ComplaintsforSERVPRO of Central Seattle

• Initial Complaint

  11/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  The business took part in predatory practices after coming out to our property for a small leak. They left equipment at our house without telling us the minimum charges only disclosed after they left and before getting our signed acceptance (they did not present us with any pricing before starting work). They also did asbestos testing downstairs in our basement which we asked them not to do and only focus on the area upstairs in our bathroom (phone records show this is true before any contract was signed). They were at our house for a total of two hours maybe tops and did very little work while then charging substantial amount for materials. When I brought this up over email and calling one of the supervisors the business was repeatedly rude to me and denied any wrong doing. They committed to adjusting some of the testing charges but then in the same call refused to do so. When I asked to be put in contact with the franchise owner the employee refused to put me in contact or give me the owners details. It's clear from reviews of this business online ******************************************************************************************************************************** and ******************************************************************************************************************************************************* they take part in predatory practices of customers in tough spots. Hiding behind claims of work they have to do without disclosing costs.

  

  Business response

  12/04/2023

  ******************** was provided emergency services for a leak that was occurring at his home. His emergency took place after hours. ******************** was provided an estimate on the next business day and no other services were performed outside of emergency services until his approval in writing for the preliminary estimate was obtained. Our pricing is set by the industry and is not something that we dictate. The final invoice is less than half of the preliminary estimate due to all of Mr. ********** requests that we honored. ******************** has spoken with the highest level of management that is afforded to the public.  All of Mr. ********** questions and concerns were addressed with management.  We are committed to providing the highest level of service for our customers in their most difficult times. 

  Customer response

  12/06/2023

   
  Complaint: 20822743
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I sent them an email on the 8th further clarifying the charges and the fact that the info they sent us did not specific the min 2 hour charge anywhere and that we did not authorize the work downstairs which they did anyways among other details, they have not responded to this. While the business is stating the charges were less than their initial bid that is because we monitored and looked at the work they were doing and rejected the majority of the items which were unnecessary. Additionally, we shared images of where their techs damaged our wall which they have not responded to or made any accommodations for. Lastly, given the rudeness and lack of professionalism demonstrated by the customer service and site manager (offering to remove charges for work we did not authorize only to then change their mind and then not remove the charges) we have requested to speak with the owner ************************* which they refuse to facilitate. Looking at the yelp reviews you can see a long history of poor customer service and questionable business practices, *********************************************************************************************************************** which they continue to practice. 

  

  Business response

  02/01/2024

  
  The customer was specifically told by the on site technician that they are pulling the samples and the other services that were performed on 10/18/23. You did not tell him to not proceed at the time. This included setting the equipment that there was not an estimate for the pricing yet. We were not told of the reduced scope you wanted until 10/19/23 in the afternoon. It is standard that estimates are received the next day. The customer is the person who gave approvals to proceed before the estimate could be completed. In situations where the customer needs to know pricing before moving forward they would not tell us to proceed just based on the scope of work, as the customer did. 

  All our service calls are a minimum charge of 2 hour on any job. It is not something we need to warn people of as it is standard billing. We will always charge the 2 hours minimum no matter how long the service call takes. It accounts for travel and other job related tasks. There is no signed contract in this industry stating precise pricing and rates for xactimate billing. That is not how mitigation is performed or billed out. The customer was aware of the charges on 10/19/23 and had us proceed with services after the charges were explained to him 10/20/23 at 9:16am. 

  The removed items from the estimate were not unnecessary and we still have no idea what's happening in that basement ceiling cavity. The customer opinion has no bearing on our professional recommendations. We completed services as the customer requested and had him sign a limitations form for not following the recommended scope. The bill was less than the estimate because the full recommended scope was not complete and material dried faster than estimated. 

  We are not aware of any wall damage photos. If the customer is referring to the place where samples were taken; then we stand by the fact that the customer approved of taking the samples over the phone to the on-site technician. 
  The links in fact do say we need to take samples for all potentially asbestos containing materials. We can not know if materials of any age contain asbestos without taking the samples or having a survey that was performed by a certified person within the year. We regularly take asbestos samples on new construction that is not even completed yet.

  All willingness to accommodate the customer ended when the customer acted very rudely to our staff that were trying to offer solutions.  

  I want to make it very clear it was the customer's decision completely to begin service on 10/18/23 before he received the estimate. The signed documents to begin services are dated 10/18/23. If you perform a comparative against the preliminary estimate you will see that the final estimate utilizes the same pricing. The services were performed and rendered per your request throughout mitigation services. Our bill is fair and accurate to the services performed on site.
  
  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  02/08/2024

   
  Complaint: 20822743
  
  I am rejecting this response because: The companies response contains many inaccuracies. We asked them not to do work in the basement which they deny they did not disclose the pricing until later because if they had we would have immediately pushed back which we did as soon as we saw it. No one was rude to them or the folks that came out at any point. There was questioning of their pricing and their process which indeed seems predatory which they seem to interrupt as rude. Their contract does not state there are two hour minimums and we did send them a picture of the wall damage unrelated to the work they did our tenants reported last year which they never responded to or our other questions on the billing and the mismatch in the work they attempted to charge us for vs what we asked them to do. 
  
  Sincerely,
  *****************************

  Customer response

  02/12/2024

  Here is the picture of the damaged wall scratched deeply into the paint from their equipment.

  

  Business response

  03/07/2024

  Our bill is accurate and fair to work that was performed. No additional revision will be made to the final billing and invoice. 

  Customer response

  03/11/2024

   
  Complaint: 20822743
  
  I am rejecting this response because they still have not responded to the email we sent back in November on issues with their work and bill. They also haven't responded to the damage they did to our property reported by the tenants and our property manager at that time.

  

  Business response

  05/01/2024

  Hello,

  We preformed the estimated services following the customers instructions. We billed based on the agreed upon preliminary estimate. We were not told anything about damages and there is no reason to believe we cause the wall scratch in the complaint. It was brought up long after the job was completed after the original complaint was refuted. 

  Customer response

  05/06/2024

   
  Complaint: 20822743
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  The company has still not responded to the questions and feedback on damage or put us into contact with the business they have done nothing to address the content of the original complaint.
  

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

• Initial Complaint

  10/25/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  After a fire in my house on March 16th 2022 I contacted Servpro to do mitigation, clean up of my house. I was promised they would catalog, clean, and store my possessions. After that they would clean the smoke damaged walls and ceilings and facilitate repairs. I was out of the country when this occurred. My roommate, *******************, was at the house. She repeatedly attempted to gain entrance into the house. Servpro later used this as their excuse to stop working at my house My insurance company assessed $20,000 damage. Servpro insisted that I sign a release stating I would pay any cost over runs, then sent an estimate for $100,000. Included was replacing the garbage disposal an the kitchen when the fire was in the bedroom, and replacing the dishwasher, and I don't have a dishwasher.I had repeatedly called the police to solve the problem of my roommate. I talked to an officer that said I could, as homeowner, have my employees, Servpro, speak on my behalf. Servpro left my house and refused to return when this came to a climax on April 8th, 2022. They claim that one of their employees called the police and they never arrived. However, Seattle Police have no record of that phone call.After I returned from overseas on June 18th 2022, My house was a disaster. There were ************************************* the living room. Nothing was cleaned. Burned belongings were piled in the yard blocking access to the back of the yard. The items in the boxes were not cleaned. there were no lists of what was in the boxes except a label on the outside of the box saying what room it was from and a category like "books". Insulation from the attic had fallen all over everywhere and the house reeked of toxic smoke. Every wall and ceiling was covered with soot. All my trousers, socks, hats, and other clothing was missing, as well as my s**** gun. there was no electric power. I was surprised the electricity was off, the Fire Inspector was very clear the cause of the fire was 'careless dispos

  

  Business response

  11/21/2022

  To whom it may concern,
  
  
  **************** had contacted Servpro of Central Seattle to mitigate a fire loss caused by his roommate *******************. **************** asked that as a part of the scope that we keep ************ from entering the residence while work was on-going to which we reluctantly agreed as **************** was out of the country.  This became a safety concern after several altercations with ************ to which the police responded. Please see attached picture of ************ wielding a knife. At this point we made a choice as a company to remove our employees from the job. Servpro explained to **************** that he would need to find another provider to complete his job for these reasons. Servpro then billed ******************** insurance company for the work that had been performed to that point, to which the insurance company agreed and paid in full.  **************** tried in vain to nullify our work to enrich himself as a result of the insurance claim. All work that was completed was performed to industry standards and billed for accordingly.

  Customer response

  11/21/2022

   
  Complaint: 18310839
  
  I am rejecting this response because: There is no evidence of police intervention. Seattle Police have no record of anyone contacting them. SERVPRO was making up an excuse to leave and overcharge for services so they could enrich themselves.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

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