Drain Works Plumbing

I will never hire Drainworks Plumbing again, and would definitely not recommend them to anyone.

My husband and I called Drainworks initially to repair a leaking water main. After an initial visit by Matt, we payed Drainworks $500 for a site estimate and signed a work order. This seemed quite steep and possibly unorthodox, but we were keen to get the work started ASAP, so didn't feel like questioning the price or the method.

Following up with Drainworks in the subsequent days, it became increasingly difficult to the point of impossible to go ahead with the project. The staff at Drainworks became non-cooperative, verbally abusive, and incredibly unprofessional.

We learned that to repair this would involve digging a large hole in our front yard to replace the pipe. This involved potentially disturbing a city tree on our neighbour's property. So there were permits involved, and some very specific instructions from the city about how to go about making sure the tree wasn't harmed. Matt from Drainworks made some recommendations in his initial visit in terms of what permits and letters would be required. My husband and I acquired the appropriate city permits and papers.

I contacted Drainworks to set up a schedule for the work. I spoke with Eddie, the VP/General Manager (who referred to himself as the "President"). Eddie seemed to take offence at the revised scope of the project, as it now involved fencing around the tree, etc. I assured him that we (the client) would by no means ask him to do extra work without being paid for it, but this did not seem to help matters any. Eddie became quickly abusive towards me on the phone. He said "you expect us to do all this stuff for you, but what have you done that we've asked", to which I replied that we had obtained the appropriate papers and letters required. To this he replied "how can you prove that?", to which I replied "I have the letter in my hand."

Most of the rest of the conversation consisted of Eddie yelling at me, insinuating that I was out of line, selfish, and possibly being deceptive. I asked Eddie a few times to please not shout at me, but that seemed to only make him more irate.

I attempted to contact the office in subsequent days and spoke to someone named William. William would not put my call through to Eddie or any other member of staff. He also refused to provide me with any information, even the last name of the owner. I called back a few times to try again, but in the end William hung up on me, so I decided to leave it there and chalk it up to a bad experience.

I was appalled by the behaviour and attitude of the staff at Drainworks. I have since learned that this kind of client treatment is not uncommon in Toronto, but I remain baffled by it.