SNOW Enterprises Ltd review: Snow removal service deficiency 4

http://www.calgaryhealthregion.ca/publichealth/envhealth/inspection_orders/Edmonton%20Zone/Orders_Housing/2015/Active/11918_37_Street_NW_Edmonton_February_27_2015_A.pdf

Buyer beware. I stand by my comments. I find S.N.O.W. Enterprises' comments distort the order of events and in some cases are completely false (perhaps being confused with another complaint). I won't touch on all the errors, but one. I didn't fail to mention his services in 2011 because we were NOT dissatisfied. His crew came over, did a sub-standard job, and he corrected the problem himself after we called. We were satisfied that he took responsibility for his companies work. That is why I re-booked him the next year. It still amazes me that this fact eludes him.
If any one would ever like to review my file on this, feel free to contact me. I would be glade to share and you can make up your own mind.
As I stated before, always do your due diligence. Who will be performing the work? Will there be a supervisor? What is the process to remediate a deficiency? What equipment will be used? Can I inspect another property?
Lastly, research who is behind a company...surprising what you may learn. You may find yourself asking the question "Is this really a person of honesty and integrity?...
http://www.calgaryhealthregion.ca/publichealth/envhealth/inspection_orders/Edmonton%20Zone/Orders_Housing/2015/Active/11918_37_Street_NW_Edmonton_February_27_2015_A.pdf

I am Stanley Boonstra of S.N.O.W. ENTERPRISES LTD. I just discovered this site today. Perhaps the responsible thing to do would be to contact all parties involved so as to have balanced and accurate reporting.
I still recall Mr. and Mrs. Hui. Her complaint does not give a date when it was made. I do not remember the particulars as to when and how often it snowed. I do keep records of each visit. Had this been brought to my attention earlier, those could have been provided. I have never let snow accumulate all week without removing it. I also have not ignored phone calls/messages et, as reported. Sometimes customers inexplicably expect me to be sitting by the phone during periods of snow when I am in actuality removing snow, as is the custom of people in the snow removal business. At these times phone calls are usually returned the next day.
I recall frequent conversations where the Huis were informed that (***Not said to them****due to their inclination to pack pretty much every inch of the driveway), during periods of frequent snowfalls and heavy accumulations the crews could not every time scrape the driveway down to pavement because they just did not have the extra time or energy. The Huis were informed, and it was practised, that when there was a break in the weather crews would come back and scrape the driveway down to pavement. Servicing their driveway to their satisfaction was complicated further because their driveway is at a low spot in the neighborhood and when melting occurred the water would sit at the end of their driveway and creep up it. This would off course then freeze when the weather turned cold. I had several conversations regarding these issues with Mr. Hui. My crew on several occasions went back and spent usually an extra hour scrapping it down to concrete.
The Huis concerns were not ignored, nor dismissed out of hand as suggested. They simply could not understand the difference between doing the snow oneself, immediately after a snow fall and before packing it down and having a company that had a route to follow and many customers to service in a short period of time.

Mr. Atkinson in his comments failed to mention that in 2011 he was also "dissatisfied with our lawn service". At that time we negotiated a price in good faith, services were done, and payment was requested via invoice. This was for a spring lawn cleanup including aeration and power raking. This was for a rental property they had which I personally did the services on. Shortly after they received the invoice I got a phone call from Mrs. Atkinson. She informed me that "she had driven by( not even got out to inspect it) the property and thought it didn't look right/ wasn't done satisfactorily" and she wanted a discounted price. When asked what was not done right the reply was: "It just doesn't look right." Even though I pressed for a valid reason (i.e.: they missed a spot, grass was still too long, still garbage/thatch on lawn) she could not provide one. I informed her that I had done it myself, had done it completely and as agreed, and negotiated and . "Isn't the customer always right/ We want a discount.", was her reply. Unfortunately there was a confusion as to whether to aerate the lawn last and leave behind the cores, or to do the aeration first, picking them up. I did it last, leaving the cores as she requested on her personal property that we also did that year.
I informed her that I would not negotiate a price after services were completed and that I expected full payment.
I was actually surprised that Mr. Atkinson called to rebook our services in 2012. When he called again to complain and requested a discount, I told him I would look at the property and then get back to him. Our conversation was much the same as the year before with his wife.
"What is the problem with the job?"
"It just doesn't look right. They only got one bag off the lawn. It should have been more."
"Well is there anything missed, a spot they forgot?"
"I just want you to come look at it. I don't think they had the right equipment. There was no edging-they just used a trimmer (its a multi tool with an edger attachment)".
Again as far as returning calls. Its our busiest time of the year when everyone is working from early morning till late at night. I don't return phone calls immediately because I am out working. We had several communications via phone and e-mail. I had left messages when he was not in.
I was less inclined to spend much time on this second instance whereby I felt Mr. Atkinson was once again attempting to negotiate a reduced price by registering a complaint. I had sent several demands for full payment, noted on the back of the cheque he sent that it was considered only a partial payment, sent an letter to that affect and left at least one telephone conversation to that affect.
The Atkinsons disregard for their incurred debt and responsibility was further evidenced by their ignoring repeated requests by notated invoice for full payment, my demand letter highlighting the next step would be civil action including court costs and finally ignoring the registered letter with the civil proceedings summons mailed to them and attempting to refuse the civil suit summons when I personally delivered it to Mrs. Atkinson.
Furthermore, without prejudice, Mr. Atkinsons rant cannot in any way be construed as indicative of other customers experiences, nor company policies. If anything it borders upon malicious intent, libel and slander (as would it be for the author and creator of this site who would allow these unsubstantiated claims and speculations to stand without any due diligence to investigate their veracity).
S.N.O.W. Enterprise Ltd. in fact services anywhere between 3-500 customers annually. The majority of whom are greatly satisfied. We receive frequent calls, comments and even letters from people who make a point of expressing appreciation for our great service. "I know people usually only call to complain, but I just want to say how great your service and your staff is."
In this day and age, 0 complaints is not feasible. I looked up a random business offering snow removal on BBB website. Five complaints in the last 3 years. Isn't it ironic that a large number of complaints come from those who wish not to pay the bill, or the full bill.

We also had a problem with S.N.O.W Enterprises. In the spring of 2012, we booked them to do the spring cleanup in our yard. The job was done poorly. When we called to complaint, all we got was the answering machine and no call back. We eventually lucked out and got a hold of Stanley Boonstra (owner) and discussed the complaint briefly. He agreed to come over and meet with us to look at our yard and discuss our concern. He never showed up for the meeting. After that, any attempt to contact him was limited to leaving a message on the answering machine. He never once called us back. Eventually, I did send payment, but at that time I discounted the invoice for the poor job and because he never once attempted to discuss the situation. He cashed the cheque. And then nine months later, he sends an invoice for the remainder. We tried to contact him again, but got no response. Rather than call us to discuss he has only sent an invoices threatening collection or civil action.

We think that Stanley Boonstra and S.N.O.W Enterprises may feel that they do good work most of the time, but after our experience, we do not believe that he takes customer complaints seriously. He hides behind a phone number that only goes to voice mail, and a post office box, making it virtually impossible to contact him when there is an issue.

We believe that it is better to deal with a reputable company; one that has a physical address you could visit and a phone that is answered by a person. I would not recommend S.N.O.W. Enterprises for any of their services now. We believe where there is one complaint there are many more that have not been heard, and to see that the above complainant had a similar issue with her calls going unanswered, I would bet there are many more dissatisfied customers.