Hammer Home

On November 13, 2019 I created an account with Mopify. The following week, Mopify sent to my Toronto home a cleaner, who I will refer to as Cleaner #1. Cleaner #1 started off well but each week the quality of her work declined and she would show up late for her appointments. Worst of all, I started to notice she had a rude and abrasive personality. On December 18, 2019, Cleaner #1 became rude and abrasive when I expressed my dissatisfaction with her performance. In the early afternoon, Cleaner #1 was cleaning in the second floor washroom. Suddenly, I heard an unusually loud screeching, scraping sound emanating from the washroom. Regrettably, I did not ask what that sound was. I did not give the incident further thought. A short time later, Cleaner #1 finished and left. The next day, December 19, I received an email from Mopify informing me Cleaner #1 was “reducing” her “work territory” and would not be servicing my home anymore. On the morning of January 8, 2020, Mopify sent me a different cleaner who I will refer to as Cleaner #2. Cleaner #2 was late and she was not a very good cleaner but at least she was not abrasive. After Cleaner #2 was done and left my home in the early afternoon, I decided to inspect her work. It was at this time I went to the second floor washroom and I noticed a straight vertical two foot scratch on the inside of the shower stall glass. This scratch had the appearance as if it were caused by someone scraping the glass with a key or other sharp item. About an hour and a half later, I sent an email to Mopify to report the damage. Upon Mopify’s request, I provided closeup pictures of the scratch attached to the email. I stated I wanted the matter resolved and I wished to be compensated. During the waiting period, I began thinking about how this could have happened. There is only my spouse and I living in this home, there are no children. This scratch was not there before I hired Mopify. I started thinking about the circumstances surrounding Cleaner #1 and how it seemed more likely she was responsible for the damage than Cleaner #2. On January 13, 2020, Mopify replied by email and advised me Cleaner #2 denied causing the damage. I suggested perhaps it would be prudent to interview Cleaner #1 and I explained the reasons why. Mopify did not acknowledge my suggestion to interview Cleaner #1. On January 16, 2020, I was advised by Mopify that contractors were being vetted to replace the glass. Upon Mopify’s request I provided measurements of the glass and distant pictures of the entire glass to reveal any mounting hardware. On February 11, 2020, Mopify advised me they couldn’t see the scratch in the pictures so the glass couldn’t be replaced. Mopify offered me a free cleaning, a $140 value. It became apparent to be that the customer service process was suffering at this point because I started to feel like I was kept in the dark, I had to ask for updates rather than being kept informed regularly. I began feeling frustrated because of Mopify’s denials and coverups. My suggestions or recommendations were either ignored or shot down. I refused the insufficient offer of a free cleaning. I stated that if Mopify didn’t want to replace or fix the glass then I would accept a monetary restitution of $1,000. Mopify did not acknowledge my restitution. Mopify asked me to provide more pictures which I did obviously revealing a scratch. I even provided a video of the scratch. I moved the video camera side to side to make the scratch more noticeable. I suggested someone from Mopify or the contractor could attend my home to view the scratch in person but Mopify did not acknowledge the suggestion. On a couple of occasions, I asked Mopify if it had interviewed Cleaner #1 and what were the findings of the interview with respect to the damage but Mopify ignored or sidestepped my question. What was Mopify hiding? On February 13, 2020, I closed my account with Mopify. Subsequently, I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Check the Better Business Bureau website to review the investigative result.

My wall unit air conditioner needed a regular annual maintenance. I bought this unit from Air Quality several years ago. The serviceman attended to service the unit. The quote was $144, taxes in. A short time later the serviceman approached and showed me a bit of lint he had extracted from the AC unit. Great, I thought, you're doing a great job. Things are not always what they seem, however. He told me that he couldn't get all the lint because it was in a tight spot and he would have to use a special solution. Okay? Now, here's the kicker, it would cost an extra $144 to clean the extra lint. I expressed to the serviceman, this is why you're here, to clean the AC Unit at a stated cost of $144 using whatever means necessary. I refused to pay the extra $144. The serviceman said that for sure I would have to clean the excess lint next year. Never mind that, obviously, the extra lint didn't have to be cleaned this year but the fact that I would have to pay just short of $300 for this regular maintenance job is in my opinion, grossly unfair and a big rip-off. I will not be using Air Quality Dunrite to clean my AC anymore.

At the end of last summer, Air Quality's One Hour installed a wall unit air conditioner in our home. The phone calls were answered promptly. The workers arrived as scheduled. The workers were professional, neat and efficient. The air conditioner seems to work fine, although, it was installed late summer and so we used it for only a month. This summer, when it will be used constantly, will reveal how reliable the air conditioning unit will be. Good warranty coverage. The initial price quote was very high and it was only when I suggested I was going to use another company at a lower price did the quote come down to a more reasonable level. My rating for Air Quality's One Hour would have been higher if the initial quote was reasonable right from the outset. As it stands now however, I will continue to use Air Quality's One Hour for future projects but the prices will be a deciding factor.

I bought this Kenmore clothes dryer at Sears, Eaton Centre, Toronto. I bought it in May 2006 and suddenly it broke down in February 2010, a lifespan of only 3 years and 9 months. My warranty was for 2 years. I paid just over $1,000 for this dryer. I telephoned Sears Corporate Customer Service, I was told plainly and simply without flexibility, the warranty had expired and I would have to pay for repair costs estimated at $300. This dryer that broke down replaced the old dryer that lasted 20 years. I declined to pay for repairs and I went elsewhere and bought a clothes dryer for $348. I will probably never shop at Sears again and hell would freeze over before I buy another Kenmore product.

The manager of Astron Electric, was rude, ignorant and misleading. The job was to convert the hot water tank to a metered service. Ted attended my home and did the job. The work was okay but the customer service was lousy. Toronto Hydro estimated that this work would cost about $185 dollars and Astron Electric charged me $365. Ted turned off the power without first warning me and at the time I was on the computer. I found it difficult to communicate with Ted. I found myself getting frustrated because either my questions were ignored or Ted's answers were short and unhelpful. An electrical panel cover was partially obstructed by a door frame preventing easy access to the circuitry and amazingly Ted wanted to knock out the door frame. I suggested that he remove the electrical panel cover instead to avoid a demolition of the door frame. Ted complied and was successful at removing the electrical panel cover. Now, why he couldn't figure that out on his own is beyond me. Once the work was done, Ted said that he would call me in a couple of days with the ESA number. Several days went by without a phone call so I began calling Ted. Ted told me that he had contacted the people responsible for issuing the ESA number and that it would be faxed to him. Ted kept saying he would call me later in the day with the ESA number but Ted did not call. I had to keep calling Ted pretty much everyday after that to get the ESA number but Ted continued to be evasive. Finally, nine days later I decided to contact Toronto Hydro and the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) and I was told that they had no record of Astron Electric doing the work. I confronted Ted about this and a short time later Ted finally gave me the ESA number. I will never use Astron Electric again.

On August 27. 2008, I hired Aviv plumbing for fix a leaky faucet in the the kitchen. The wood around the faucet was also starting to rot. Although the worker recommended an all in one sink to fix the problem, I chose to have the area of the faucet secured. The worker replaced the faucet because the present faucet irreparable and he also secured the wood supporting the faucet. It was a tough small job but the worker was successful. This is the second time I've used Aviv plumbing and both times the work was done well.

In September, 2008, I hired Empire Construction to replace the tiles around the bathtub. The owner, Jean Jehayem, was immediately available and started the work a few days later. Jean was helpful, professional, clean and he even picked out the style of tiles for me. It was good quality work. Whenever I've called Jean he has always answered the telephone. I would definitely use Empire Construction again for future work.

In September, 2008, I hired Pipeline Mechanical to fix the kitchen faucet. The cold water had low pressure. Pipeline mechanical fixed the problem without any hassles. I found the company to be professional, efficient and effective.

I had a leaky faucet in my basement bathtub. I called Drainworks to come over and fix the problem. A half hour later Ernesto showed up and did a perfect job. I tried to do this job myself but I didn't have the proper tools to do it. Ernesto showed me the tool that I needed to get the job done. Next time, I will tackle a similar problem myself. I will, however, continue to use Drainworks. Drainworks has never let me down. My only complaint is Drainworks' prices are too high. I especially appreciate that Drainworks' employees are professional and clean.