ComplaintsforRegasGroup

• Initial Complaint

  01/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I contacted this business to get asbestos testing done at my house. I need to know which locations have asbestos so that abatement can be performed prior to water damage ************************* which is a time sensitive process.This business has a flat rate of $395 for testing 10 samples, with additional samples $25 each. When the technician arrived at my house, I provided him with a list of exactly the 10 samples that I needed to be tested (attached) and left him to do his work. He collected his samples and left without reviewing the work done.Later, I got an email requesting payment for 13 samples without any info about the samples themselves or the test results. I paid the $470 requested at 9pm Jan 18 ****************** attached). The following day they emailed me the report (attached), which turns out contained only 6 of the 10 samples that I specified needed to be tested, with additional duplicates collected from several areas to somehow make ************************** the front/NW bedroom was in the wrong location, the office wasn't tested (needed 2 samples from opposite sides), and the south bathroom wasn't tested. So they overcharged me while not completing the work that I needed them to do.I called and emailed several times. I was connected to their Director of Operations who apologized and scheduled another technician to come today to finish the job (attached). Then this morning, I got a cancellation from them for the visit (attached). I emailed back, got no response, then called them and was told that their owner will call me later today. It's now the end of the workweek and they still haven't replied and cannot be reached. Based on their behavior and reading other reviews here and on Yelp, I think they are ignoring me to avoid coming here to finish the job like they promised. I am submitting this complaint so that they come back to finish the job ASAP so that I can fix my house. The extra $75 charged beyond my initial agreement is a smaller issue

  Business response

  01/31/2023

  A RegasGroup Certified Site Surveillance Technician (****) performed an asbestos inspection as requested by ************** on the agreed upon appointment date and time at his residence as listed herein. Prior to the inspection, ************** was briefed via phone call about our sampling procedure, estimate and appointment requirements and then sent an estimate for signature. Once received, an appointment was scheduled for an asbestos inspection.
  
  During the inspection, the **** was handed a list of areas of concern that ************** wanted tested. It was at that time that the on site **** explained in detail how we sample for asbestos and why, in accordance to all Federal and State mandated regulations. It is important to note that RegasGroup does not perform destructive sampling so all of our samples are taken in inconspicuous places, to avoid potential visible damage in the event that area is not removed. The **** completed the inspection and departed the residence.
  
   
  
  The inspection was performed on 1/18/23; this complaint was filed on 1/20/23. ************** states in his complaint that he attempted to contact RegasGroup multiple times and also received no response- this is simply untrue. In his own statement, he admits he spoke to our Director of Operations AND we had already rescheduled an appointment for him. The problem was, this wasnt happening fast enough for him. What ************** is leaving out of his statement, is that he did speak to RegasGroup representatives and the report was explained to him in detail. He was not satisfied with the outcome and the fact he did not understand the areas tested versus what he had on his list. It was further explained to him, as it was on the day of the inspection, and is listed in our report, that we test according to Federal and State regulations. We agreed with him that he was indeed overcharged for 3 samples and shall be refunded the $75 and the refund process had already been put into place.  
  
   
  
  **************, was not the only person suffering from a water loss claim that day and our entire staff of over 26 people had been working overtime to assist as many people as humanly possible during the un-precedented storm surges that occurred. ************** was correct, we did have to cancel his appointment, in order to assist another homeowner who had a tree completely decimate their home and render their entire family (including a newborn) homeless; until mitigation crews could get in and start the clean up process. It was a matter of priority, much like the ** in a hospital. We had to triage the situation, so we handled it as best we could. We had already been to his home, he had a full report, NOTHING was impeding work from being completed on his home from an abatement company; nor a mitigation company, it just wasnt what he wanted.  
  
   
  
  On January 26th, we received another phone call and finally an email from **************. In his phone call, he attacked a member of our staff belittling them and calling them an idiot. He also threatened us with a filed complaint with the BBB. It is then, after hearing about the childish nature of this entire situation, the literal tantrum throwing because he didnt get his way, belittling staff, and overall threatening nature, that I responded to his email as follows and respectively request to be considered part of this resolution response:
  
   
  
  ********,
  
  Thank you for your email.
  
   
  
  I have been briefed on your service request and the details surrounding it. I have also reviewed the call and email communication logs dating back to your original point of contact to today.
  
   
  
  First and foremost, your credit card has been fully refunded the entire amount of $470.00 that you paid on 1/19/23 (confirmation attached).
  
   
  
  It is absolutely unacceptable that you would attack any member of my staff and call him an idiot for attempting to help you because he couldnt assist you fast enough or to your liking.
  
   
  
  It is absolutely unacceptable that you believe threatening us in this manner will ****** anything positive in return.
  
   
  
  As to your assertations below, we do not have a front desk.  Our entire Service Team are highly educated individuals and are either ****s or CACs and/or are in training to become ****s/CACs and have proper certifications and experience as such.
  
   
  
  As to your issue with the initial sampling protocol: our onsite consultant that performed your inspection, did so according to all Federal & State Regulations and used state of the art sampling methods. He explained our method of sampling and why we must sample the way we do. He took great care in explaining this process to you while he was there, but more importantly- unless you are a CAC or ****; Per CA Business & Professions Code: (a) No person shall, on or after July 1, ****, engage in the practice of an asbestos consultant as defined in Section ****, or as a site surveillance technician as defined in Section ****, unless he or she is certified by the ******** of ************ Safety and Health pursuant to regulations required by subdivision (b) of Section ****** of the Labor Code.  Unless you go by another name, it appears you are NOT a CAC or ****.
  
   
  
  You have a full report in your hands; there is nothing stopping your abatement or mitigation company from proceeding further.
  
   
  
  Lastly, consider the appointment on the 30th cancelled. We refuse to work with an abusive manipulator who refuses to understand common decency, in such that the ENTIRE ******************* has suffered major flood losses and there are thousands of people who have water damage claims, not just you. We are working OV**TIME to help as many people as we can; so our time is best spent helping those that need us and work with us, not against us.

  Customer response

  01/31/2023

  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  RegasGroup has continued to fail to address the underlying issue of their incomplete job performed at my residence. They scheduled and confirmed an appointment with me for another technician to come on Jan 30, only to not show up for the appointment once again. I was not even informed of any appointment cancellation this time, unlike last time. I also did not receive any email explanation from them. They likely wrote this fake email text to paste into the BBB complaint response form, without actually sending it to me, in an attempt to save face. In their BBB response, RegasGroup's accusations of my language used or "tantrum" behavior are untrue - they simply are trying to disparage me as a customer with some irrelevant personal attacks while I tried to seek resolution from them. They had told me that they will resolve the issue before, but it seems now that they openly acknowledge that they are abandoning the job. I don't know if the $470 refund has actually been issued, as I haven't received it yet - I hope they are actually honest about this and it comes through in the next few days. The BBB response is the first time that I'm hearing of a full $470 refund from them, or of the Jan 30 appointment cancellation. In any case, they still haven't tested several critical areas in my house for asbestos, and now I must find another company and do this entire process again while my house water damage remains unmitigated because of this process bottleneck. It is disappointing, but not surprising, to see this company continue to break their promises, fail to communicate, incriminate their customers, behave untransparently, and still not finish the job that they were hired to do.
  

  Business response

  02/17/2023

  Attached is confirmation of the delivered emails to ALL parties that were on the email trail on January 26, 2023 at 2:22PM.

   

  As far as Mr. ****** accusation of ** fabricating emails I assure you, we have more important matters to attend to, ie-dealing with hazardous materials- than his egregious assertations. His credit card was refunded in full, he knows this and the receipt is attached as previously provided.

   

  ************** clearly didnt read the response we provided in detail, in our original email, nor via the BBB response, or he would have found where we indicated You have a full report in your hands; there is nothing stopping your abatement or mitigation company from proceeding further.

  Again, just because the samples were not taken exactly where HE wanted them does not invalidate the report. I will further reiterate, that Per CA Business & Professions Code: (a) No person shall, on or after July 1, ****, engage in the practice of an asbestos consultant as defined in Section ****, or as a site surveillance technician as defined in Section ****, unless he or she is certified by the ******** of ************ Safety and Health pursuant to regulations required by subdivision (b) of Section ****** of the Labor Code.  We sampled according to all Federal, State and County Air Quality Management District requirements.

   

  Lastly, I would like to point out that ************** filed the original BBB complaint on 1/20/23. A mere two (2) days after our original date of service. It is RegasGroups belief that ************** did not have any intention of trying to work through a customer service problem, during a volatile time for ALL of **********. He took advantage of the situation and RegasGroup. The Yelp reviews that he refers to in his response are not from actual clients; but individuals that hit & run our technicians out in the field and because we are involved in legal subrogation with insurance; are fighting dirty. There is nothing else to say about that.

   

  Thank you for your time with this awful matter.

   

  Thank you,

  *****

  *****Group Team

   

   

   

  *****Group

  Environmental Consultants

  705 ***********************************, Ste. 2-244

  ******, ** 95630
  Ph: ************
  Fx: ************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩