strokes of genius ..BEWARE of this painting company
We arranged a date for Jan 6 2012. i called Dan the nite before to confirm. He did not get back to me that nite. The next day I called and wrote emails for most of the day. HE DID NOT SHOW UP. The only way I was able to reach him was through the company where I purchased the coupon for his painting services. They finally reached him, and late in the day he called. He made up some excuse for not showing. We then arranged for the painter to come the next day. The coupon was for painter for a day...well I guess Dan the owner figures his painter can only accomplish one coat in each of two rooms.. I had moved the furniture, prepped the walls. So everything was good to go. The painter wasted alot of time packing and unpacking his tools, taking smoke breaks, going to his car to get more tools. In the end, he managed to only coat two rooms one time. No trim, or doors were done,as the owner claims below. Knowing he was paid already, the painter had no incentive to work fast and efficiently to get two coats of paint done ... it took him 2.5 hours to do one coat in my kitchen. The owner will not face the
real facts that the time was wasted by the painter...not anything to do with my paint.
He left me with a totally unfinished job...and when I spoke to the owner he said my expectations for the job was too high and I should go and find myself someone else to complete the job. He was yelling at me, and rude. He denies all this below.
This is a totally unprofessional company and I would be scared to have any more dealing with this owner. he has no integrity to make his customers satisfied...even for the most minimal amount of work. Please understand I had paid in advance for this job. He took the money and ran.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $150.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- they could honor their customer satisfaction...and make the customer completely satisfied, and not dance to his own interpretation of events which are not true.
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- do not go near this company....they are untrustworthy..especially if you pay them in advance...they have no incentive to do an honest job.
- Company Response
Hello Linda, thanks for your feedback.
I trust that anyone reading your review here will do their due diligence, read the many reviews we have posted on this site and elsewhere (all oddly with 10/10 scores), as well as my own account of the events below, and then make their own decisions about the truth or falsehood of your claims.
1) Linda purchased a promotional voucher in December of 2010 for $150, which was for 7 hours of labour by one of our professional painters.
2) She called me on my cell phone over the Christmas holidays to book a date for the work. Because I was visiting family out of town at the time, I asked her to please email me to confirm the booking. She never emailed me, leaving me with no phone number or address to contact her.
3) Despite not having sent me her address, job details or contact information so that I could call to coordinate, she assumed we would show up on January 6.
4) She reached me by telephone at noon on January 6, I explained the miscommunication and told her that I would do two things: Arrange for one of my painters to come in on their day off, the following day (Saturday)
to do the work, and would allow him to work an extra hour for free (8 hours total) for the inconvenience.
5) Linda told me that she anticipated having two coats done on the walls, trim, closets and doors in a kitchen and one bedroom. I told her that it was unlikely my painter could complete all of this with two coats in 8 hours and that any time above this would need to be negotiated between us, to which she agreed.
6) On the Saturday, one of my competent and professional painters arrived at Linda's home. He began to paint the bedroom in question, only to find after the first coat that the paint she had purchased (a low-grade, inexpensive paint from a department store) had not been tinted properly.
7) I called Linda and explained that she could return the paint to a store to be corrected, and meanwhile my painter would shift his attention to the kitchen area.
8) My painter finished the first coat of the kitchen walls, trim and doors while Linda was out correcting the paint. When she returned, it was nearly 3pm and my painter had been working for 6 hours plus a half hour lunch. He then spent the next 2 hours putting a first coat of the now-correct colour onto the bedroom walls.
9) When he had reached the point of 7 hours plus the free hour I had agreed to, my painter called me to report and I asked to speak to Linda. To my surprise, she suggested that because we had not finished what she had expected in one day, that I ought to send a painter back another day to finish the job for no additional cost. This after having taken advantage of an excellent limited-time promotion that had allowed her a full day of labour for only $150, less than half our regular pricing.
10) I attempted to explain to Linda the unfairness of her request, but she was steadfast in her belief that she should get something for nothing. I did not yell at her, nor was I rude, as anyone who knows me can attest that I would never treat another person, client or not, in that manner.
11) However, after Linda blatantly threatened to give a (false) negative report to the BBB and here on Homestars if I did not send a free painter to her home, and refused to pay the $19.50 HST I was legally obligated to collect on site for her $150 voucher purchase (meaning that I will need to cover this amount out of pocket), I suggested that she would need to find another company to complete her project.
Please rest assured that I take great pride in my company and our dedication to quality workmanship and customer service, and that has not and will not change.
Sincerely,
Daniel Smith
Owner Estimator
Strokes of Genius Painting