Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/28/2025

  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.

  **** from Servpro came to my condo to eval water damage after a faulty valve/pipe under my sink. He informed me that he contracts with **********. He brought in a dehumidifier and air scrubber in the meantime awaiting State Farm's adjuster to come out. While I did sign a contract stating I would be liable for damages State Farm would not cover, at no time were any prices discussed as to daily costs for rental equip/trip charges nor was it in writing anywhere. I was never informed how long the equip needed to stay running in my condo. After two weeks, I received a letter from State Farm denying my claim. **** was quite surprised nothing would be covered and then proceeded to inform me of the exorbitant costs for the dehumidifier and air scrubber - over $3000 but he would give me a 50% discount bringing it to $1549. When we objected to these high costs as he never discussed any prices nor were prices anywhere in the contract, he told my mother that it was my fault because I never asked questions. My mother tried to explain that it was the responsibility of the contractor to be clear as to costs and again he reiterated that I never asked. As I am an EMT. he asked if I quote prices to patients when going into their houses which made no sense at all as I am not a contractor obviously. After having another contractor come out who also deals with State Farm, I was informed that he should have got approval for the equipment from State Farm every day after 3 days. The new contractor thought the $1549 was also exorbitant. I then called **** back to try and negotiate a more reasonable price and he refused. Had I ever been quoted any prices or informed of prices, I would have had the opportunity to get other estimates, rent the equipment from ********** or simply borrow equipment from friends and family. **** again reiterated that it was not his responsibility as a contractor to quote prices. Being a young, new condo owner, I feel very much taken advantage of.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/04/2025

  To whom this may concern:
  
  
  This response is from franchise owner **** ****.  Andrew called Servpro of Pewaukee & Sussex into his home on February 2nd 2025.  On February 2nd 2025, an initial inspection was performed on *** ******* condo, and during the initial inspection, it was found that water was coming from the kitchen sink area of the condo.  The water had affected the kitchen, living room, and the laundry room of the condo.  On 02/02/2025 **** **** spend 2.25 hours working on *** ******** project.  The line item billed for this charge was called: Equipment setup, take down, and monitoring (hourly charge).  The description of this line item states that this charge covers: Hourly labor to travel to and return from job-site to deliver, setup, inspect, move and adjust, monitor, take moisture readings, etc. and/or take down & remove dryers and dehumidifiers. Excludes: Equipment charges.  The next visit to *** ******** home was on 02/10/2025.  This visit was requested of *** ****** and the State Farm Adjuster *** ******** and was billed for 1.5 hours.  This was billed under the Equipment setup, take down, and monitoring (hourly charge) line item.  The third visit to *** ******** condo was on 02/19/2025, this was to pick up the mitigation drying equipment that was rented by *** ****** and was charged for 0.75 hour and was billed under Equipment setup, take down, and monitoring (hourly charge) line item.  On 02/02/2025 during the initial visit **** **** asked *** ****** if he would want to have a dehumidifier and an air scrubber placed in his condo.  It was recommended to place these two pieces of equipment into the condo to help reduce the risk of secondary damages.  The dehumidifier was used to help drop the humidity levels in the condo was a lot of building materials were wet in the condo including items like: kitchen cabinets, kitchen drywall, kitchen flooring, living room carpet and pad, living room drywall, studs between the kitchen and the living room, living room baseboard, laundry room baseboard and drywall.  During the initial inspection, potential microbial growth was discovered on the carpet tack strips that were holding down the living room carpet.  The negative air fan/air scrubber was recommended to be set in the condo so if any of the potential microbial mold spores were released into the air, that the mold spores would be sucked into the **** filter of the air scrubber, not the condo occupants lungs.  **** **** stated to *** ****** if Servpro's mitigation equipment is left on site, that a contract would need to be signed for this to be done.  *** ****** agreed to sign the contract.  **** **** stated to *** ****** that Servpro would need approval from State Farm to continue with the demolition on the project.  On 02/04/2025 an email from **** **** was sent to State Farm stating the following (Copy of email):
  
  
  
  **** Kaun <[email protected]>
  Feb 4, 2025, 5:52?PM
  
  
  to HOME, *****, Johan, **************************************** Chrisstine
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Good Afternoon State Farm Claim Handler/ Claim Adjuster, 
  
  
  I am looking for approval on claim number 49-80D9-40Q, policy holder ****** ******.  
  
  
  Estimated scope per room:
  
  
  Living Room: Detach baseboards, inspect walls (walls may need to be 2 foot cut), pull tack strips, remove affected carpet and pad, contents moving and covering.
  
  
  Kitchen: I need approval to have a plumber come out to detach the plumbing to the kitchen sink, the reverse osmosis system, the dishwasher, the garbage disposal, the water line to the water glass filler.  I need approval to be able to put 10&10 O&P on the plumber's invoice.  The kitchen sink cabinet and the lazy ***** cabinet needs to be detached because of the water damage to the cabinets.  The countertops above the sink and left of the sink need to be detached.  The wall behind the cabinets needs to be inspected and possibly 2 foot cut.  The affected floating flooring around the cabinets needs to be torn out.  The affected baseboard and shoe needs to come out.  Non affected areas need to be covered with plastic during demolition. 
  
  
  Laundry Room: Tear out the baseboards, inspect drywall and possible 2 foot cuts on the drywall.  Inspect vinyl floors after the baseboards come out, and detach the washing machine and dryer.
  
  
  Bathroom:  Walls behind the bathroom vanity will be inspected after the demolition in the kitchen and laundry room has been completed.  Depending on the condition of the wall behind the vanity in the bathroom, the vanity may need to be detached.
  
  
  Below I have attached the link to the docusketch tour, please look at the additional documentation in the rooms, documenting wet readings with the meter and infrared pictures within the tour.  
  
  
  Please let me know if you have any questions, and permissions to proceed with bringing in a plumber with 10&10 O&P on the plumber's invoice, and the preliminary demolition scope.   
  
  
  Docusketch Link: ******************************************
  
  
  Thanks!
  
  
  On 02/05/2025 State Farm claim specialist ***** Solrio responded back to **** ****** approval request email (State Farm's Response Email):
  
  
  HOME CLMS-FIRECLAIMS 
  Feb 5, 2025, 10:27?AM
  
  
  to me
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Hi ****,
  
  Thank you for providing the damage information for ****** ******.
  At this time, we will need to complete a site inspection to confirm coverage for this claim.
  We will be having a proximity adjuster assigned today to reach out to *** ****** and schedule an inspection of the damages.
  Any approval for work to start would need to come from *** ******* but are working to confirm coverage for the repairs as soon as possible.
  
  Thank you for your help.
  
  
  ***** *******
  Claim Specialist
  Fire Property Stewardship,  In-Office
  W: ***********************
  
  
  
  Within Minutes **** **** Responded Back to ***** ******* with State Farm: 
  
  
  **** Kaun <[email protected]>
  Feb 5, 2025, 10:34?AM
  
  
  to HOME
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Good Morning *****,
  
  
  I just spoke with the insured **************************** would like to have State Farm confirm coverage before scheduling the plumber and beginning demolition.  Can you please respond in email when coverage has been confirmed by State Farm, so I can schedule all the work!
  
  
  Thanks!
  
  
  I can provide copies of the contract signed by *** ****** that states:
  
  
  Customer agrees to pay Customers deductible in the amount of $500.00 That applies to this claim. If any amounts owing to ******** for ******** services are not covered by insurance, Customer agrees to pay those amounts to ******** within fifteen (15) days of Customers receipt of invoice. It is fully understood that Customer and its agents, successors, assigns, and heirs are personally responsible for any and all deductibles and any costs not covered by insurance. Interest and finance charges will be charged at the maximum allowable by law, or at 1.5% per month, whichever is less, on accounts over thirty (30) days past due. Time is of the essence. Customer agrees that ******** is working for the Customer and not *************************** or any agent/adjuster.
  
  
  *** ****** texted **** **** on 02/17/2025, that he would like an estimate from Servpro, as *** ****** has been unable to get ahold of the adjuster ***.
  
  
  On 02/18/2025 **** **** emailed *** ****** a line item estimate to complete the water damage work.
  
  
  Since State Farm has denied the insurance claim, *** ****** is now responsible for the billing of the incurred costs of this project as stated on the contract that *** ****** signed.  
  
  
  *** ****** rented Servpro's drying equipment for 2 weeks.  As a curiosity to *** ****** Servpro discounted the drying equipment rental 50% to help offset the burden that State Farm denied ********************** claim.  
  
  
  Unfortunately at this time, this is the max discount that can be given on this project.  Servpro is an independent company, and does not work for free or give free equipment rentals when an insurance company denies an insurance claim. 

   

  I have attached the contract *** ****** has signed with Servpro to this complaint.
  
  
  Please feel free to reach out to me if you need copies of any documentation in regards to this complaint from *** ******.
  

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/04/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  While I appreciate ****** response, it does not address the root problem. That being the fact I feel taken advantage of as a young first time homeowner. **** never discussed rates for the equipment or how long I should have kept it and never mentioned there would be trip charges. At no point was it clear that State Farm would cover the equipment/trip fees. The equipment being at my condo longer than three days was supposed to have State Farm approval yet **** never did check-ups in regard to this. **** also never asked me if I wanted him to meet *** *******, the state farm adjuster initially assigned to my claim, rather he texted me saying he was going to meet her and I was unaware there was a trip charge for this. **** had said multiple times on the phone to my mother that he assumed everything would be covered by State Farm, so he charged the "State Farm rates". So overall, I feel **** intentionally took advantage of my situation, and let me keep the equipment despite the fact I didn't need it past three days in addition to charging for his trips. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** ******

  Business Response

  Date: 03/07/2025

  To Whom this may concern:
  While I appreciate ****** response, it does not address the root problem. That being the fact I feel taken advantage of as a young first time homeowner.
  We are sorry you feel taken advantage of, but standard industry practice does not include giving a price up front. This is because the work we do is considered emergency work, if every job required an estimate up front, further damage could occur in the time it takes to write up and get an approved estimate. The only instance in which an estimate is required upfront is when either the homeowner or insurance adjuster requests it. If you would like to confirm this statement you could call the State Farm insurance adjuster *** ******* at ***************  You did not ask for an estimate or equipment pricing upfront. To take advantage of you we would have had to go out of our way to intentionally try to deceive you, we did not did not do this. In the attached messages with *** ****** it can be seen that **** was up front with *** ****** on possible charges for plumbing, and even went so far as to recommend that he hire his own plumber to avoid additional charges. What company that is trying to take advantage of a customer gives a customer a list of plumbers we use so that he can avoid paying fees?  
  As you can see from the contract that was signed on the first visit, the contract states that State Farm is going to be the insurance on this project as *** ****** told us.  The reason why insurance company's do not require estimates up front is because there is an insurance pricing software called Xactimate.  Xactimate sets the pre-agreed upon prices between State Farm and Servpro. Xactimate determines its prices by collecting data from a vast network of material suppliers and analyzing millions of actual estimates, using this information to calculate average market prices for each location, considering factors like regional labor costs, material costs, and equipment costs, effectively providing a median market price for each line item within an estimate; these prices are then organized into specific price lists based on geographic location within the software.
  At no point was it clear that State Farm would cover the equipment/trip fees. The equipment being at my condo longer than three days was supposed to have State Farm approval yet **** never did check-ups in regard to this.
  In regards to the equipment being at your condo for more than three days, this was because your condo still had elevated moisture readings. State Farm took 2 weeks before they were able to confirm or deny coverage. Our job was to dry out the affected area, as we were hired to do & which we attempted to do. The day *** ******* met **** onsite, **** took moisture readings which confirmed building materials were still wet. This is a standard procedure as additional damage can occur if we were to remove drying equipment until we heard back from an insurance company.
  Asking State Farm for approvals after having the restoration equipment on site for more than three days would have been a dead end question.  As you have expressed your frustration many times since the beginning of this project, State Farm took two weeks to deny your claim. So for me to ask State Farm for approvals, Servpro would have gotten the same answer from State Farm that they have not determined coverage yet and they are not able to approve or deny anything until they confirm coverage.  A perfect example of this is from the first email **** **** sent to State Farm asking for approvals to start demolition, and State Farm responded that they needed to send out a field adjuster before determining coverage.
  In regards to not being asked to meet with *** ******* on site, I would suggest reading the text messages between us which I have attached.  I will quote what *** ****** texted:  "Just got off the phone with her as well, sounds good, hope you can make it out"  **** **** was unsure if he was able to make it to the meeting with *** *******, but *** ****** did express that he wanted **** **** to meet *** ******* for the adjuster inspection. It is not uncommon for contractors to charge trip charges, and meeting with adjusters is no exception.
  *** ****** may feel that he was taken advantage of but when he called us out there and agreed to the terms in the contract he had every opportunity to ask questions, but he didnt. It is the responsibility of the customer to understand the contract or ask questions. If he would have asked questions when he signed we could have given him answers. My suggestion is to see if State Farm can reconsider covering this insurance claim, or at minimum reimburse you for your current Servpro invoice as an inconvenience fee for taking two weeks to deny your insurance claim. At the end of the day, Servpro is an independent business that has to charge for the work they do to stay in business and can't just waive the fees associated with this project just because State Farm denied the claim.  
  In conclusion, Servpro did not try to take advantage of *** ******* As seen in the text messages, **** went out of his way to try to help *** ***************************** additional charges. Servpro is being portrayed as the Bad guy because *** ******* claim got denied and now he is stuck paying the bill for work performed. Servpro does everything they can to get claims approved but at the end of the day it is the insurance companys decision. As a business we cannot just do work for free, as much as *** ****** would like. Once State Farm denied *** ******** claim, SERVPRO reduced the bill for work already done by 50% in an attempt to help *** ****** out. Now SERVPRO has had to spend additional administration hours on the phone with *** ****** & his mom and now responding to their dispute & complaint to the BBB despite already cutting the bill in half.