go line item for line item and dispel every one of her comments and complaints however I simply don't have time for this.  This is taking me months to get the time to upload all of the text messages the contracts and try to respond to all of her complaint. Therefore if the are particular issues which remain unclear, please feel free to request clarity.   I run an honest and up front business and put customer service first. Im frustrated that this customer would try to ruin my reputation to save a few dollars.   The text messages and original contract can be found here;      [redacted]         [redacted]

Review: I am writing this letter to officially outline the situation my husband and I have been trying to handle with the local business, Mr. Hardwood and hopefully seek some kind of resolution.

We were referred to call Mr. Hardwood by a family member who had highly recommended his services, and whose past clients had of good experiences with this company. I contacted [redacted], the owner of this company, and he came out on 8/28 to give me a quote on redoing the hardwood floors at our new house located at [redacted].

During his visit, [redacted] and I went over the job what this job entailed. This included the dust- free system he was going to use, some repairs that needed to be done, and what type of finish I was looking for (stained wood verses just natural wood with 3 full coats of poly). [redacted] was very generous with his quote, as the family member that referred us to use his company is also a real estate agent, and sends a lot of clients to Mr. Hardwood. [redacted] contacted me a short time later to follow-up about scheduling the job. I was very excited about having the work done, and asked that he let me know he first available opening. We had not started to move furniture into the house, so the sooner we could have the job done, the better. We decided to postpone the move and get the floors done ASAP.

A few days passed, and we still didn't have a set date for the job to get done. At this point, my husband, [redacted], began to communicate with [redacted], as he works third shift and was home during the day to coordinate. [redacted] let him know that we needed to get the job scheduled ASAP, as we needed to start moving further into the house and could no longer put the floors off. [redacted] agreed and scheduled us for the week of 9/15. The days leading up to this week and during this week, my husband kept texting and calling [redacted], trying to confirm the exact date as we had my parents staying in the house and they needed to leave while the work was getting done. [redacted] did not respond to us for a few days, but then finally told us they would begin on Thursday, 9/18. Thursday came, my parents packed their stuff and went to a hotel, but the team did not show up. [redacted] contacted [redacted] later that day and confirmed our house had been postponed until Friday. This was very frustrating, but there was little we could do at this point so we agreed. We stressed to [redacted] the importance of getting the job completed by Monday, as we were scheduled to begin moving the big items into the house on the 22nd, plus my parents were supposed to return to the house by then. He assured us the job would be done and the floors walkable by Sunday.

Friday morning, I was scheduled to meet [redacted] at 8am. I warned him ahead of time that I would be a few minutes late, as I had to get my kids on the school bus at 8am at our old house, but would head straight over to the new house afterwards. Even though I had already communicated I would be late and why, I still got a rude message from [redacted] at about 8:05 that I was "holding the team up". I assured him I was on my way and reminded him of what I told him.

When I arrived at the house, I was very uneasy as [redacted] was not there to do the work as I was originally told. Instead, there were two young men here who made me feel extremely uncomfortable entering the house alone with them. I immediately texted my husband to tell him what was going on and he assured me he'd rush straight from work to get to the house with me. I went ahead and opened the house up for the guys, went over exactly what I had originally discussed with [redacted] about the repairs that were needed and our final decision about the stain color we selected. I even brought the sample brochure from [redacted], with the color circled. I also reviewed the repairs that had been discussed during the original quote with the workers. There were several gaps along the wall separating the living area from the kitchen, and [redacted] had agreed to fill these with wood putty and stain them to blend in. There was also a small, open wood knot that he suggested needed to be filled with wood putty as well. When I showed the worker these spots and he mentioned using quarter-round moulding to camouflage. I said no, we did not want that, and explained that [redacted] agreed to fill them in with wood putty. He nodded in understanding, although his English was very questionable. Because of this, I asked if he should call [redacted] to confirm and he shook his head no and he understood they needed to be filled in. I then proceeded to show him the other repair that needed to be done. This was a new repair that was needed since [redacted] had done the original quote, but my husband had spoke to [redacted] about it several times while trying to schedule the job. That is another reason why we were disappointed [redacted] wasn't there to meet us, as he agreed to look at this additional repair when he started our job. Now that he wasn't starting the job in person as originally discussed, I was unsure how this would be left. Much to my (pleasant) surprise, the workers agreed to take care of the additional repair, which would require patching a small area with wood pieces. Also, the worker noticed a another loose wood joint/seam (unrelated to the original specified repairs), and offered to take care of that as well. At this point, my husband had joined us at the house, and we left together with our confidence in the job (temporarily) restored.

A short time later, I received both a phone call and text message from [redacted], demanding an additional $400 for the stain. I was very confused by this, as the floor stain cost was already included as an itemized add-in on the original written quote and I thought was already part of the job. When I pointed this out, [redacted] did apologize and explained that he did not have the original quote handy and that he had forgotten that part. He did bring up that he did not account for the time the extra staining step when scheduling our job, and now there was no way they would be done by Sunday as originally promised. It would now be Tuesday before the job would be done and we would have to stay out of the house until then.

This news was devastating to me, as I was really looking forward to the stain color I had picked. In addition, now our moving plans were in jeopardy. [redacted] asked us to make a decision: either forgo the stain that I had my heart set on or reschedule our move for the 22nd and allow them to work on the floors through Tuesday, the 23rd. We decided to forgo the stain in order to stay on schedule to have the floors done by Sunday. My husband confirmed with this [redacted] directly and I also spoke to the team leader at the request of the workers. The worker gave me his cell phone and the gentleman on the other line identified himself as the "boss" (but it wasn't Rob?) and needed to hear the confirmation to forgo the stain from me directly. I confirmed this for him, while explaining how upsetting it was for me. So, the revised job was just the sanding of the floors, necessary repairs, and a triple coat of poly over the natural wood, no stain at all. All joked the positive side of this was we'd save some money in addition to time.

We came back to the house periodically over the course of the day Friday, and again on Saturday. When reviewing the status of the work Saturday morning, both my husband and I noticed the repairs still had not been done. The workers assured me they would do the wood putty fill-in work before applying the final coat of poly and they ended up having to order the wood pieces to do the patch work. When we returned at the end of the day, the workers had already had the house locked up and their van packed. They confirmed the clean-up had been completed, third coat of poly was done, along with the wood putty fill-in work. They also confirmed they placed our house key on the kitchen counter. We decided against going inside, as the smell from poly fumes was extremely strong, and we took the team at their word that the job was done as discussed and that our key was inside, too.

My husband and I returned to the house the next day, and much to our dismay we discovered that none of the promised repairs were done. Also, there were floor areas that seemed really rough still - almost as if they didn't get the benefit of any poly coats after they were sanded? In addition to that, there was sawdust everywhere - [redacted] had promoted his "dust free" system, but there were literally mounds of sawdust everywhere. To top all of that off, our house key that they claimed to have left behind was no where to be found.

Because I was already extremely upset with how our job had been handled, and I already had a few negative run-ins with [redacted] (the rudeness regarding my "lateness" the morning the job began, along with the demands for more money when he forgot my original order included the stain charge) my husband began trying to get a hold of [redacted] immediately to address these issues and planned on handling the situation and keeping me out of it. But, just like when trying to schedule the job, [redacted] was extremely tough to get a hold of. A series of phone tag and text messaging began. Then, as soon as he found out my husband was unhappy and wanted him to come look over the job and discuss with him, he became even more difficult to track down.

When asked about the missing house key, he first denied that it was missing. He tried to say it was hidden on our property and sent my husband on a wild goose chase, searching behind lights, around the shed, etc. At one point he told my husband to check our garage, which is very hard to do, considering we don't have a garage. Then, he finally admitted that he "found it" and my husband requested for him to bring it to the house, and review the issues we had with the floor at the same time. Rob once again skirted the issue about the problems with the floor and instead offered to "sell the key back to us for $600". This was baffling, as I'm not even sure where this figure came from? [redacted] then claimed we still owed him money for the job and stated we could have our key back when he had his money.

Finally, after over a month of going back and forth between [redacted] and my husband with dozens of calls, many voice mails, several text messages, and a lot of confusion, we received an official bill from Mr. Hardwood, dated 10/25/14 (attached). At this point, I called [redacted] myself, the same day I received the invoice as I immediately disagreed with the itemization listed and subsequent balance due. He did not answer my call and I did not bother to leave a voice mail. Instead, I decided to follow up in writing with an email and officially dispute the charge with him. A few days passed, and the matter slipped my mind. Then, on Tuesday, 11/4, I received an extremely disturbing message from [redacted] demanding payment or he was seeking legal action.

Up until then, my husband had been trying to handle this situation direct with [redacted], but clearly this was a sign we needed to escalate the matter. Although we were extremely dissatisfied with both the work itself and the entire process of dealing with the owner, we were trying to be respectful of the fact that this business was referred to us by a family member who does a lot of work with Mr. Hardwood and we were appreciative that he had given us a discount on the job.

But, the bottom line is, discount or not - this was a lot of money for us to pay and be treated this way is inexcusable. The fact that our house key is being purposely withheld and basically being ransomed by a stranger, and that our dissatisfaction with the actual work done is being ignored and swept under the rug needs to be addressed. To top it off, the bill we finally received has erroneous charges on it - it appears that Mr. Hardwood is trying to collect the extra $400 for the stain that we never actually received.Desired Settlement: In regard to the money he believes we owe him, I am disputing that as the agreement was we wouldn't have to pay for a part of his services that we didn't actually receive.

It was our understanding that this charge was removed when the stain step was cancelled.

I am hoping by filing this complaint, we can work with Mr. Hardwood to come up with compromise that both parties can deal with. He owes it to us to review the work done, and make good on the promise to complete the repairs and return our house key. The billing issue should be nulled, as we don't believe we owe him any extra money, especially since the job wasn't done as promised to start.

Business

Response:

Im responding to a customer complaint from [redacted]. As the attached text messages show, I entered into an agreement with the homeowner to refinish her hardwood floors. Because she was experiencing some hardships when moving into her home, the text messages show she needed a new furnace, I agreed to accept part of the money up front ($1000)then the remainder of the money ($600) 30 days later. I was in communication with the homeowner [redacted] throughout the entire week prior to the start of the project. I indicated to the homeowner that the project would take 3 days due to the staining process. He mentioned that he wanted to forgo the staining process to save on cost as they had to replace the furnace. We arrived at the home and got right to work. As the day progressed the homeowner called to tell me of the stain color. I was confused as we agreed there would be no stain to save costs. Keep in mind the homeownes didnt have enough to pay to begin with, now they're expecting me to extend my offer another $400 for 30 days. This made me very uncomfortable. When I attempted to collect the funds she came up with a complaint and filed with the Revdex.com. Once the text messages and contract are read you will see holes in her story and therefore she is lying about the entire agreement. For example there is no mention in the contract nor the text messages about any repairs. However her complaint mentions repairs. She mentions putty several times in the complaint. We do not use putty between joints, as she suggests because it is forced out when the floor expands in the warmer months damaging the finish. She even denies owing $600 as the text messages with [redacted] clearly show! I also have audio testimonial from the referal source who referred her to me, her husband's brother [redacted]. In the audio message, [redacted] says he has been at the home several times and has NEVER heard a complaint from either [redacted] or her husband [redacted] has agreed to speak on my behalf regarding this issue, if necessary. I would like to go line item for line item and dispel every one of her comments and complaints however I simply don't have time for this. This is taking me months to get the time to upload all of the text messages the contracts and try to respond to all of her complaint. Therefore if the are particular issues which remain unclear, please feel free to request clarity. I run an honest and up front business and put customer service first. Im frustrated that this customer would try to ruin my reputation to save a few dollars. The text messages and original contract can be found here; [redacted]