Contractors and Consumers Filing Complaints…

Consumers have always been in control when it comes to customer service with the phrase “The customer is always right.”  We as businesses do our best to stick to this and satisfy the customer but there are times when the customer is NOT always right.

As a business owner or contractor, you are the business and want your business to succeed and be the best it can be.  You have to worry about every aspect about the business and want it to appeal to every customer.  One problem is that everyone has a an opinion and not everyone will agree on things.  You can do a great job on a project or service but the customer does not think so and when you try and collect money they give you a hard time.  (Now not in a case that the contractor or business literally messed things up and did not do anything the customer wanted or agreed to)  For example, when I worked in an irrigation office they have a flat rate service fee for the first hour and then a fee for every half hour after that.  There was a job I recall where they had to install a pump and redo the whole irrigation system that took about 6 good solid hours to do and the customer was satisfied with the work.  We sent an invoice out to the customer with the contract they signed as well that included everything that was done and that they agreed to.  They called a few days later saying that they were not going to pay the full amount because they said that it should not cost that much when they agreed to the terms and quote of how long it would take (it even took a little longer than was quoted) They sent in the check with a 1/3 of the check not there because of that.  We called them explaining everything but they were adimit that they were not paying the full and they threatened to complain about us…etc. 

There are so many customers across the board that do this to businesses and contractors day after day.  It’s understandable if a contractor does not complete the job or what all was requested but if the job was done and done well, there is no reason a customer should not pay.  In today’s down economy everyone is hurting with money but if you have a service done or deal with a contractor, you need to pay them for their service.  They have bills, employees, expenses and many other things to pay just like a homeowner but they have that and a business. 

When complaints are filed they should not be a rant and rave session but more of a warning about a customer/business.  There are many consumer complaint websites out there where they filed a complaint about something very simple that you could tell they just got on there and were definitely having a bad day.  There is nothing wrong with the Better Business Bureau, because it gives businesses creditibility and a place for customers to voice their opinions.  Like I said in the beginning of this post, consumers have always had the upper hand but there is nothing wrong with contractors and businesses having the chance to voice their opinions of hard to please customers they had to deal with.  Just like customers want to know about bad businesses, businesses want to know about bad customers.

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Contractor and Customers getting along…

We got an email the other day from one of our contractors that filed a complaint against a customer on a remodeling job that was done about 6 months ago.  Turns out he filed a complaint and then the customer saw he had been complained about on Business Beware, he filed a rebutle….. short story..The two actually worked out the difference they had with each other and are now actually friends. 

Sometimes in bad situations, good things come out of them.  Right now everyone seems to be stressed with the economy and trying to make ends meet with whatever situation they are in.  If a contractor/customer adds to your stress and makes you lash out and file complaints that are not necessary and more of just a rant and rave session, rethink filing that complaint.  The same goes for customers, don’t run to a consumer site and file a complaint against a business that said something you didn’t want to hear.  As anything, always think before you do or say something. 

I have seen so many customers through my parents businesses, some good and some bad but the bad ones can get in a huff about something so simple that did not need to be filed on the Better Business Bureau.  You can’t get so uptight about small situations that can be bypassed if handled correctly. 

What’s sad is there are so many customers and businesses that do deserve to be placed on a site where others can see the complaint.  It’s like the one kid in the group who causes the rest of the group or team to have to suffer consequences.  This is no different from our world.  There are some contractors out there that are scammers and are not licensed (believe me this drives businesses and contractors crazy too because we compete against them as LICENSED contractors)

Not to go on and on, but just remember before you run to rant and rave think about the situation and if it is something that can roll off the back or that seriously needs to be out there for others to know about for the sake of their business. 

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

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Contractor Talk vs. Business Beware

I had someone the other day approach me about Business Beware versus a site called Contractor Talk.  I took a look at it and have heard of it, it’s a great site…. a great site for contractor information and to share information about jobs and what to on jobs as in with materials and the actual project. 

If someone where to write a post on the Contractor Talk about a customer it is either to rant and rave letting off steam about a customer or giving advice for dealing with customers.  Business Beware does not really fall in that category.  Our main purpose is to let contractors and businesses warn each other about customers that have not paid or caused numerous problems on a recent job so others are in the know about it.  You have a choice in what to do with the complaint, you can either bypass working with the customer depending on what was filed or just have a heads up about what you are getting yourself into.  We are not about just having someone rant and rave about a customer and tear them down. 

It’s not only customers that you can file complaints about, if you are a business that had to deal with a general contractor that caused you problems, you can file a complaint agaisnt them as well.  We have had many people give us feedback on how this has helped them with so many upcoming jobs that they were able to search for on Business Beware. 

Hopefully that gives you an idea if this thought has crossed your mind before about the two sites.  Contractor Talk is a great site like I said, but we are two different sites.  I hope you use both and find them very handy as a contractor!

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Dealing with General Contractors

You know we had to deal with a general contractor through a building company not too long ago and it was such a headache.  Our contract was with them but the project was being done to the actual original customer’s house we gave the bid to.  From day one, you could tell this contractor thought he was something special.   It’s funny, the customer was actually great to deal with, it was the general contractor who gave us so much trouble.  He actually held up the pay from the customer, who said to pay us. 

There were other things about the contractor where we caught him in lies and had the paperwork to prove it, but that is another story to get into, when the conclusion is this…. Not all contractors  or “general contractors” are harmless. 

Business Beware is ultimately for the contractors to file complaints about customers they have had to deal with in their area to warn fellow businesses, but sometimes being a business and dealing with a general contractor can be a major headache too.  Not all are like that, just like not all customers are a pain but that is why Business Beware is great because you can warn each other of both sides. 

So if you have delt with a general contractor that you think needs to chill out a little bit, then take a second and let others know at Business Beware.

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Interview with “The Cajun Contractor”

Hey make sure to check out our interview with Michael King that was on 12/6. 

Here is the link to listen to it….

http://www.businessbeware.biz/hometalkusa_interview.mp3

 

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Business Beware added Canadian Provinces to Database

We have started to add Canada to our database, right now you can search by Provinces and eventually we will have a more detailed search. BUT you can now file complaints if you live in Canada! 

Hope this helps all of you out that emailed us asking to open it up to Canadians! Enjoy!

 

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Contractor Talk Show

Hey everyone!  We wanted to let you know that we will be interviewd by Michael King on The Cajun Contractor Show this Saturday 12/6.  Make sure to listen in and check it out! 

Also, check out The Cajun Contractor website at www.hometalkusa.com