Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/02/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  *********** ** ************** In June, I paid Brad ********* for an estimate. After that, I agreed to have him come and do the waterproofing and weeping tiles work for me. He said he would put me on his schedule for the beginning of August and that it would take 2-3 weeks at the most. According to his contract I paid him, to book this contract. At the beginning of August, he contacted me saying he was sick with Covid. Sept. 5th First trench started. He hired a gentleman named Kevin who dug the backyard trench unsupervised. His contract asked that I pay him as each trench was dug. He was paid on Sept 8th. Oct. 1st Second trench open Oct. 16th Third trench Open Nov. 8th He asked me to pay $***** for ¾ of the water proofing to be complete.(this was supposed to be a payment of $******** when all four walls were waterproofed). Around the time when he started working on water proofing and filling in the trenches I started texting him with concerns about the way he filled the trench next to my neighbor’s driveway completely with stone, (not on our contract). I contacted him with other concerns as well: He replaced my front deck six inches below the doorway, (2” is code). He drilled holes in my basement that were not done to code. (2” instead of 4”). He agreed to fix the side wall of stone, he never did. He did not put any drainage in window wells. He did not put enough clay on top of closed sections of other trenches, (he did add more clay when asked, ,but not enough when considering all of this clay would drop significantly by spring). He did not put landscaping fabric in between the stone and the clay. When asked about at least doing this in the areas where the trenches had not been filled in, he did not reply. We had discussed adding a cement floor to my basement and an egress window. I was planning to go ahead with the egress window and verbally discussed doing this, after the rest of the project was done. We did not have anything in writing, and he altered my wall using large bolts to attach 2 by 4 boards to show where this new window would be. He did not have permission to do that. He placed round stone material on my driveway without permission, (in fact at the beginning of this project, he asked if he could put clay on my driveway and I said no). He also placed a tarp on my driveway and “cleaned the back of his truck,” pushing material, (clay, plastic etc.?) from his truck which he left there. There was also an open black regular sized garbage bag of ongoing food garbage that he left in my backyard as well as other food garbage found here and there amongst garbage materials). He did not do any daily clean up. He cracked my neighbors asphalt driveway, using too big of an excavator to excavate the wall next to his driveway. He did not place any boards to disperse the weight of the excavator. He also left my neighbor’s driveway muddy with clay. He left clay material in the street, and did not have cones on both sides leaving a dangerous situation in the street and a mess for my neighbors. He walked away from the job on November 23rd… In our Manitoba cold wintertime with three open trenches and one section that was filled improperly, completely with stone creating a funnel for water seepage. Since hiring a new business to complete the job, I have learned the following: The blue skin was not not tarred along the bottom and it was not tarred at all seams. On at least one occasion plastic backing that is usually removed from the back of the blue skin ( on a seam) was still there,…and accessible …showing outward from the wall…So it was placed the wrong way out on the wall. And it was not tarred. On my neighbor’s driveway side near the front corner : the weeping tile was covered by clay, indicating a cave in which he did not clean up. The weeping tile should have been covered by round stone. He used 3” weeping tiles instead of 4” weeping tiles. He charged me $****** to give me an estimate in the beginning. ***** ****** **** **** ********* * **** *********  He put a cement bead where the wall meets the foundation…This was poorly done…either in the wrong air temperature or using the wrong consistency …therefore when new contractors examined it..it broke easily…very brittle. Along backyard wall where he was planning to attach an interior line, did not even drill all the way through the wall where he was planning to create an attachment to a weeping tile…..Yet he had backfilled this area with stone. All core holes were not angled as they should have been. He did not disclose that the water shut off valve pipe had slipped, during excavation.…my new contractors reported this to me, and I had to get this investigated by the City of Winnipeg Water Works before excavation could continue. The wood around one window, in my basement, on the neighbor’s driveway side has had water damage since the long wait to address this moisture issue. This window did not look like this in the beginning of September. When cleaning up my back yard, January 7th. I noticed a large tarp that had clay and plastic debris…It was confirmed by a witness that he put a tarp on my driveway and pushed this stuff on to it from the back of his truck. *** ** ********* *** ****** ** ** ********* He also put a pile of round stone on the back left corner of my driveway. At no time did have permission to put material of any kind on my driveway. There was a large piece of curvy metal that Brad could not remove from the back trench. My new company found it and removed it. Brad told me about this, “I can’t get it out” I had no idea what to say…He left it there. My new company told me that the ground has movement and leaving the metal there could potentially damage any water proofing that was done. Breakdown of payments I made to Brad **********  $** ******   Acceptance of Contract: (payments of $******* (June 23), $***** (June 28) and $****** (June 29th). $******** First Trench Open, (Sept 8th) $** ****** Second Trench Open (******* on October 1st, ******* on October 2) $** *** Third trench Open October 16th $** ****** Payment for 3/4 Walls are waterproofed Nov. 6 (although going around the corner that runs from the back to the street side were not completed). And about 1/3 of the front wall was not waterproofed. $********* ****** Estimate fee I paid in June. $********* Other Expenses ******  for fence rental. _______Neighbor’s Driveway Repair I am seeking quotes right now and will supply them ** *** ****** ******** ****** **** * **** ***** ********* **** *****  $********* is the reimbursement that I want. I would like my neighbor to be paid for the repair of his driveway.

  Business Response

  Date: 27/02/2023

  I met Mary at the home she was considering purchasing at *** ** ****** ** in June to discuss a plan for the foundation repairs required. 

  I supplied her with a descriptive quote with all involved and waited for her reply.

  Originally I recall, she wasn't sure if she would go through with the work and told me so.  Eventually at the end of June she let me know she changed her mind and wanted to do the work.

  We proceeded with plans. I suggested she meet my engineer on site and he looked at the condition of the home and agreed to my plan. At this time Mary signed my contract agreeing to my plan, scope of work and terms of payment. 

  We began working in the back as she had removed her deck and wanted us to finish the back before moving on to north side (neighbor's driveway side)

  It needs to be noted that throughout the project, Mary made many requests, and asked for us to accommodate her timeline needs (back wall first, may or may not do an egress window,) and I did my best to accommodate her. 

  Therefore I excavated and waterproofed the back wall and backfilled it so she could work on her deck as best as possible, also later we backfilled as much as we could considering the deck in the backyard. 

   

  All throughout the project I had daily conversations with Mary describing progress and any changes to plans we were forced to make.  For instance, when we found the condition of the soil beside her neighbor's driveway and the poor condition of his driveway, I decided to backfill completely with stone.  This is a very common professional practice when we excavate beside a driveway, it allows for proper drainage and keeps the driveway from collapsing into the home it sits beside. This is the side Mary claims I didn't backfill her windows with proper drainage, but contradicts herself saying I created a funnel and did not allow for drainage in windows ??

   

  I have reviewed my contract many times and all plans were followed as per the contract.  All payments were made as per the contract and on time when customer (Mary) was satisfied with each step. My plan was followed, and only changes made were the driveway as mentioned above.  

  It should be noted that nowhere on my contract does it mention removing the front deck and replacing to code, however my team and I toiled with this 3-4 times to try and make her happy with the placement of the deck in front.  

  Also it was impossible to backfill higher than we did with the deck being there as she mentions in her complaint. 

   

  Around the time we were playing with the deck for about a week, her neighbor **** *** **** **** ** *** **** started "consulting her" on my procedures and why they are wrong.  To my knowledge this neighbor is not a foundation specialist as I am.  I have 20 years of foundation repair experience and have been trained by two of the biggest companies in the city.  I am 100% referred and have been for years.  I have all of Mary's text messages where she started telling me what I had to do (changes to our scope of work and plan) and I assume they all came from her two consulting neighbors.  

  A few times my workers even told me her neighbor was ******** ********** **** *** making it hard to work comfortably.

  When Mary started to question my workmanship, ask for changes, and repeatedly tell me what I had to do differently according to our signed contract on the recommendations of her neighbor, I decided it was finally time to walk away from the project. She made progress payments on time which proves she was satisfied with my quality but now she is talking like she should have fired me.  If she was not happy with the plan, changes in our professional relationship should have been discussed. 

  At the time of me ending the contract I had completed digging 70% of the excavation and waterproofed and backfilled 65%.  2/3 of the home had been waterproofed and as mentioned incorrectly, I asked for 2/3 of the waterproofing payment of $******* 

  Mary understood this and paid $******* accordingly 

  At the time of my departure, I had been paid a total of $********* which is less than 50% of the contract total of $*********  As mentioned above and in my emails to Mary I was 75% complete with just one wall remaining and already started.  This would show I have completed $********* worth of work, not including the interior extras and front deck work time. 

  I told her she can keep the $******* and put towards finishing the project to her new plans and requirements.

  I must mention that her neighbor's plans and ways of backfilling are not industry standard, are not good for the home and the integrity of the foundation walls. 

  No contractor in Manitoba would pay back a customer for work done to specs of quote as agreed.  

  The steps and style of my work are proven to work and I take great pride in my workmanship and it shows in my referrals.

  Not all foundation contractors use the same techniques, but the plan agreed to is the plan I stick to and what was paid for. 

  I have * ****** ******** ****** ** ****** ***** ****** * **** not had complaints like this in the past.

  When we are working on a jobsite as agreed to, it is assumed that the customer would want her drainage stone required on her job site. 

  Cleaning out my truck is part of making room for products for her job, **** ***** she didn't mention she allowed me to have our trailer on site for materials and gave us a place to keep materials needed the entire time. 

  This is common practice for residential construction. 

  Thank you for your time, and allowing me to present myself

   

  Bradley ********* 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/03/2023

   
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response as many of the details I complained about were not addressed. ****** *** ** ************ I also feel that some of the details that were addressed needed clarification. ****** *** ** ************

  The payments I made, were made on time as I signed a contract and felt I had no choice but to pay. I did voice my concerns with him through text and conversations with the hope that this work could be completed properly. As I time went on I learned more about foundation repair and became increasingly dissatisfied with his work: -He makes no acknowledgement in his response to the length of time that this project was taking, (he had stated to me it would taketwo weeks three at the most with a beginning of August start date...He started beginning of Sept and the fact that he left the project on November 23rd with not one trench completed properly and with open trenches on three sides. His response does not acknowledge the specific details concerning: - He had an employee, Kevin, working solo in the backyard trench. * ** ****** **** **** ** *** **** ******** *** ******* - No landscaping fabric - He altered my wall without permission. - He placed stone material without permission on my driveway. - He damaged my neighbor’s driveway. He left a mess of clay on their driveway. - He left clay material in the street with a cone on only one side - The blue skin was not tarred properly and in one case was placed with the wrong side against the wall and not tarred at all - The weeping tile was found to be covered with clay, indicating a cave in that was not repaired. - He used 3” weeping tiles instead of 4” weeping tiles. - He charged me $****** for an estimate***** *********** ***** **** *** ***** - He makes no mention of reimbursing me for the fencing costs $******…which he said I was to arrange, but the he would pay for. - The cement bead where the foundation meets the wall was done poorly…very brittle… - Core holes that he had drilled were not at the proper angle. - Curvy large piece of metal was left in one of the trenches and not removed by Brad. - Open trenches on three sides of my house when he walked away. - Open trenches and core holes dug and leaving house to possible water damage and or frozen water lines. - \blue skin not nearly high enough and not sealed with Tar at all in various places’, in one picture not sealed at the bottom - General disrespect for my property the way materials and garbage were left. - Rusty old sharp bucket left in my yard since September…not safe. - No window wells had vertical weeping tiles - -Tarring the Blueskin was hit and miss, (****** **** ** *** **********). -Brown dimpled material was not required. (** *** ********** **** ** *** *********** -in once case (he wrapped Blueskin around the weeping tile…. (Creating a situation where water will go straight into my house. (***** **** ** *** **********) -in some cases he tarred only part way down, (***** **** ** *** **********) - He did not disclose that the water shut off valve had been slipped during excavation, (***** **** ** *** **********) He is incorrect in stating that he suggested I meet with an engineer on site to determine the quality of the home…I did ask him for a referral for an engineer with regards to a different matter, (a joist fix). I did not meet with the engineer for that matter until August 11th and at that time I asked him if he thought I would need iron poles installed to stabilize the walls. His answer was no. However, I had already signed the contract at the end of June. My back deck was removed by me in July, and I was hopeful that Brad’s work be completed within the 2-3 week timeline suggested and so work was started on that side of the house. (a month later than original start date suggested). He did not state that it was not wise to wait to build the deck, until after the following spring to build the deck as the fill would settle and more fill would need to be added. With regards to the back yard, he did backfill the area where the deck was proposed. On the left side of the deck the trench was partially filled. A four foot section on the right side of the deck was not filled at all. In his response he says it was filled. With regards to the front deck: He removed the front deck to dig the front trench. It had to be put back properly so I could enter the home. His first attempt left me with a deck 6” below the door opening. This was too big of a step for me to have to do regularly. The second attempt it was left unstable….third attempt was better. This should not be an extra expense. He just needed to put it back properly. When I paid him $***** *or ¾ sections of water proofing being done…I absolutely did not know that this was at the end of the contract. I paid him that $******** before Nov. 23rd when he said he was walking away from the job. His work was not done properly, and all the work had to be redone. I had to pay for everything to be done again. Trenches that were partially filled were dug out again. The entire driveway side that was filled with stone was completely emptied. The entire job had to be redone and I had to take a second mortgage to pay for it. He did not need to clean his truck out on my yard. This is something he could have done at the dump or his yard if he needed to clean it out before transporting material. This truck garbage is still on my property. It is frozen. I did give him permission to park his trailer on my driveway. I am not complaining about that. It was however an inconvenience considering the length of time this project was taking. He made not mention that it was not “industry standards” to back fill the driveway side of the house as my neighbor suggested with a clay cap. When I mentioned that he created a funnel, water came into my house after a very light rain as there was no clay cap on the stone. I showed this to Brad and he suggested I might need a new floor. I have since learned that a trench that has a driveway running on top of it should be filled with stone. This trench was beside the driveway and required a clay cap to disperse the water slowly. This trench was completed by Brad without discussing it with me and it is completely contrary to our contract. ********** **** ********
   
  Sincerely,
  
  Mary ********

  Business Response

  Date: 09/03/2023

  Hello, please receive this response to the last reply regarding the complaint. 

  After some time to reflect on the situation and review the messages, payments made and original signed contract, a better understanding of what was paid for up till the time I left is as follows.

  Once contract was agreed to, initial payment was made of $******* 

  On September 8, a payment of $******* was made for one wall being excavated

  On October 1, a payment of $******* was made for second wall being excavated 

  On October 16, a payment of $******* was made for third wall being excavated 

  On November 8, a payment of $******* was made for 2/3 of waterproofing completed (not 3/4, as customer mentioned in complaint) 

  It needs to be noted that customer had seen waterproofing and quality of workmanship before making satisfied payments.  Pictures were also taken *** * **** ***** ********* 
  

  As mentioned by myself in previous emails, My decision to leave this project was based solely on the fact that Mary had her neighbor's advice on how this project should be done interfering with my and her original plan.

  The guidance she was receiving conflicted with my professional expertise of over 20 years in this industry. Also, the demands she was making to me for changes to be made would possibly damage the home in future and completely reverse the repairs and the reasons we were fixing home in the first place. The cause of the damage to home over the years was now being asked to make again. 

   

  The payments made totaled $*********, the breakdown of what was paid for follows.

  - $******* for excavation of aprox 90 feet of wall 

  - $******* hauling of excavated material 

  - $******* drainage stone for backfill 

  - $******* waterproofing materials 

  - On top of these costs, All additional labour and expertise aren't included 

  - No payments were made for deck replacement efforts of approx. 3 days and attempts, as it was not on original contract

   

  ****** At time of departure, 3 walls were excavated, waterproofed and backfilled as mentioned many times  basically 3/4 of the job was complete PLUS EXTRAS !

  This means of the $********* contract agreed to $********* of work was complete 

  AS only $********* was paid.... $******** has not been paid and I said she could keep this amount to put towards completion.

  Meaning $********* was left in her original budget 

   

  In reference to complaints :

   

  Driveway damage: asphalt was only 1-2" thick and in very poor condition, repair costs of that area would only be $********** 

  Deck replacement complaints - As stated many times, this was not part of contract, I tried my best to appease Mary but to no avail as I am not a deck builder or carpenter.

  Core holes drilled in basement - 2" openings were what I drilled, as that is all the small footings would allow for safely as per my professional experience.  Making a 4" hole as is done on new builds in a 60-100 year old home with tiny footings makes absolutely no sense for integrity of home.

  Window Wells needing drainage - claimed that window wells on driveway side had no drainage, yet also complained that I filled entire excavation with drainage stone bottom to top. Clearly showing there is drainage in these three window wells.

  Large holes in frame I made to show her where egress window could go - I am sure I used 1/4" concrete nails for this not "large bolts"

  Round drainage stone on driveway - I am sure i asked to have stone delivered to driveway spot as we needed  a place to keep it on site as needed to complete project , yet no comments or complaints about my trailer being parked on her driveway for 3 or more weeks.  I have texts showing her asking me to move it to other side of driveway as needed. 

  Cones were on road most of time - must have been stolen

  Blueskin improperly placed inside out - Completely False, I have pictures to prove Blueskin was applied correctly 

  This needs to be addressed as well 

  I have texts of this quote referring to her neighbor's interference with my work

  * *** **** * **** ** **** **** ** ********** *********** 

  Yet no comments about this in all her emails 

  Also : 

  November 23rd....." In our Manitoba cold wintertime with three open trenches and one section that was filled improperly, completely with stone creating a funnel for water seepage."

  This is completely contradictory to all she is saying in previous and to the facts..... I backfilled three walls when i left jobsite three walls were backfilled... but she says i left three open trenches. 

  I sincerely hope I have covered everything. 

  In conclusion, All that was paid for so far is the excavating, hauling, materials

  None of the costs of workmanship, backfilling, and warranty were paid for as of yet.

  Brad *********