The reason this is a one star is because I can't give "zero" stars. This is a combination of bait and switch, substandard work, failed to complete the job, and not honoring a warranty.
When I first contacted this company, a company representative came to my house and surveyed my driveway. I told him I wanted to patch the areas where the tree roots and seal the driveway. He told me that they would put down a coat of sealer, fix the areas over the roots and they apply a top coat of sealer. "You won't even be able to see where the roots were" Michael said. He then proceeded to quote me a price of $1800 for the service. I agreed and he told me that they were doing a job locally on May 26, and they would be by then.
They showed up, unannounced, on May 13th, offloaded one worker with a concrete saw and a plastic broom, sealer and a (1) bag of asphalt. More on this later.
They called me ( I was out walking my dogs) to tell me that the driveway had absorbed more of the sealant than anticipated, so the needed to use more. It would cost me extra, but they would only charge me for the sealant and not the labor. Since I figured this meant that they needed a third coat, I agreed.
At 4:30, they came to the house and announced that the worker was finished. The front of the driveway looked fairly good at this point and they asked me if it looked ok. Again, at this point the front looked ok. I could not really examine the back because the whole thing was still wet. They then informed me that the job would cost $3000, a 70% increase. I then made a huge mistake. I normally wait until the company has cleaned up and I have had the opportunity to examine the whole job before I pay a contractor. For whatever reason, I wrote them a check on the spot. The check show as cashed at 8:00 on May 14th. No time was wasted on that item.
I called the company on the 19th and informed them that they had not removed the asphalt the was dumped on my lawn, and the bag, broom and all of the tubs were still in my yard, and asked them to address some concerns that I could now see since I could walk out on the driveway in the back yard. They expressed concern and said that they would be by the next day (the 15th) to clean up. The refuse remains in my yard as of this writing (June 22nd).
The driveway was not cleaned prior to applying sealer. This step is specified in step one on the sealer bucket. This is evident buy the fact that you can see the moss that was on the driveway through the sealer and because large sheets of the sealant are now peeling off. The cracks that were in the driveway were not filled with crack filler as specified in step three of the instructions on the sealer bucket. The patches we literally thrown in and not tamped down with a tamping tool "to surface level" as per step 4 on the sealer bucket. And finally, the sealer was just layered
on in thick puddles I suppose the "Allow patch and repairs a minimum of 24 hours to cure" step in step five on the sealer bucked is just a suggestion.
Since then, they have promised me, four times, that they would come over to fix it. On four different occasions now, I have spent the enticed day waiting for them to show up. The last was Saturday June 20th. They don't even bother to call when the aren't showing up.
I initially withdrew this review because ( unbelievably) I let them talk me into another attempt to fix my driveway. I spoke with the manager on Tuesday the 23rd. I agreed to take down this review in exchange for them fixing my driveway and cleaning up their mess. I called John on Friday and he confirmed he would be there on Saturday, June 27th, with a crew at "8:30 or maybe earlier". At 10:00am on Saturday, with no "crew" in sight, I called a full voicemail box which was also unable to forward an SMS text. I got a call from Active Paving at around 2:00pm, but when I picked it up, they hung up. All further attempts to contact the company have been fruitless.
Oh, and by-the-way, the sales receipt show the originally agreed on 2 coats of sealer, so I am very confused as to what I paid an extra $1200 for. These guys are long on charm and excuses, and short on professional ability and integrity. I strongly recommend that you avoid doing business with them.
Update: I sent a complaint to consumer affairs at the New Jersey Attorney General's office. Remember the commercial the Attorney General did to encourage people to call with complaints during the Covid problem? Well, calling will not get you a live person under any circumstances. Sending an email to the posted address on their site yields a form response. I finally printed out the complaint form and mailed it to them, certified, on the 1st of July. They received it on the 6th of July. To date, I have received no acknowledgement, of any kind, to let me know that they have even received the package. I guess the TV spot was just grandstanding. read more