4.5 stars, because they delivered sooner than expected…read more
In the process of trying to move my impossibly large couch out of my condo through the window, it slipped and broke the window of my neighbor below.
Shit.
...the night before our first snow storm of the season.
Double "shit".
Fortunately, it was a double paned glass window and no one was injured (since only the outer pane broke. Miraculously, the inner pane was undamaged), but I felt terrible and wanted it to be replaced ASAP. I called several glass repair businesses in the area and this is the only one who responded right away. I spoke to Ben, texted him some photos of the damage and preliminary measurements, and told him that I needed someone to come out the next morning to get this fixed for my elderly neighbor as quickly as possible.
He said he would arrive between 9 and 10 the next morning, and by 9:05, Ben was ringing my buzzer. It took him less than five minutes to get all of the measurements he needed (not sure why he needed me to take measurements the previous evening though, since he was going to take his own anyway, but I digress).
He told me it would take 4 to 5 business days for the glass to arrive. This was something that was not communicated to me when we first spoke. It was not a deal-breaker, especially since my neighbor was fine with it, but I would have preferred to know this in advance, especially since I communicated a sense of urgency to him during our initial conversation.
I was prepared to pay the 50% deposit via credit card, but he informed me that he only accepts cash or check.
Seriously?
Who carries that much cash on them?
Also, who still writes checks?!
By sheer luck and a little digging, I just happened to find my old tattered checkbook, so I didn't have to go out in the snow to use an ATM. But add this to the list of things that should have communicated when we initially spoke. Or better still, since this is the era of Square, CashApp, PayPal and other similar services, I really shouldn't have to dig through my belongings to find a check with all of this payment processing technology available. Make it easy to take my money, people!!
After I paid him, I asked for a business card and he told me that he left his cards in the car. I don't understand... he was walking around with a portfolio, which is where he logged his measurements. Why didn't he have any in there?? Who doesn't keep business cards on them? Between that and the issue with the forms of payment he accepts, it definitely gave me the "side-hustle" vibe.... not one of a prepared and organized professional business. Admittedly, after he left, I was a little bit apprehensive about how this whole experience was going to go.
My faith was restored when he texted me the very next morning to let me know that the glass was ready. He came by a few hours later and installed the new glass in about an hour. Both my neighbor and I were pleasantly surprised at the quick turn around and were equally pleased with the work. I would have preferred it if he went over the work area with a small handi-vac just to ensure that there were no small glass shards left behind from his removal of the window frame (especially since my neighbor is in her 80s, and currently on blood thinners. One small nick could prove disastrous), but it terms of the actual work, he delivered.
Despite his request for a five star rating (which I don't think is appropriate thing for a merchant to request, by the way. Let the work speak for itself), I had to ding him on the details. Minor inconveniences aside, he delivered, and I'm grateful for such a quick turnaround and a job well done.
