ComplaintsforJ-N-C Sod, Inc

• Initial Complaint

  03/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  9/29/23 I hired JNC to lay bahia grass, what I got was thistles with huge thorns, weeds, weeds with thorns, and dead grass. I called for months left messages never got a return call until March 6, 2024. I explained what the problem was and the owner, I believe his name is ****** said it was not his problem. I can't dig these plants up fast enough, I have been trying. I am having to dig up my entire yard. I can't even allow my grandchildren in the yard. I have an acre of land just so I could have my family and pets enjoy the space. This is a new house I leveled and cleared this property I had over 10 loads of dirt brought in. I never had an issue with the horrible plants that are growing in my yard now. It's just horrible!

  Business response

  03/07/2024

  We were hired by a grading and site work company to install grass at the mentioned address. Prior to starting the job, we discussed with the contractor and home owner which grass they wanted to install. The choice was made by the home owner to install the cheapest grass available which was bahia. Bahia is a grass that is taken from various pastures, and does not have any regulation or control of what other grass varieties, insects, or weeds may be in the product. These pastures have various livestock that graze on them and are sourced from many different rural counties.  We install this exact sod every day for single family home new construction sites unless the customers/builder requests an upgraded landscape at an upgraded price. We explained that bahia is cow pasture grass and was instructed that this is what was desired, as the alternative upgrade to ************/Floratam was considerably more expensive and would require irrigation. We do not have any record of multiple calls however as we receive many many calls per day, a call could have been missed which we apologized for. We repeatedly tried to explain that we have no control over what weeds or grass varieties may be in the sod. We instructed the owner that if she is unhappy with her final choice of grass type, she can contact the company that hired us as well to see what options they may offer as we installed what was ordered. 

  Customer response

  03/08/2024

   
  Complaint: 21400779
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I was never contacted by JNC that is totally false. If in fact JNC had contacted me we would not be here at BBB right now. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Business response

  03/13/2024

  We did not say we tried to contact the consumer. We did NOT attempt to contact her as we worked specifically with the contractor. He did not notify us of any concerns and therefore we did not reach out to her. We did not notice any calls from the consumer but admit we could have missed a call as our phone line is very busy this time of year. We apologized for missing her attempts to contact us. We are also sorry to hear that the grass is not what she expected however, bahia grass is a wild grass that is grown in wild farming pastures. There is no control over what weeds, other grass varieties, or insects may be in the grass. It is a very common occurrence actually because there are weeds all over the farming pastures. This can be treated with topical products as recommended by various lawn services.  If the consumer would like a specific variety of grass that is completely weed free and only contains that specific  grass, then we would recommend *************/floratam, or something similar. This option is considerably more expensive and would require irrigation to maintain during the dry season. This option was discussed with the contractor who hired us and was the one who was in contact with us, and we were instructed to install bahia grass as the client wanted the cheapest grass available. In this case, we dealt solely with the contractor who hired us, like we do every day with other contractors. He is who instructed us as to what type of grass to install, where the location was, how much grass was needed, when to install, etc.. For this reason, we feel the consumer should discuss her concern with him.  He hired us specifically and when we asked which type of grass the homeowner wanted, we were told this grass specifically. 

  Customer response

  03/14/2024

   
  Complaint: 21400779
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Customer response

  03/15/2024

  The bottom line is this is JNC's product. I had 4 ********** inspectors today and each inspector commented on how horrible my yard is. It was not rolled properly, and they tried to avoid the thorns. I was told I shouldn't except this. I probably have 2% grass and 98% other the other is a horrible list of plants with thorns, thistles with thorns, vines with thorns, mushrooms, weeds, wheat, corn it is horrible. This should absolutely be illegal. I paid almost ********* dollars for thorns I have to dig up. Through, out my entire yard it will cost me a fortune to repair this. ***'s answer is to put poison on my yard and expose my family and pets to this. Unacceptable! On top of everything one of his employees took it upon himself to start my irrigation system and broke it. I had to call a plumber that very day and have it fixed I have the invoice to prove. This sale for sod has to be regulated, I now have to spend more money and hard work to repair my yard it was a beautiful acre of land that I have worked so hard to level, apply 10 loads of dirt to get to this point only to have this mess it is heartbreaking. I have seen other properties with Bahia grass without all the thorns, weeds and mess. At this point I will only except a fair refund so that I can start to repair my yard without poison. If we can't resolve this matter with BBB I will have no choice but to hire an attorney. I am shocked that this can even be legal. 

  
  

  Business response

  03/19/2024

  This job was completed in Sept of 2023. We have no record of any calls regarding the property and received no correspondence from the contractor who actually hired us to do the job. We would like to deal in factual statements and not speculate that the consumer only has 2% of the grass left. Or that there is wheat, corn, etc in the grass. These claims are unheard of and if are in fact accurate, are difficult to identify the root cause of almost 6 months later. In fact, we installed bahia grass on dirt that was leveled at the address. At the time of completion, the contractor who hired us stated that the sod looked great and was pleased with the finished product. As far as the sprinkler is concerned, our employees did not break it as we would have contacted the contractor right away to fix any issues. 
  At the time this complaint, we were informed by the contractor that the consumer was still not living in this house for reasons unknown to us but pertaining to certificate of occupancy. This means that we are unsure of how the lawn has been cared for in terms of watering and mowing for over 5 months now. If new sod is not cared for as directed, and is not mowed regularly, weeds will absolutely take over. This also means that there may have been other contractors that could have been present to break the sprinkler system potentially. 
  All of the above not withstanding, our contractual agreement was with the contractor who was happy with the finished product. At no time since then have we received any communication regarding any issues or concerns until March when we heard from the home owner directly. Also, all of our other homes we have installed grass at on the same or next day, that came from the same sod field, have no issues. However those were taken care of as directed as sod is usually the last thing before the homeowner takes occupancy.
  We do have a 30 day warranty on our bahia grass that pertains only to the grass surviving and being watered as directed during that 30 day period. We do not warranty bahia grass for weeds as there is no guarantee of what weeds or grass species it contains.

  Unfortunately in this case, we have grass that was installed almost 6 months ago, at a location that no one has been living at for almost the entire time if at all, with an unknown level of care. We are well past the 30 day survival warranty which is stated on the invoice. It is unfortunate we were not contacted within that time so that we could have assessed these concerns. 

  It is our position that the job was satisfactorily completed. Before installation, we verified that the contractor had confirmed with the home owner that she was requesting bahia grass as a less expensive alternative, instead of the upgraded grass floratam/************ which would have been warrantied as weed free. Then after completion, the hiring contractor expressed satisfaction with the job. We feel it is unreasonable to expect a refund or replacement as there is no product that can be purchased such as a car or appliance or similar that would be refunded or replaced outside of the warranty specifications or time limit. 

  Customer response

  03/27/2024

   
  Complaint: 21400779
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I absolutley did contact the business within a week, left several messages with no response. Finally got a response when I left the message I was reporting to the BBB. I got a nasty call back. I was standing right there when I caught the employee trying to turn my irrigation system on. I have an invoice from a plumber who had to fix the problem. I will go ahead and make a complaint to the attorney general, the ***** and contact my attorney. To blame me for everything mentioned is outragous, when you only comment and accuse only by hear say. Unprofessional and down right criminal, making false statements. It took me months of no return calls when I finally got a call back the excuse was they have many, many calls and this is not their problem. I called for months! I hope all of these messages are for everyone to read because this company JNC needs to be investigated. I saw with my own eyes the employees pick up chunks of those thistles and plant them in my yard, before I even knew what thistles were. When he could have thrown it away he planted it. I watched him I was standing right there. I questioned him, his response, no english. To work so hard to have a beautiful yard pay almost ********* dollars to JNC, only to have JNC ruin it is unheard of. I would have bought Bahia grass from ********** and would have gotten Bahia grass, but not with a sod company JNC. I ordered Bahia grass which is common here in *******. JNC obviously has their own definition of Bahia grass which needs to be investigated. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

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