Servpro of Wilson / Nashville

HAD TO GIVE ONE STAR; ALTHOUGH THEY DESERVE ZERO!

I had SERVPRO Wilson/Nashville come to my home to assess some water damage on December 12, 2017. They found that the fittings on the pipes that were behind the wall to my shower were slowly leaking. There was a substantial amount of mold on both walls. I was told by them that all black mold is not bad. They told me that they could fix the problem and COMPLETELY tear out the floors in my master bath and bedroom and make them look brand new. (Which is what was stated on the initial estimate of over $8,000). I was asked about whether or not this was being paid for by my insurance. SERVPRO stated that insurance doesn’t tell you that if it costs more than their estimate that they will pay. My insurance estimated and gave enough to cover the entire bathroom, bedroom, half bath, under my A/C unit, and entire kitchen floor. I was also told by SERVPRO multiple times to not involve the person who recommended them for the job (which should have been a red flag), but being that I am a single older woman, I didn’t know. I agreed to let them come and do the job.

They came on December 19th to start. My son, my boyfriend, and myself, moved almost all of the big pieces of furniture and all of the small things before SERVPRO came. When I came home the first day (I got off early), they had put about 4 squares of OSB (particle board) in a small area of the Master Bath and two 2x3 ft pieces in the Master bedroom where my dresser sat. I was told that the damage was not as bad as they thought and so it wouldn’t cost as much so that they would have enough to take out and replace my hardwood kitchen floor. When I asked about what was said about replacing everything in the bathroom, the SERVEPRO technician said that he never told me that (which was actually in the estimate). That was his first of many lies. On the second day, my son asked if they were going to fix the gaps between the pieces of particle board that they put down and were going to make it level with the original floor: and SERVPRO said yes. When I got home that day, none of the gaps were fixed. In fact, they had left my home, and left a huge hole in my floor where the toilet used to be. I could stand at the end of the floor and see the ground 5 feet under my home. When I called and asked about the hole, I got a snicker giggle with the excuse that they had run out of wood. I spent the entire night worrying that something (i.e. an animal, etc) might come up from under the house and come in through the hole that was left in the floor. SERVEPRO had left the entrance way to get under the house completely open and did not even bother to close it. They came a couple of days a week before the holidays. When they did the half-bath and hallway, they tore the original wood out and left gaps around the walls, which left nothing bracing the walls themselves. I called and asked about this and if it would affect my electricity bill and SERVPRO said no. When receiving my electricity bill, the amount was over $250 dollars. I spent the holidays with my house a complete wreck and sleeping in a chair.

After they “supposedly finished,” I came home to a crooked shower drain, no bathroom cabinet bottoms in the half-bath, the plumbing in the shower wasn’t hooked up correctly, the hot and cold water was switched. The floors (in multiple places) had lumps where the wood was about a quarter inch higher than the original flooring. The half-bath toilet was unstable due to the flooring being un-level with original floor. To “supposedly fix” the toilet instability, SERVEPRO used their BEST FRIEND “MR. CAULK” to stop the toilet from rocking like a rocking chair. MR. CAULK WORKED HARDER THAN THE SERVPRO EMPLOYEES DID, THE EMPLOYEES SLAPPED IT ON EVERYTHING JUST TO STICK IT ANYWHERE. There was no grout applied to the tile, which common sense tells you that grout is used when doing anything with tile. There again Common Sense is a flower that doesn’t grow in everyone’s garden: in this case SERVPRO’s Non-Workshop. All SERVPRO did was slap caulk on the back of the tile and stuck it to the wall. The master bathroom, just like everything else, was a wreck. The floor is very unlevel, it squeaks and cracks like a 90 year old house (I have pictures and videos of everything). They damaged 2 of my walls and attempted to patch them with tape and caulking. They bunched clear caulking around my tub instead of moulding. When I called the SERVPRO technician on it he told me that they would go under the house, put wood to try to brace the floors to even them out to stop the squeak. As far as the damage to the walls, SERVPRO told me that if they fixed them, that I would be charged for the work. I was told by the SERVPRO owner (to which I have a witness) that his guy (the SERVEPRO project attendant, who was assigned to my house) must have used scrap wood from other jobs and that he (SERVEPRO owner) sent 3 pieces of OSB and then later changed his story and said he sent 5. The PIECES used was the equivalent of maybe 1 large sheet. They cut the wood all around my A/C unit and left the wet wood under the unit. They covered up the damage to the walls behind the lavatory that showed the wall next to the A/C was also wet; jut so that they didn’t have to deal with it. The SERVPRO owner sent me a picture to try and “so-call-prove” that the lavatory was pulled out; to which it showed that the damage was covered up.

I was sent a text from the SERVPRO owner telling me that he sent the insurance company a bill for over $10,000 and my part is a little over $9,000. I questioned this and was told by the SERVPRO owner that he was “trying to make me some money.” I told him that I am an honest person and I am not paying for work that wasn’t done. I actually got the bill from my insurance company and it’s unbelievable all of the outrageous charges for things SERVPRO NEVER did.

This have been an almost 6 month long nightmare. I just want my house fixed. My Master bathroom floor is very noticeably uneven. The SERVPRO owner wanted to come back, rip the bathroom floor up, put a bunch of nails in the thin plywood, and put it back down. At that point, because of the sorry, substandard, unprofessional work and ethics (lies that I was told time-and-time again) I was done. I had a several people who deal in home contractor repair come by and look at the work. They all agreed that it was not professional work and that the SERVPRO Owner was just out to rip off my insurance company.

SERVPRO is not what they claim to be. They do substandard work and put band-aids on things to cover them up, just to make a buck. They were unprofessional and actually made snide comments about coming back to fix things because they felt they were already done. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THESE PEOPLE TO ANYONE! I have pictures, videos, witnesses, as well as plenty of documentation to back me up. This company needs to stick with duct cleaning and NOTHING else because they do more damage that good!

ServPro's plumbing installation failed and caused damage to my home. ServPro is not fixing it. [redacted], the owner of ServPro, was contracted to completely replace and install new HVAC ducting, insulation, and plumbing in my home. Because [redacted] subcontracted out all of this work, we had professional plumbing companies come by and give quotes. We wanted one of these professional plumbing companies to do the work. [redacted] instead said they were "priced too high." [redacted] sent over two men in an unmarked van and with no uniforms. There was some miscommunication from the start as these "plumbers" weren't aware they needed to replace the indoor plumbing as well; they seemed to be disgruntled about it. In addition, [redacted] and the "plumbers" told me they would run a new line from the supply to the house, because the old line, I was told by the professional companies, essentially made the entire installation of new plumbing in my house "useless." They never installed the new line. I was told by [redacted] that he "would take care of me." Further, and most important, a plumbing line that ServPro had installed during this time by the "plumbers," failed approximately 6-7 months later. This failure caused a major leakage under my home that went unnoticed due to being hidden under the home. I have water utility records and pictures for proof. ServPro refused to acknowledge me and I was forced to hire a plumbing company to come fix the pipe. They said the ServPro plumbers used a compression fitting when they should have threaded and capped the pipe. I have the piece of pipe. It is new, showing that it was recently installed, and pictures showing the new line above it, proving without a doubt that ServPro's plumbers did this work.Desired SettlementUnderneath my house needs to be evaluated by a third-party professional for damage caused by ServPro's plumbing installation failure. I cannot trust ServPro at this point due to their claiming they did not work on the pipe that failed, even while I have overwhelming proof they did. Any and all damage is the responsibility of ServPro. The supply line to the house needs to be replaced as promised. Business Response Contact Name and Title: [redacted]-OwnerContact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXXContact Email: [redacted]@bbamail.comThe original job was due to the city of [redacted] water main breaking and flooding the underside of the home. The original work was for the removal & replacement of the ductwork and insulation along with drying the under the home. The original date of inspection of this job was 1/15/2015. The work did not start until 1/27/2015 due to homeowner wanting to get other restoration companies to give estimates. We started the job, already having lined up the HVAC & Insulation company to do the reinstall of the ductwork & insulation. After removing the ductwork & insulation, the homeowner wanted a engineer to inspect his home for structural damage. This delayed the job for 3 weeks. During these 3 weeks there was a cold snap & the insurance company paid for them to stay at a hotel. The homeowner left the house with no heat, due to no ductwork, because of the inspection he wanted completed. He did not winterize the home. This in turn caused numerous leaks in the plumbing under the home.At this point we had to call back the insurance company to get the authorization to replace the supply lines under the home. Upon inspection by the plumbers it was found that the plumbing that was under the home was pieced together with 4 different types of plumbing due to the age of the home and previous repair work. There was galvanized, PVC, copper and black plastic line. The plumbing under the home was Not at Code. The plumber, who was licensed and insured, purchased a plumbing permit and replaced the supply lines under the home with PEX lines. Homeowner also wanted the lines inside his home replaced. We got the authorization and had this completed as well. All of the plumbing was inspected and approved by the [redacted] County Inspection Department on 3/11/2015 The inspector also noted that the home did not have a "grounding rod" which we went ahead and installed. (Not part of the damage).Customer's friend [redacted] called our office about a problem with the water usage in the home and made arrangements for [redacted] to come out and see if he could find a problem. [redacted] went to the home on 10/23/2015 and met the customer. [redacted] noted that there was standing water outside the crawl space door. [redacted] and the homeowner then looked in the crawl space to see if he could find the problem, which they did. [redacted] pointed out to the homeowner what the problem was. The problem, which [redacted] documented in time stamped photos, was an old capped off galvanized line, not a PEX supply line. The broken water line was not tied to any fixture in the home that we had replaced. It was consistent with the old plumbing that had been previously capped off. (NOT IN USE) Upon [redacted] pointing this out, the homeowner got very upset and went into the house. [redacted] proceeded to take pictures. [redacted] then went to the door to see what he wanted done. The customer would not come to the door and speak with [redacted]. His friend said "He is just upset, he will be fine". The city arrived as [redacted] was leaving and cut the water off. We did not hear back from him. Instead he contacted our Corporate office to file a complaint on 10/27/2015. (See attached email) Received:Received:Oct 27, 2015Ins. Company:[redacted] Ins. Rep:Complainant:[redacted], [redacted]Phone: [redacted] Bailey, NC XXXXXDirector:[redacted] & [redacted]Home Phone:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXXWork Phone: Cell Phone:(XXX) XXX-XXXXTrainer:[redacted] & [redacted]Email:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXX Insured:[redacted], [redacted]Ops Manager:Dutton, [redacted] Phone:See Complainant Phone Number(s)Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXX XXXX Servpro ofWilson/NashvilleSERVPRO(r) Job #:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXXInsurance Claim #: Complaint:Homeowner states Franchise was hired to replace duct work, insulation and plumbing. This was in January 2015. Mr. [redacted] was notified today by the water company he was using an extreme amount of water - over 13,000 gallons of water, compared to the 2,000 - 3,000 gallons previously used. Mr. [redacted] looked under his home and found a pipe pouring out water. He shut off the water and contacted the Franchise who stated they did not do the plumbing. Mr. [redacted] called in a plumbing company who found the cap that capped off the water line in January. The cap had blown off. It was a new cap and still had the sticker on it. It looks like all the lines that the Franchise had installed previously.Mr. [redacted] advised last time it took the Franchise three (3) months to get him back in his home while they lived in a hotel. Mr. [redacted] states his water is cut off and he has children and a wife. He needs the Franchise to come out and take care of this now - today. Plan of Action:Franchise Business Consultant will need to contact Mr. [redacted] as soon as possible.Oct 27, 2015Ins. Company:[redacted] Ins. Rep:Complainant:[redacted], [redacted]Phone: [redacted] Bailey, NC XXXXXDirector:[redacted] & [redacted]Home Phone:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXXWork Phone: Cell Phone:(XXX) XXX-XXXXTrainer:[redacted] & [redacted]Email:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXX Insured:[redacted], [redacted]Ops Manager:[redacted] Phone:See Complainant Phone Number(s)Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXX XXXX Servpro ofWilson/NashvilleSERVPRO(r) Job #:Phone:XXX-XXX-XXXXInsurance Claim #: Complaint:Homeowner states Franchise was hired to replace duct work, insulation and plumbing. This was in January 2015. Mr. [redacted] was notified today by the water company he was using an extreme amount of water - over 13,000 gallons of water, compared to the 2,000 - 3,000 gallons previously used. Mr. [redacted] looked under his home and found a pipe pouring out water. He shut off the water and contacted the Franchise who stated they did not do the plumbing. Mr. [redacted] called in a plumbing company who found the cap that capped off the water line in January. The cap had blown off. It was a new cap and still had the sticker on it. It looks like all the lines that the Franchise had installed previously.Mr. [redacted] advised last time it took the Franchise three (3) months to get him back in his home while they lived in a hotel. Mr. [redacted] states his water is cut off and he has children and a wife. He needs the Franchise to come out and take care of this now - today. Plan of Action:Franchise Business Consultant will need to contact Mr. [redacted] as soon as possible.SERVPRO made numerous attempts to contact him. He did not respond to them. They closed the file and sent him a certified letter dated 11/5/2015. (PLEASE NOTE THE DATE OF HIS COMPLAINT - We had already been there.On 1/18/2016 we receive this notice from the Revdex.com. On 1/19/2016 the complainant calls our office, tospeak with [redacted]. He gets very loud and vocal. He tells [redacted] that he would give him one more chance. He then states that he is going to call [redacted] (news media) if we don't take care of this problem. At that point [redacted] said that we received his complaint from the Revdex.com and ended the conversation. We contacted our SERVPRO trainer's office. They stated that he was also calling them. They told him that since he had turned it over to the Revdex.com that there was nothing that they could do at this point.In regards to the "Customer's Desired Resolution" 1)The plumbing was inspected by the [redacted] County Inspection Department upon completion of our work. The compression fitting in question was not installed by the plumber that we contracted. He did not use ant galvanized parts in the repairs completed. 2) Main water supply line being replaced: Water was flowing through line. It was not covered by insurance due to that fact. [redacted] told customer that he could give him plumbers names if he wanted to get it replaced. (Customer would have to pay out of his own pocket.)We at SERVPRO back our work. The issue presented has nothing to do with the work that we were contracted to complete. The issues presented in this complaint are related to the age of the home and previous unrelated repairs completed by others. Consumer Response 1) The compression fitting was indeed used by the plumbers; once again, I have pictures for proof. I find it interesting that [redacted] has not asked to see any of my pictures. 2) This is another outright lie from [redacted]. [redacted] never said I would have to pay out of my own pocket. His "weekend warrior" plumbers were not professional.I sincerely regret ever hiring [redacted] with ServPro of Wilson. BUYER BEWARE!Final Business Response This customer has made numerous accusations and slanderous comments about our company, it's personnel and other companies involved in the repairs at his home. The homeowner needs to understand the difference between a covered claim and maintenance issues that are homeowner's responsibility.We have completed all insurance work that was needed to be done due to a water main belonging to the city of [redacted] NC bursting and flooding underneath this home.The original work that was to be completed was drying the underside of his home, removing the insulation & ductwork. Licensed & insured companies were handling the replacement of the insulation and ductwork.As noted before, this process took longer due to Mr. [redacted] wanting to have his home inspected for structural damage due to the crawl space flooding - There was no notated damage under the home. This delayed the repairs by 3+weeks. During the "work stop" time period a cold snap occurred. Although the customer had numerous space heaters in his home, they could not maintain the warmth. The insurance company paid to put them in a hotel while waiting on a structural report. Due to Mr. [redacted] not cutting the water off to his unoccupied home, the supply lines under the home froze and burst. At this point another contractor had to be called in for additional repairs. The licensed and insured plumber purchased a permit and repaired the busted supply lines as approved by the insurance company. The repairs were inspected by the [redacted] County Inspections Department and signed off on 3/13/2015. The notations on the inspection report (which I have on file) state: Plumbing piping test passed ** Leaks. It also states "Need to install ground & ground wire at service" which we also completed for the homeowner.At that point the job was complete. The customer moved back into the home and was invoiced by us on 3/20/2015 for the completed job. The insurance company wrote the check to them, they said that they never received the check. The insurance company reissued a check on 4/28/2015 and sent it with a tracking number. It had their name along with the mortgage company's name (a local bank). We had to make several calls & emails to the insurance company to find out the status of our payment. We sent the customer statements and left them messages in regards to payment. The adjuster finally had to call them for us to get paid. It took them until 6/18/2015 to get the check signed and bring to our office. There was an overpayment of $206.20 which we refunded to them. This was due to their claim of ceiling damage in the home and wanted to be paid for sealing & painting all ceilings in the home. The adjuster's check included this amount ($1206.20 - $1000.00 deductible.). They were completing that work themselves.The compression fitting that Mr. [redacted] keeps referring to was an old capped off line -NOT a supply line. We also have those pictures. That is a maintenance issue due to the age of the remaining plumbing.There was a conversation in which Mr. [redacted] said that they had low pressure in the house PRIOR to everything that happened. This conversation involved our personnel and Mr. [redacted]. It was suggested to him that the main water line be replaced due to the age of it and that would help with the pressure. Our personnel told him that he would contact the plumber to talk to him about this. A plumber did talk to the homeowner, but the plumber never got the "go ahead" from him to complete the work. This item was not covered by insurance due to the fact that water was flowing through it, it was not affected by the freeze. It is a buried line. This too is a maintenance issue. ALL work completed by our company and its subcontractors , that was insurance related, has been completed and inspected by local officials as required. All others items that have been brought up by Mr. [redacted] are maintenance issues.