ComplaintsforSERVPRO of Iowa City / Coralville

• Initial Complaint

  04/25/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Our experience using ServPro for our fire:Showed up the next day to discuss mitigation, contents, and how long we would be out of the house. Great experience.From then on we were given multiple move in dates that continuously got pushed back as the house sat empty, week after week. This caused us to have to move air bnbs several times due to booking by the dates we were given by ServPro. Very difficult experience for the kids. When we finally pushed that they needed to finish the job and get us home a crew was sent. We had installed cameras since the house was sitting empty week after week. We witnessed the crew smoke in our home, go through our family pictures, take candid selfies through out, and treat our belongings with blatant disrespect.Our belongings: The fire took place Feb 23rd, we received the last of our clothing and contents back April 4th. What was supposed to be two weeks turned into 6 weeks without basic necessities. Constantly hearing next week. The only reason we got them back when we did was after our insurance agent called and escalated the issue. Reconstruction: We are at 3 months out and are still without floor and doors with materials still not even ordered. At this point we were only using Servpro because we were advised switching would prolong everything with insurance. I have tried contacting Servpro to get dates set and materials ordered. After last calling again two weeks ago and still not hearing anything back we are ending our agreement with ServPro.

  Business response

  04/28/2022

  I have talked to *********************** a couple of times in regards to concerns that she addressed.  We took immediate internal action discussing with our leadership team as well as addressing the concerns with the employees.  We removed the employees that did not act professionally at the home as soon as we were notified.  We also discussed the time line concerns with our team.  I have talked to ***** as well as email communication from her when I asked if there was anything else that she needed from our team and she in every call and email said that there was nothing further she needed. She just wanted to make sure we knew. This message is the first time that I have heard about asking for reimbursement. The insurance company has approved the invoice for the services that we provided on the cleaning portion of the project after reviewing all the job documentation.  Any refund that ***** requests would be taken off that invoice and returned to the insurance company.  This is the first time we have been notified of wanting reimbursement and I am not sure what she is looking for reimbursement on as we have worked with insurance adjuster in regards to the services we performed.  All services were approved.  She has not paid directly our company any money for the services to date.

  Customer response

  04/28/2022

   
  Complaint: 17099454
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

   

  I did not want any further action for the new items that were brought to your attention that included damage to the house caused by ServPro and then billed to my insurance. I am asking for a partial refund whether that goes to myself or my insurance as I dont believe what was charged goes along with the services received. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  05/04/2022

  Can you please let us know what items you are saying were not completed? We will be happy to review the job file line by line item.

  Michele 

  Customer response

  05/05/2022

   
  Complaint: 17099454
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The walls in the living room were not cleaned, picture attached. The bathroom still had a film on walls, contents, fans even after having the crew come back two times to clean it, picture attached. The ceiling fan in kitchen, picture attached. The recessed lights in the living room were not cleaned. The ceiling fans were not put back together correctly, one is still not working even after trying to fix, picture attached. The lower kitchen cabinets were not cleaned and are located directly across from the area of the fire, picture attached. 

  The floors were damaged from the ServPro fans being put out without putting something under them to prevent scratches but billed to insurance as smoke damage, pictures attached.

  I would also like to note, due to the delay in getting contents back we had to purchase thousands of dollars in replacements that insurance will not cover because you were cleaning the current items. What was supposed to be buying just enough stuff to make due for the two weeks we were told it would take to clean items turned into having to purchase enough clothing, dishes, towels, shoes etc for 5 people for the 6 weeks you had our belongings. 

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

  Customer response

  05/06/2022

  Complaint: 17099454
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The walls in the living room were not cleaned, picture attached. The bathroom still had a film on walls, contents, fans even after having the crew come back two times to clean it, picture attached. The ceiling fan in kitchen, picture attached. The recessed lights in the living room were not cleaned. The ceiling fans were not put back together correctly, one is still not working even after trying to fix, picture attached. The lower kitchen cabinets were not cleaned and are located directly across from the area of the fire, picture attached. 

  The floors were damaged from the ServPro fans being put out without putting something under them to prevent scratches but billed to insurance as smoke damage, pictures attached.

  I would also like to note, due to the delay in getting contents back we had to purchase thousands of dollars in replacements that insurance will not cover because you were cleaning the current items. What was supposed to be buying just enough stuff to make due for the two weeks we were told it would take to clean items turned into having to purchase enough clothing, dishes, towels, shoes etc for 5 people for the 6 weeks you had our belongings. 

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

  Business response

  05/09/2022

  Hi *****,

  In regards to the photos you have supplied can you supply the photos with their date stamps on them?

  What are you looking for in regards to compensation?

  Again we have had multiple phone conversations and none of these items needing further cleaning have been brought to our attention except for the ceiling fans needing to be looked at for operation. We have offered to come and repair those and you have declined.  On March 16th, our team was there to do the final touch *** that were requested as well as finish services.  ****** did say that a couple of areas were missed originally so the crew did correct these areas in that visit.  ******** then performed a walk through with you and your husband which you both then told our crew you were happy and satisfied with the work performed. From there you and I discussed a few concerns you had in regards to time delays and again said you did not need anything further you just wanted to bring to our attention.  We talked about reconstruction. **** performed a reconstruction scope on site on March 23rd and you were going to have us perform those services until we were delayed in returning a call and you called me and cancelled reconstruction services on April 22. These items were not addressed in any conversation with **** or myself. 

  In regards to the scratched flooring, the flooring however had to be removed for smoke/soot as it is floating floor which means soot and/or fire extinguisher dust can travel underneath and the decision was to remove the flooring and replace which was approved by insurance for this reason.

  I would be happy to review the job file line by line item with ****** but need to make sure we are looking at items that were not completed at any time during your mitigation services for you per your photos.

  Again what are you looking for in regards to compensation is needed as I need to justify services were not completed for you. 

  We want to be fair to you but have to review everything in detail to make sure any resolution is fair to all vested parties.

  I look forward to your response.

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

  SERVPRO

  Customer response

  05/10/2022

  I am rejecting this response because:

  The communication we had in reference to the floors from ***** was that they had cleaned up better than she thought and we would not need to replace them after all which was a relief since they were only 4 months old. After informing her that the floors were not protected from the ServPro fans and had been scratched she then stated they would replace floors. We were not aware at this time that insurance would be billed as the damage was not from the fire, it was from the fans placed throughout the house. I think this charge should be removed as there was not an odor or fire damage with the floors, they were simply scratched from fan placement without protection laid.

  I have reattached the photos with the date tags the images were taken.

  March 16th, we did have a crew come back due to there still being film, smoke tags, and fire retardant dust throughout the house. The crew finished up, loaded up, and tried leaving when I stopped them and asked them to come back inside as they had still not cleaned a lot of the areas they were there to clean. Condrad unloaded again and came back in to clean. Condrad stated again he was done and loaded up. I was working from home that day and was trying to communicate with him between my own meetings, they had shown up on a different day than ****** had given us originally and said it must have been a scheduling issue. I was not able to stand next to them the entire time they were there to supervise, nor did I know that as a customer that was my responsibility. I had gone into great detail with ****** what was left prior to the crew arriving and they seemed unaware of most of the items they were there to do. After they left again, in lieu of calling back, again, and walking them through it, again, we decided to communicate with insurance and search our options to actually get the house cleaned efficiently. All of the items communicated in the previous thread that were not cleaned should be removed from the estimate. This includes, again: The walls in the living room, the recessed lights in the living room, the fan in the kitchen, both bathrooms still had fire retardant particles and smoke tags present, over half of the kitchen cabinets were not cleaned out.   

  Contents, I think the amount we paid in having to pay out of pocket for an additional 4 weeks without our belongings should be reimbursed or taken into consideration when figuring what is left to be owed. As mentioned previously, we had to buy clothes, dishes, towels, shoes ect for 5 people to last over a month longer than we were told it would take. Insurance will not help cover any of it due to you cleaning the items you took. We were told 2 weeks and we would have contents back, that was extended to 6 weeks total and again our items were only returned after our insurance agent called to escalate the issue and demand we get our items back. 

  Due to the house sitting empty and not getting a crew sent there timely like we were originally told we had to continue to pay for housing when the only hold up was sending a crew to the house to clean which continuously got pushed back over and over again. Not to mention the emotional hardship on the kids of having to continuously move around as we booked dates we were given by ****** which changed again and again. 

  I don't know that you can put a price tag on the amount of stress we encountered while using your company during one of the most stressful times in our life. We were yanked out of our home in the middle of the night and the very next day met with ****** where we were promised our family and our home would be taken care of. We let strangers into our home and watched them violate our trust in front of our eyes. I can't express to you how it felt to watch a stranger walk around shirtless in my home. To watch someone sit on my couch and smoke when they were there to treat smoke damage. To have them go through our family pictures and take pictures of them. To see someone pick their nose and flick it onto my couch. To have our belongings taken and never know when or if we would ever actually get them back due to the changing dates over and over again. Dealing with your company was more stressful and a burden to our family than the actual fire was. 

  Please take all of the above into consideration and let us know what you believe is still owed. 

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

  Customer response

  05/10/2022

  I am rejecting this response because:

  The communication we had in reference to the floors from ***** was that they had cleaned up better than she thought and we would not need to replace them after all which was a relief since they were only 4 months old. After informing her that the floors were not protected from the ServPro fans and had been scratched she then stated they would replace floors. We were not aware at this time that insurance would be billed as the damage was not from the fire, it was from the fans placed throughout the house. I think this charge should be removed as there was not an odor or fire damage with the floors, they were simply scratched from fan placement without protection laid.

  I have reattached the photos with the date tags the images were taken.

  March 16th, we did have a crew come back due to there still being film, smoke tags, and fire retardant dust throughout the house. The crew finished up, loaded up, and tried leaving when I stopped them and asked them to come back inside as they had still not cleaned a lot of the areas they were there to clean. Condrad unloaded again and came back in to clean. Condrad stated again he was done and loaded up. I was working from home that day and was trying to communicate with him between my own meetings, they had shown up on a different day than ****** had given us originally and said it must have been a scheduling issue. I was not able to stand next to them the entire time they were there to supervise, nor did I know that as a customer that was my responsibility. I had gone into great detail with ****** what was left prior to the crew arriving and they seemed unaware of most of the items they were there to do. After they left again, in lieu of calling back, again, and walking them through it, again, we decided to communicate with insurance and search our options to actually get the house cleaned efficiently. All of the items communicated in the previous thread that were not cleaned should be removed from the estimate. This includes, again: The walls in the living room, the recessed lights in the living room, the fan in the kitchen, both bathrooms still had fire retardant particles and smoke tags present, over half of the kitchen cabinets were not cleaned out.   

  Contents, I think the amount we paid in having to pay out of pocket for an additional 4 weeks without our belongings should be reimbursed or taken into consideration when figuring what is left to be owed. As mentioned previously, we had to buy clothes, dishes, towels, shoes ect for 5 people to last over a month longer than we were told it would take. Insurance will not help cover any of it due to you cleaning the items you took. We were told 2 weeks and we would have contents back, that was extended to 6 weeks total and again our items were only returned after our insurance agent called to escalate the issue and demand we get our items back. 

  Due to the house sitting empty and not getting a crew sent there timely like we were originally told we had to continue to pay for housing when the only hold up was sending a crew to the house to clean which continuously got pushed back over and over again. Not to mention the emotional hardship on the kids of having to continuously move around as we booked dates we were given by ****** which changed again and again. 

  I don't know that you can put a price tag on the amount of stress we encountered while using your company during one of the most stressful times in our life. We were yanked out of our home in the middle of the night and the very next day met with ****** where we were promised our family and our home would be taken care of. We let strangers into our home and watched them violate our trust in front of our eyes. I can't express to you how it felt to watch a stranger walk around shirtless in my home. To watch someone sit on my couch and smoke when they were there to treat smoke damage. To have them go through our family pictures and take pictures of them. To see someone pick their nose and flick it onto my couch. To have our belongings taken and never know when or if we would ever actually get them back due to the changing dates over and over again. Dealing with your company was more stressful and a burden to our family than the actual fire was. 

  Please take all of the above into consideration and let us know what you believe is still owed. 

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

  Business response

  05/19/2022

  Hi *****,
  I have sat down with ***** and ****** after your last response and we reviewed the line by line invoice breakdown for the services invoiced to State Farm and compared to your email and photos.  We will offer a credit consisting of the below.  I really wish you would have told us about these cleaning item concerns on the phone in previous conversations so that they could have been addressed. 
  1. In regards to the photo of the clock in the bathroom the date on the clock photo was March 3. ****** said that when the crew came back and did touch up cleaning on March 16th the bathrooms where this clock was at were addressed in that visit.  That is the day crew did a walk through with you.
  2 In regards to the wall not clean and date stamp on March 26th we appreciate the photo. We can see where the wall was wiped down but not done perfectly.  That wall photo'd was charged out at a sqft basis.  The charge for wet cleaning the wall was $46.53 and hepavac the wall was 43.41.  We will credit both those charges to you.
  3. In regards to the fan in the kitchen we will credit the line item charge on that for $24.69
  4. For the lower kitchen cabinets we will do a credit on the linear area of all the lower cabinets that were charged for the amount of $308.36
  5. You did not provide a photo but said the lights in the living room were not cleaned. Even though there is no photo we will provide the credit on cleaning the living room lights for the charged amount of $100.85
  6. In regards to the flooring being removed I talked with ****** and this was approved in the initial estimate again due to there being cracks between that floor and the one below which can allow infiltration under the flooring that was on top. If the equipment did scratch the floor or if the dryer scratched the floor being removed by the fire department it is irrelevant as it was recommended by your structure project manager ****** in the initial estimate to the adjuster for removal and replacement and was all approved.
  7. In regards to the contents and the items you had to purchase while we cleaned yours the time that we produced the contents in was within a few weeks which is what ***** says on every project.  She did come in and help out and rush them over the weekend after talking to your agent as requested to help your family out. She was at your home while you had a phone conversation with your adjuster ********* at the time and they had said to save your receipts.  Have you submitted those to your adjuster. We can not be held liable for items you purchased. 
  We will offer a credit of $1000.00 that encompasses these line item adjustments and some additional. Again we are sorry that you were not satisfied with the work we performed and would have liked to have corrected the concerns if we would have known about them in earlier conversations.

   

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