Update 10/21/15 - The wife of the owner contacted me last week to discuss the issues below. She was very nice and professional, however their side of the story was still inconsistent, confusing, and defensive. Contrary to what the first support staff told me on the phone the prior week, the owner's wife claims that they do almost all of their work on a 'fixed fee' basis and that I actually received a "discount" because my two drain repairs according to their fixed fee pricing totaled more than what I was billed. I asked her where this fixed fee price list was and she said they don't have one, and that it varies based on the tech's assessment of the job. That makes no sense. I then asked her why this was not made clear to us, or why it isn't mentioned anywhere on their website, and she told me it's the customer's job to ask those questions ahead of time. She also stated that we got assigned their "fastest" plumber and if we had gotten one of their "slower" plumbers we likely would have paid more, so we got lucky again.
I finally got her to break the price down on the phone to a time and materials basis, and even with their inflated parts pricing and billing their techs travel time to and from my house, she came up over $100 short of what I was billed. Despite that, she was very reluctant to admit i was overcharged. That's when things got weird and she claimed that contrary to what my wife had told me, my wife was not present for the duration of the service visit and therefore had no idea how long the tech was at my house. Supposedly the tech told her this and she believed it over her customer's word. Not sure what else to say other than my wife did not lie and we can prove that she was home until he left the house, and part of the reason why she felt she needed to stay is because she "got a weird feeling from the technician in how pushy he was both in the work that needed to be done, and insisting she didn't need to stay home while he worked".
I'm not sure what is going on over there at Even Flo... but it isn't for me. Your mileage may vary, and they have received very positive reviews from others on Yelp, but at this point I've talked with several people at the company, and I don't like how they operate and how they treat their customers when there is a dispute.
Long story short.... she reluctantly agreed to refund us the difference between their "discounted fixed fee" and the time and expenses price.... which turned out to be $440 vs $540
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Original Review:
We unfortunately had a very negative experience with Evenflo Plumbing.
They are not transparent with their billing and seem to capitalize on the inexperience/trust of some customers. Most of our complaint was turned back onto us, blaming my wife for not asking the right questions ahead of time. So, if you are not an experienced tradesman, and/or accostumed to the games that dishonest serviceman play, it seems that Evenflo would love to have your business.
For what it's worth, we had 2.5 hours of work completed at our house (shower drain leak, and a clawfoot bath tub drain reconnect) for a shocking total of $540. Their hourly rate is supposedly $92/hour. What was not disclosed upfront or at really any point until I called to complain, is that they bill for their "travel time". Not once did the tech mention that, nor does their website mention it, nor did their correspondence before the service visit mention it. Their "bill" also did not mention it.
I say the "bill" because the service technician refused to provide my wife with an itemized bill... even when asked. Instead he convinced her that a lump sum was a "better deal" and if he did an itemized he would really have to include all the parts that he used, and this way he can kind of hide them in the bill.....
I called their office today to inquire, and they seem more interested in backpedaling and blaming my wife for not asking the right questions before the service visit than addressing their lack of transparency and dishonest practices. Even with travel included, the bill includes $200+ unknown charges... supposedly parts related... but no justification. I was told she would check with the technician and call me back. I'm not surprised to have not heard from them since.
It's a shame to be a small community, and consistently run into people who just don't get it.... they are more eager to take advantage of you, then to do a job well and be honest and upfront and develop a relationship for return business. We have a lot of future renovation plans, and could have been a lot of business for them, but we will be going with someone else next time. read more