Cutting and disposal of 10 ft tree stump
We inherited a dead tree stump in our backyard from the previous owners. Hubert from All Season's Tree Service provided us with a quote that was very slightly lower than the other companies that we had called. The quote explicitly stated that the price included clean up and disposal of the resulting waste from our property. They did indeed cut the stump down but then took over one month to collect the wood. Naturally, we held payment until the job was complete. When the remaining wood was finally cleaned up, we promptly sent payment. However, Hubert began demanding more money because there was a relatively small amount of wood from a tree house that the previous owners had left behind in the tree that was cut.
We can accept that disputes happen from time to time and we are willing to resolve them in a mature way. However, what happened next was shocking. The company cashed our cheque and then returned to our house about a month later and dumped the wood from the tree house on our front lawn. Notwithstanding the fact that this is illegal, what bothered us most was that the wood from the tree house had many exposed, rusty nails (see picture) and raccoon feces that presented a danger to the others (including children) in our neighbourhood.
We find it very disturbing that this man would actually go out of his way to do this and that he would retaliate over a minor dispute in a way that posed a physical danger to others. (When we say "minor dispute": We just had this small amount of wood removed for less than $100)
We are filing a report with the police. Should this man ever appear on our property, we will promptly call them.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $800.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- Develop some professionalism and awareness of the dangers that your actions pose to others.
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- If you decide to hire this company (which we would not recommend), we would suggest that you supervise completion of the work before payment is made.
- Company Response
In defense and without prejudice. The facts are:
{name removed} Contracted to remove the stump only as stated on the contract. We do not remove attached structures due to disposal fees, time , and disposal location. It is not our business. The trunk was cut down without damage to property and stacked neatly on stone for later pickup as agreed.The scrap tree platform was separated and piled also on the stone to the side.The customer mislead us by telling us we left the wood there.We sent our subcontractor there twice after picking up the trunk wood. He reported there was no wood left. The subcontractor took the boards from direction of the customer by mistake. The customer was informed it would be returned if not paid for which she didn't. We returned the scrap that we were NOT contracted to remove. Our subcontractor comes from Newcastle to pick up the wood and only charges for his fuel. We save customers hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars for wood disposal in time and labor by having someone pick up the wood at only the cost of fuel. I do not believe it is right that someone should be able to degrade another by false remarks. AllWAYS get both sides of the story and ask for references and credentials such as certifications when hiring someone. It is unfortunate that this has just come to our attention a year later.When or if the contract is located I will post it here for all to see the truth.