ComplaintsforBathroom Innovations, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  05/26/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Bathroom Innovations (BI) remodeled a guest bathroom at my rental condo. Shoddy plumbing installation resulted in a line bursting in the middle of the night, flooding the entire unit while I had paying guests staying there. I contacted the contractor and he referred me to his insurance company. I have been trying to deal with their agent - very poor response to calls - and the contractor is not returning my calls either. I had to pay over $**** out of pocket to another contractor who performed flood mitigation and repair to stop them from filing a lien on property due to lack of payment from either BI or the insurance company. In addition, BI listed a discount on the remodel, but they charged full price that was only recently discovered while reviewing financials. I request reimbursement of the $**** overcharge and any other shortfall from the insurance company, whenever I get reimbursed, to recover from the unmitigated disaster. To date - 3 months later - I have not received a penny in compensation. The flood has caused me loss of rental income and damaged my business reputation in providing a comfortable vacation retreat to those guests who have rented from me on a short-term basis for years. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH BATHROOM INNOVATIONS!

  Business response

  06/05/2023

  First contact with this customer was December 2021. After months of going back-and-forth he signed the proposal and gave the deposit. Then he reversed the deposit and stated that it was an accident and we had to run his **** a second time costing us several hundred dollars. We have had numerous emails and conversations and finally was able to start his work in January/February of this year, 2023  

  He raved about how beautiful the bathroom was once we had it restored and said he had wished we had done his first bathroom as well. Unfortunately after he had a  tenant in this condo a supply line under the bathroom sink failed. The tenant slept through it and by the time they called the Bales, the apartment, had lots of water in it. The Bales contacted ******** *********** *******, and then contacted us. We immediately went over and the restoration company was already there pulling up carpet and taking off baseboards etc.  We worked with them as needed. 

  The problem came in with our insurance company being non-responsive. According to the Bales, they had to pay the full amount to the restoration company, so that they would not file a lien against his property. I still have not received a final accounting from the insurance company, which I am working diligently to receive to confirm that yes that the customer was reimbursed.

  The customer has contacted us numerous times, most of which we have responded to but each time it’s the same thing he’s repeating everything we already know and brow beating. 
  

  Upon review of the contract, you will see that the customer did indeed received his $**** discount.

  I must say, in all of our years of doing business. (since 1996) It is never taken this long to complete any project from start to finish.

  attached is a final copy of the invoice from ******** *********** and I have been in contact with our insurance adjuster as well as my insurance provider to help expedite getting a final accounting of what was paid to the Bales  

   

  Customer response

  06/07/2023

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

   Complaint: 20108810

  I am rejecting this response because:

  Unfortunately, the business owner’s response to my complaint is fraught with errors and hyperbole.  The renovation was requested during the height of the Covid pandemic.  Furthermore, I am an airline pilot who is often out of the country, as was the case when I was notified of the plumbing disaster, and getting a renovation schedule finalized in between rentals and the contractor’s issues was a nightmare. 
  
  Refer to attached files for confirmation of the following: I made a down payment of ***** with a ********** ** on 5/3/22 after several delays from our initial consultation in December 2021.  There was another delay, I believe because the contractor claimed he had Covid or perhaps yet another scheduling conflict.  (He said he had contracted Covid at some point in the total timeline.)  Regardless, ***** is a lot of money to be left floating around on an unknown contractor’s account, especially after the encounters I have had with other less than scrupulous contractors plying the Florida market.  Therefore, I requested a refund from my credit card company and received it.  It was no “accident,” nor was my credit card an ****.
  
  I subsequently made yet another partial payment to BI on 7/5/22 after unfortunately deciding to proceed.  The contractor mentioned he was charged a fee for the refunded credit card payment.  I asked him to please forward supporting documents and I would highly likely be able to get them a refund from my CC bank.  I never received the requested info so didn’t pursue a refund for Bathroom Innovations any further.  The final payment after completion of the job was made on 12/21/22 via a S***** ***** ***** for a requested amount of *****, which is over the 10% discount offered by BI as stated on the contract.  I was mistaken in the original complaint – the overcharge was *****, not $**** as initially claimed.  
  
  Respondent is also mistaken on when the work was even performed.  See attached reservation calendar.  I initially blocked the rental for the entire month of November, and had to extend the block until December 21st due to slow progress, at which time final payment was made.  The remodel initially looked very nice.  However, the tub faucet came off in my hand when I was looking for defects, the water shutoff valves are Sharkbite installations - meaning the entire valve body has to be held in order to shut the valve off, otherwise it rotates on the pvc pipe and is another point of potential failure in the plumbing system - and there are uneven tiles on the floor.  Those defects don’t even include the principal cause of the entire dispute – a faulty water line installation to the sink faucet.   I was definitely not impressed with the plumber.  
  
  Respondent also claims the tenant “slept through” the incident.  To recall, the water line burst in the guest bathroom which is on the other side of the condo from the master bedroom. They didn’t and wouldn’t have heard that rupture while sound asleep.  One of the tenants sleeping there noticed the flooding in the middle of the night while getting up to use the bathroom and stepping into several inches of water.  I received a text message from him while I was in Hong Kong notifying me of the disaster.  My wife rushed over there early the next morning and the condo manager referred her to ******** ***********, a company specializing in water cleanup.  We did not want BI involved any further in the fiasco that that company caused.  Mr. Stay did however come and inspect the plumbing and admitted his plumber had made a crucial mistake.  
  
  My issue is that BI did not stand behind their work.  If I were a contractor and had caused that flooding, and my liability insurance was not forthright in making payment, I would have made the customer whole again and subsequently dealt directly with the insurance company.  This unfortunately did not occur.  BI was very stubborn in returning calls, unlike *** ****’s claims, as was its insurance agent and I am still out the entire amount this shoddy work has cost me, including the $**** to ******** for repairs. See attached *** ***** ******  *** **** also states I am “brow beating” her.  That is simply not true.  However, I obviously needed to reemphasize the financial pitfall her and her husband’s company caused me and I was getting aggravated at their stubbornness to deal directly with me.  There is no final accounting to be made on *** ****’s part of what has yet to be paid to me – I have received NOTHING to date months after the mishap.  I therefore request BI refund me the ***** overcharge I made above the contracted price of ******* and I make a new request to replace the sharkbite valves with proper pvc-cemented fittings for an undersink installation.  The entire episode is an absolutely disgusting shirking of responsibility from a company with a so-called “reputable” business record, and further evidence that reputable contractors are far and few between in the state of Florida.  I will continue pursuing payment from the insurance company through other channels.

  Regards,

  ******* *****

  Business response

  06/16/2023

  Yes, it was a m***** **** and not the **** I had originally thought. 
  From what I understand my insurance company paid the balance of the restoration to ******** *********** There is discussion concerning the repairs as well.  We know our insurance company will ultimately handle the situation. I have worked diligently from my end to move forward with promoting completion of this situation. Here is one email that I sent to my insurance agent to reach out directly to ******** ****** due to the fact that I was getting absolutely no response from ***** or her manager at the time
   May 1, 2023, communicating with ***** ********, my insurance agent. 
  This occurred around February 20.  We installed a bathroom for Doug and Mary Bales at pier point south on beach. They sublet it a few weeks later, and during the night the connector under the sink blew off. The tenants did not realize it until the place was flooded. They called the homeowner who contacted ******** ***********, who immediately proceeded to handle the situation. They called us and we immediately went over and found ******** working to resolve the situation, We called li***** ******* and we’ve been trying to get things resolved between the four of us, the homeowner, ******** ***********, ******* ****** and us.  ***** **** at ******* ****** has basically been non-communicative. I’ve called her dozens of times and have had little to no response. Now the restoration company is being told that they did not get approval for the reconstruction.  ******** is going to put a lien against the property and the homeowner is demanding that we pay the difference between what they’re getting paid and what would be a lien. Around ******   The homeowners insurance company has not been contacted as far as I understand. I’ve also contacted ***** ****’s manager on two occasions to no avail I will send you both ***** and her managers information from another phone number in a few minutes. Anyone who would like to speak with me can reach me at ************* Thank you so much, ****** ** ***** Bathroom Innovations.

  ***** did reach out to ******** ****** ******l and it seemed to promote them finally getting back in touch with us.

  Additionally, There seems to be some discrepancy about what has been paid to ********. I have not been able to speak with ****** as she has been out of town but I plan to further discuss the situation concerning the repairs along with getting the amounts paid to whom and for what? I will be contacting ******* ***** ****, and *****’s supervisor early next week.

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