When I wanted to replace my 4 step railing in the front, I had Banda come out for a quote. We reviewed the project and looked through some ideas. In February I signed a contract with specific pictures hand drawn, so that there would be little to no confusion. He came out once with a 'mock up' railing for review. I got back to him with the final details for placement and waited with NO response until I reached out again April 14. Through email I requested to be placed on the schedule, I stated I needed to move my focus t other projects, I pleaded for any priority to get this done and him paid. After time had passed, I called the store and left pleasant messages to return my calls. By end of May, I had to resort to my partner calling him and by chance getting him on the phone. After Banda himself set the date of installation, he showed up to my house unannounced while I was at work and proceeded to call me. While there, he sends a text that says '...do you still have the picture of the railing with the layout of your choice?[If] so can you send it over.' I was annoyed and shocked but decided to see it through. Since Banda did not have a file of my project handy, I sent the requested pictures and a final email requesting that we decide on a date we can both be present at the house. I listed the date he himself had promised and stated if these dates do not work I will look for alternatives. He sent me an incoherent, poorly edited email that accused me of 'miscommunication' and told me that the powder coat would take 2 weeks. Where was that in any communication? I only have one known phone number for Banda, two known emails and was never informed if he reached out from an unrecognized number. The contract itself only has one phone number, La Bella Terra. The only upside is that I did not need to request any deposit back. I suspect that my project was too small and once he got busy with better paying jobs, he continually placed me at the end of the list. Despite his 'tight' schedule, Banda managed to comply with my request for my original railing returned. The railing was propped up against the house unceremoniously. If only he had utilized his time to complete this project.
In an ironic twist, my neighbor replaced her railing with a different guy and she has a nice decorative railing to guide her inside the house. read more