Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/02/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  In February of 2024 I hired Prestige Painting + Remodling Milwaukee to fix a cracked ceiling in my kitchen. Upon them breaking up the ceiling, Prestige advised they needed to go into my attic to discern if there was a leak in the roof, as there was mold in the ceiling. Prestige advised me there was not a leak in the roof because the insulation was not water damaged and treated the mold and repaired the ceiling. Weeks later the same spot developed a bubbly, water spot. Prestige came back out to assess the issue. At this point, this is the first time the contractors went all the way into the attic and made an assessment directly above the problem area in the ceiling. I was shown that there was a pipe with consensation that needed to be replaced. Prestige came back with an estimate, including the same drywall repair that I paid for initially. My pushback is/was that I hired Prestige to properly assess and correct the issue the first time. They went into the attic the first time. This second time they told me they didn't go all the way into the attic because of so much insulation. I trusted them to properly assess the situation and make the proper correction the first time. They told me there was no water damage and the mold could have came from water that was stuck from the past but never went directly above the crack in the ceiling to see the condensed pipe. While trying to work with Prestige to correct the issue this second time, I was unwilling to pay for the drywall a second time due to something they missed. I was communicating with *****. While speaking with the other contractor, ******, he called me a b**ch and hung up on me.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 04/12/2024

  You hired us to fix the damage  to the drywall on your ceiling from a leak you had in your roof. You told us that you got screwed while buying your house and that they didnt mentioned you would need to replace the roof, so you did. 1- We would not have repaired the drywall if the water problem was not fixed first. 2- You asked if I could climb in to your attic to see if I could see any water dripping after like 3 minutes of walking in to your house because you were to scared to go up there (not part of my job, did  it as a favor ) I get paid to walk in fix the drywall and walk out not to climb in ****** , but I did because you seemed nice. Now your drywall is fixed and you call me two month later about a leak in your kitchen demanding for it to be fixed and let me quote you You should have inspected my whole attic when you where up there the first time. Again not my job. We didnt get hired to inspect an attic. It says it clearly on the estimate in black and white ( drywall repair and mold test on the affected areas.) When you called back and mentioned your ceiling was bubbling, I climbed back up to the attic and crawled to the location of the bubbling, once there I seen and took a video of your pluming vent pipe and it was leaking water. Again we did not charge you to inspect it. I brought you the video and mentioned it would be a quick fix. You were glad it wasnt your roof and walked us out with a smile on your face. Now you call back again demanding for us to fix something unrelated to our previous work performed at your home. Sorry but no, we dont work for free and in cases we are willing to help but not when treated as rude as we were treated after we said we wont do it for free. We even disconnect your water lines removed your vanity your mirror and a shelf for free because you didnt ask for that in the estimate, you waited till the second day to ask me to remove and reinstall everything in your bathroom.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/17/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  I did not tell the owner of Prestige that I "got screwed" when I purchased my home. I was afraid to go into my attic and Prestige did do that but did not indicate that it was not part of their job or that they were doing this as a favor. The owner indicated he would need to go into the attic to see if their was water coming from the roof. The owner indicated that there was no damage to the roof and I was relieved. I am not sure how he was able to determine that there was no damage to the roof but missed the bad/old pipe. After the job Prestige did on the drywall began to bubble and show signs of water, they went back into the attic to find the pipe issue. Why wasn't this done when they came the first time? Prestige indicated they would need to go into the attic, I did not ask them to. They didn't go all the way into the attic because they said it was so much insulation. My point is that, if they would have gone into the attic, directly above the cracking drywall, we would have saw the old pipe leaking. When I first hired Prestige, it was because of my ceiling cracking, there was never any water marks on the ceiling. After they completed the job, now there is water, in addition to bubbling. 

  Prestige's reply states, "Now you call back again demanding for us to fix something unrelated to our previous work performed at your home." This is not accurate. I did call Prestige back because of the water and bubbling in the ceiling of the area they initially repaired. When Prestige sent an estimate and included the price of repairing the drywall, I pushed back stating I did and do not think its fair to pay for them to repair the drywall a second time when I already paid for this. 

  I paid Prestige to recaulk the bathroom shower and vanity. Since it was decided that I would replace the vanity, I paid them $150 to do so. All of the repairs for the bathroom were discussed and planned with one of the co-owners. Prestige was not able to complete the painting behind the sink because the caulk was wet, and indicated they would come back to do so. This small job/repair is still outstanding. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************

  

  Business Response

  Date: 04/18/2024

  The client keeps bring up that it was our job to inspect her attic. It was a favor we did for her because she was afraid to go in her attic. Our job was only to come in and fix her drywall due to water damage. We told her we would not go all the way in her attic due to it being fully insulated. So as a favor we went half way in to check for signs of water on the ceiling of the attic and there was no signs of water. If someone wants a full inspection we charge to do that. Never did I tell the client we would be doing that. We never would have found that the vent pipe was leaking water unless she had bubbling of the paint or drywall or unless we inspected the whole attic floor which was not our job and not in the contract. That is why I ask if the water problem was taken care of so that we do not have to come back and fix it a second time. When I first went out to give an estimate I specifically ask if the water problem was taken care of. She had responded that she had had a new roof put in so it was taken care of. When we fixed the 2 spots in her kitchen/ dining area the spot in the kitchen ceiling had a crack in the paint which is no signs of water damage so we scraped until it stoped peeling. Again just old paint cracking no water issue. There was no signs of water damage to that spot only that that paint was old and cracked. The spot in the dining area was wet and tested positive for mold along with some bubbling on the ceiling and paint. We cut out the drywall from that spot and replaced it with new drywall. When we had removed the old drywall the water was dried up and old. 
  So when we get a call back due to bubbling on the ceiling we thought it would be a nice jester to inspect the area that was bubbling. We then found that her vent pipe is leaking and causing the new paint to start bubbling. The vent pipe had to just have started to leak because when we were there to fix that spot there was no water issue. 
  I completely understand when a client pays for something and then a new issue comes up. I am always willing to work with all my clients. When I gave the initial estimate she did not like the price and never brought up to me that she didnt want to pay for the drywall again. She ask me to explain why she was being charged. I then explained to her and then without her asking I sent her a new estimate with a lower price. Even after lowering the price I was still willing to work with her price wise because I know how frustrating it can be to have one problem after another happen. But me being nice has led to someone wanting to take advantage of me and not wanting to pay to have the work done. I am a reasonable person and will always offer to help but I will not do work for free when I did not cause the issue. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/19/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  The initial estimate provided by Prestige states, "If there is any other damage to ceiling other than what we can see we will let you know and then we will provide you with an estimate to fix". Based on that verbiage and the contractor going into the attic initially, any reasonable person would think that the area above the drywall to be repaired was assessed. The contractor did go into my attic and ruled out water damage, if it was a favor, I appreciate that. The contractor indicated the second time, after their work came back bubbling and showing water on the ceiling, that they did not go all the way into the attic because it was heavily insulated. Text message records indicate that I hoped that the contractor and myself could come up with a resolution that worked for us both. The second contractor called me after days of texting with the other contractor, ended up calling me a "b*tch" and disconnected the phone in my face. I am still left with unfinished work in my bathroom and the work done in the kitchen ceiling bubbling up with a water ***** The initial drywall was a crack in the ceiling but their work has bubbled up. I have no knowledge about drywall, pipes, paint, or anything as it relates to home repairs/remodeling and relied on the contractors to assist me. I never have asked for anything free but have been willing to pay for each job I hired them to do. The contractor indicated they asked me if the water problem was taken care of, but I was never aware of any water issue to begin with, hence them going into the attic. The contractor advised me that if there was a leak in the roof, one would be able to discern that based on the heavy snow that recently passed through the area. The second time around, when they did go all the way into the roof and located the leaky pipe, I agreed to hire them to replace whatever piece they advised me needed to be replaced. I never said that I would not pay for the drywall again but thought that the price they were charging me, the same price as before, did not make sense. I am not understanding how I am being made out as wanting to take advantage of this business, when the phone call to discuss this didn't even last one minute. I have proof of this phone call also. The second owner, other than the one communicating via text called me, over talked me for one minute and ended up calling me out of my name. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************

  

  Business Response

  Date: 04/24/2024

  I do not know how else you would like me to explain that it is not our job to inspect the attic. When we have agreed to go up there as a favor we told you right away as soon as ****** came down that your attic was fully insulated. We told you that we could check form the opening to see if we see anything that looks like it was damaged and he could not see anything. There was no indication that there was water damage from the spot that has bubbled. That spot only had paint that was peeling. When we had removed the paint there was no signs of water. So we muddied that spot, sanded it down, primed/ paint and sand textured it. Now the spot in your dining area had bubbled paint so when we started to remove the bubbles paint we noticed that that spot in the ceiling it was loose and not attached. Underneath the bubbled paint was old water marks and mold, that is an indication that there was water damage at one point. So that area we for sure knew there was old water damage. When you had called us back due to bubbled paint ****** was prepared to go all the way in your attic, free of charge to investigate why that would have happened. He then had found a leaking vent pipe which was the cause of the bubbled drywall/ paint. Now if it was leaking at the time we had fixed your cracked paint we would have investigated more but it was not. It started to leak a couple weeks after we had already finished our job. There is no way we could have known your vent pipe was going to start leaking. Now as far as the touch up in your bathroom that needed to be painted still I told you to call me when you where home so we could stop by and take care of that as you are in the office some days and home others. You agreed to give me a call or text when you would be free so I could stop by and take care of the touch up. I had informed you that it would only take a minute. We would be in and out. Never did I receive a call or text from you so that we could take care of that touch up. Again as far as the price I was willing to work with you. I had already dropped the price and then had asked you if you were ok with it or if you wanted me to change anything or if you had any questions. When texting back and forth you seemed angry and not willing to want to pay. You say that you are willing to pay yet in your text you say you shouldnt have to pay for the drywall because you already payed to have it fixed right the first time. Now I completely understand that except there is no way I could have known your vent pipe would start to leak weeks after we finished our job. Now I am a reasonable person and I am always willing to work with all of my clients as you should know because I had mentioned it to you the day that we met. I am willing to work with you but I will not be taken advantage of for something I had no control over. 
  

   

  

  Business Response

  Date: 04/25/2024

  **SEE ATTACHED PHOTO**

  Customer Answer

  Date: 05/02/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  I don't think its fair for Prestige to indicate that "I seemed angry in the text". Text messaging is not a form of communication, but rather convenience. I do believe this conversation should have been had via telephone, but the phone conversation lasted 1 minute with me being called a "b*tch" before being disconnected on. I am not an individual that will take advantage of anyone because I don't have to. Prestige was kind enough to not give a dollar amount for the vanity change but indicated I should pay what I wanted/could. I don't think I low-balled or took advantage of that situation but paid what I could. If I was the type of individual to take advantage of a person or a business, I would not have added any payment for that service because the work was already completed. 

  After the kitchen ceiling was completed, I worked in the office the next week, went out of town & came back to the bubbled ceiling and water ***** There was not much time in-between the time the work was initially completed and when I had time for Prestige to come back and paint the area behind the faucet.

  Again, I am not trying to get anything free of charge or take advantage of any person or business; and I know I never came across that way with initial pricing and estimates. I have text messages that can prove that with this last issue, I asked for an understanding of why I was paying for the drywall again and indicated that I hoped we can come to a resolution that was fair for both parties. Communication after that was a phone call with me being called one of the most degrading names a man can call a woman, that's very bad. 

  Just as you're saying you're not going to be taken advantage of by rendering work free of charge, I am not going to pay for anything without a full understanding of the business' rationale for what is being charged. I never once said that I was not going to pay for the drywall or insisted that the job be corrected without paying for the drywall. I did push back and ask for understanding as to what I was being charged for and as previously stated, wanted to work towards an agreement/price that was fair for both parties. It is unfortunate that this matter escalated to where it has, solely because of poor communication.

  It also seems as though Prestige is trying to make me out to be this person that I am not. I always worked well with them, worked home on days that I should have been in the office, was understanding on days their children were sick, offered water and coffee while they were working, conversed with them about various topics well outside of the scope of the project. I did not delay down payment and promptly paid the remaining balance, in cash the day the work was completed. 

  I relayed to Prestige on multiple occasions that I am a first time homeowner and am not in the home remodeling/repair business, with zero knowledge about this area. I simply was looking for an understanding, as I am ignorant to this topic. My seeking an understanding escalated way out of control. 

  Again, I never indicated that I would not pay for the work that was needed a second time but rather wanted to know why it was being charged a second time. 

  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************