Doing a home maintenance or installation job yourself can be extremely satisfying and save a lot of money. But when the project is a little complex, it's probably best to leave it to a professional.
Yet what happens when the supposed expert makes an error that leaves you with an enormous repair bill on your property?
That's what happened to one Auburn, Georgia, resident named Glen Frazier, who ordered a new washing machine from Lowe's and had it professionally installed. Unfortunately, it was done incorrectly, and Frazier soon found that his house was flooding.
"Water was pouring from the light fixtures, from the seams, from the sheetrock," he told WSB-TV.
It was only a few minutes after the installers had left the property that the problem began, as a broken part in the washing machine led to the leak.
Frazier has spent $8,000 on water remediation so far, and the damage the flooding has done to his property is likely to see his repair bill increase.
Perhaps more frustrating, though, is that interest in remedying the problem seemed minimal from Lowe's. It took two weeks for Frazier to get a response from the retailer, but that only happened after he got in touch with the Consumer Action Center.
Frazier was directed to Elliott.org to find an email address for company executives. When he finally got in touch with someone at Lowe's, they said, "This should never happen."
Speaking to WSB-TV, Channel 2 consumer advisor Clark Howard said that getting assistance from big companies like Lowe's or Home Depot following installation issues has been "virtually impossible" for consumers.
"They're putting their names on these programs, but they are not backing them up," he added.
It shouldn't require an email to an executive to solve a problem that is of the company's own making. Hopefully, Lowe's takes note of the trouble Frazier experienced and makes it easier for customers to get in contact about such problems in the future.
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