ComplaintsforA Cut Above Concrete Cutting LLC

• Initial Complaint

  04/30/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We needed holes drilled in the floor of our garage so we could install a car lift. This requires a certain thickness of the concrete for safety. We contacted A Cut Above Concrete. They said they'd drill an initial hole and let us know the thickness of our concrete and if the job could be completed.On 4/5 they came to our home, drilled one 7/8" x 3.5" deep hole, and determined our concrete was too thin. We'd need to fix our concrete before they could do the holes. He was there for about 20 minutes.On 4/12 we were invoiced for $320, which was close to the estimate for the entire job.Believing there was a mistake, I called the company and spoke to the owner. He was instantly combatitive and rude. He said me there was a $300 min fee, in addition to a $20 fuel charge. I mentioned they never disclosed an minimum fee or had us sign a contract, and had we known, we wouldn't have scheduled the work. He became more condescending and kept interrupting me like, "what don't you understand about a minimum charge?!" He told me he'd have his office call me and then hung up.The guy in the office treated me the same. When I requested a breakdown of the $300, he told me it was "none of my business" and they had "no responsibility to disclose a minimum fee to customers". He said that *he* had someone fix his garage door and the final cost was more than he expected and he didn't complain. I said it was different because he got a finished product. He said, "You do have a finished product. We drilled a hole, didn't we?!"I asked if we could apply the money towards finishing the project once we fixed our concrete, he said "absolutely not" and we'd have to "pay all over again". He angrily said he'd reduce the bill to $220 (which we paid). This is still too much to bill for a single test hole, especially when there is no disclosure of a minimum fee. For that, we could buy all the equipment to do the job ourselves and have money left over.

  Business response

  05/14/2024

  We are sorry to hear that she had a negative experience with A Cut Above. We pride ourselves on our 28+ years of courteous professionalism.

  A Cut Above is a concrete cutting service company and does not determine acceptable concrete thickness for car lifts or any other piece of equipment. All we can provide is actual thickness. It is the responsibility of the contractor or property owner to determine if the thickness is adequate for the equipment to be installed.

  We have a minimum charge in place (as do most companies) to cover wages as well as equipment/vehicle expenses when our hourly rate cannot be met. The operator on site advised the homeowner of said minimum.

  We will certainly make sure that our minimum charge is known for future homeowners with smaller projects.

  Again we are sorry to hear that she had a negative experience with A Cut Above, and we would be willing to offer her a refund.
  

  Customer response

  05/14/2024

  
  Complaint: 21645898
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  We were never informed of a minimum charge as the response claims. The business states that we were notified on-site of the charge. This is a false statement.  In fact, no charges *at all* were mentioned.
  
  Also, if this were the case, it wouldn't make sense.  What would the purpose be of a company notifying someone of a minimum fee once they are already on site and doing the work? The company is lying.
  
  Again, had we known of the minimum fee, we would not have used the service.
  
  Customers should not be liable for a non-disclosed minimum charge. I recently had a service done to our home. The minimum charge was clearly given in writing prior to our acceptance of service. For all other work I have had done on our home over the past few years that required a minimum fee, the contractor stated it up front before we moved forward. This is a standard and professional business practice. A Cut Above should hold themselves to the same standard.
  
  The liabiliy of not disclosing a minimum fee in writing before a service, should be put on the company, not the customer.
  
  We agree to pay for the costs of the single hole, and nothing else. Other companies we have looked into, charge $50 or less to drill a hole. We still have not received a breakdown of costs. The business refuses. 
  
  If this is not resolved through this channel, we will unfortunately be put into a position to consider other resources such as contacting the chamber of commerce, small claims court, and to caution other people of the shady business practices and consescending and awful treatment I received over the phone.  We truly hope this can be resoved here.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************
  

  Business response

  05/17/2024

  We were contacted to do a job that was going to cost more than a minimum charge. When we arrived on site the homeowner asked if we could drill one "test hole"! It was then that the operator on site states that he advised them that there would be a minimum charge.

  There is no need to break down a minimum charge. It Is simply a minimum charge.

  There is obviously no pleasing this person as we have already offered a refund and it was rejected (which I do have in writing)!

  As far as A Cut Above is concerned, this matter is closed.

  We wish her luck in her future projets.
  

  Customer response

  05/19/2024

   
  Complaint: 21645898
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  A Cut Above is not telling the truth.
  
  They arrived and said they could drill a hole to see how deep the concrete was and let us know if it was deep enough to safely support our lift. They did so and then said they wouldn't reccomended moving forward until we fixed the concrete. They said they had a person to contact at the company, who we contacted and never heard back.  We never requested a "test hole".
  
  They also state, "It was then that the operator on site states that he advised them that there would be a minimum charge."
  
  Again, not true. If this were the case, there would be no reason for us to have been surprised by the bill we received and reach out to the company.  The whole reason we reached out to the BBB is because no minimum fee was disclosed and we were surprised by the bill and then treated poorly by the company for it.
  
  
  Finally they state, "We have already offered a refund and it was rejected (which I do have in writing)!"
  
  We have not recieved any written correspondence outside of this BBB thread, nor have we rejected a refund. In fact, they just cashed our check a few days ago. If A Cut Above is offering a refund, we would hapily accept and close this case.
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************

  Business response

  05/23/2024

  Again, the project in question was going to cost more than our minimum charge. There was no need to disclose the minimum fee until the job conditions changed. The job conditions did change when the property owner requested a test hole.
  

  A Cut Above is not an engineering company. We cannot and would not advise anybody on whether or not their concrete would support any piece of equipment. We are a concrete cutting service company. All that we can do is verify existing conditions. It is then up to the property owner or contractor to decide if the thickness is adequate.
  

  We have been in business or almost 30 years and this is the first complaint that we have received. If she had issues with multiple people at our company, then I would venture to say that the problem lies with her.

  The refund was offered and rejected in previous posts to this thread. I will however offer it again. She can expect to see a check for the full refund in the next week or so.

  We are sorry that she had a negative experience with A Cut Above and wish her luck on her future projects.
  

  Customer response

  05/31/2024

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************

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