Sear Home Improvment Center

Sear Home Improvment Center

November 29, 2005

This complaint is in regards to Sears Home Improvment Center.

I entered into a written contract with Sears Home Improvement on 10/12/05. I was scheduled to have my home re-sided within 2 weeks of my contract. As of today, November 21, 2005, the job remains incomplete.

The job started off well, but ended terribly. The first day of the job began on Halloween. The sub-contractors hired by Sears to perform the work were highly incompetent. I had received numerous complaints from neighbors the first day that loud music was played all day long. I have a job and could not be home to babysit the workers. When my family returned home late that evening after work, school and Trick or Treating, all of the outside lights had been disconnected. The workers removed the top step to our deck and didn't leave any warning. My husband nearly fell through the deck when he went to enter the home and found the step to be missing. That was nearly a 4 foot drop. The next day, at day break, we got up before work to survey the outside. We found over a dozen wood boards with nails sticking straight up. Our 4 dogs were running around the nails and boards. My son had to be escorted outside in order to avoid injury. We waited for the workers to arrive to tell them you cannot leave a jobsite unsafe with small childern and aminals around. It was then I called a friend of mine to come each day and stay at my home until the project was done.

As if this could not get worse, it did. The workers inability to keep the jobsite clean and safe left me with a broken toe and fractured foot on the 3rd day of the job. The workers had disconnected the railing on the deck located by the front door of our home and didn't inform anyone. My house sitter informed me they were leaving their ladders up against the windows and screens of the home. I leaned over the railing to look at the side of the house only to find myself falling almost 4 feet off the deck nearly missing boards with nails sticking up. My fall left me with a broken left toe and a hairline fracture in my left foot. During my visit to the emergency physician, my house sitter called me and said she had informed the workers of my accident. She said they showed little concern and proceeded to work. As she went outside to tell them to leave the jobsite, she witnessed one of them urinating on my English Bulldog outside. Immediately, my husband called Sears asking for them to be removed immediately and send out a supervisor. Sears send out a Supervisor the next morning. He acted as though he was appalled. He saw the railing down, the step missing and the numerous boards still laying on the ground with the nails sticking out. He said he would send out a crew to finish up.

The next day, we came home to find a note on our gate from the Sub-Contractor. The note said they came back (without our permission) to finish. The wanted us to sign off on the job. We opened out gate to our home to find the yard still full of debris and the shutters not on the house as per the contract. They braced our railing with 2 2x4's and spray painted them white to match the deck. They had gotten spray paint all over the surrounding area of our deck including the outdoor carpet (what had just been installed 8 weeks prior) and several flower pots. They used 3" drywall screws to screw the railing into the new siding. They used scrap wood to replace the step on the deck which does not match and the 2 sections of wrought iron fencing is still laying in our driveway after a month. It was never put back because when they had removed it carelessly, they broke off the ends.

They never came back to finish, and never once to call and check on my broken toe. I have called 6 times since November 3rd, and cannot even get the courtesy of a call back. I have missed a full week of work because of my foot and had to hire 2 workers to come and clean up the nails and debris from the yard. My friend who was kind enough to come and house sit during this time, got a flat tire from the nails they had left in the driveway. I had to buy her a new tire. Money and inconvenience out of my pocket, and Sears could care less. If anyone has any ideas on how to handle this, please let me know. The contract only has a number to call and they will not give me an address to mail a complaint. Everytime I go home and see my home, I hate it. I hate it all because of how Sears handled this job. My happy home is no longer happy. Thank you Sears.

As written and experienced first hand by:

Amanda

Homeowner

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