ComplaintsforAppalachian Antique Hardwoods, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  10/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I previously purchased a large quantity of Bark ************************ from this company when I built my house. The Bark comes from a poplar tree & the *************** is the same bark thats been put through a plane exposing the wood. It is smooth on the surface & intended for indoor use while the regular bark is used as external house siding. Both are kiln dried, flattened, & cut into uniform pieces. They were placed in stacks on pallets & wrapped in plastic to prevent the bark from absorbing moisture & curling. They were shipped to ********* by freight & unloaded using the drivers equipment. I recently contacted company to order some replacement Bark that had been damaged by squirrels & some additional ***** for a new project. I will save for my future review the details of their lack of professionalism, their repeated failure to respond to my *************** ******* delay of nearly 1 year in supplying the bark.I ordered 50 sq ft of Bark & 100 sq ft of ***** for a total of $4012.50 ($3000 bark; $750 shipping; $262.50 tax.) I was required to pay the total in full months in advance. Since this company is the only supplier of *****, my only choice was to pay or cancel my project. After weeks of trying to get them to ship the bark, they finally did so on 10/?/23. It arrived in a regular van unwrapped & loose in the back. The driver had no equipment with which to unload the bark & did so piece by piece. The Bark was damaged & much of the ***** was only partially planed. I hired someone to measure each piece & to wrap it all in plastic. I then sent the Co. pictures & let them know there was 7 sq ft of Bark that was unusable & 33 sq ft of unusable *****. I requested a refund for the $750 shipping & either a full refund or a replacement of the unusable bark. *** also repeatedly requested to speak with the owner & have received no response from anyone there regarding this matter. Also, they state on their website that they are BBB affiliated & display the BBB logo.

  Business response

  10/25/2023

  
  The Backwoods Bark (50sf) and *************** (100sf) that was ordered by the customer on 7/31/2023 had been out of stock for over a year, thus the delay in ** ever taking her order (and payment).  This was openly communicated. There was an approximate ship date of mid September, however the peeling season for poplar bark is unpredictable from that it was shipped three weeks late on 10/6/23.  The shipment was sent via an enclosed van.  The reason a van was chosen for this delivery was to ensure that the Backwoods Bark and *************** was delivered dry and free of moisture from the elements.  

  The order placed was for 50 square feet of Backwoods Bark and 100 square feet of *************** where the bark was 18" standard grade and in random ****" widths.  Our team included an extra 30 square feet of bark, that was not paid for, to ensure the customer would have enough for their projects since the bark is difficult to source. 
  

  Appalachian Antique Hardwoods will go ahead and refund the price of the 40 square feet (7sf Bark & 33sf ***************) that the customer states is unusable and refund the shipping cost ($750) due to the delivery being unsatisfactory.
  

  
  

  Customer response

  10/25/2023

   
  I am rejecting this response because:
   
  Regardless of what sq ftg was sent, the only useable amounts fall 7 sq ft & 30 sq ft short of what I paid for.  I cannot accept a simple refund of the unusable *************** as that will leave me 30 sq ft short of what my project requires and no means to make up the shortfall since Appalacian Antique Hardwoods (AAH) is the only supplier of ***************. I will accept the delivery refund of $750 & the refund of the 7 sq ft of Bark but I will need a full refund of the 100 sq ft of *************** since I can no longer perform the project without that additional 30 sq ft therefore the *************** is now useless to me.  AAH is welcome to pick up the ***************. The *************** carries a price per sq ft higher than the Bark as it requires additional labor to plane. I will check my records for the price quoted to confirm the refund amount. I also wish  to be reimbursed the $100 I had to pay to have the bark measured and wrapped as a result of the failures of AAH. 

  Business response

  10/27/2023

  We regret that the pallet of material was damaged during shipping. We put our best foot forward to help the client with a remedy by offering a full refund of any damaged materials along with their associated freight costs and were even planning to send her replacement material. The client rejected our offer. We unfortunately have determined that we are unable to satisfy this particular client despite our best and most reasonable efforts. 

  Customer response

  10/27/2023

   
  I am rejecting this response because:
  You had many opportunities to contact to me & failed to do so. If you were planning on sending me replacements of the damaged material why did you not offer that instead of simply offering to refund the unusable material leaving me short of what is needed for my project. I will accept a refund of the $750 delivery fee, a refund of the 7 ft of unusable Bark & replacement of 33 sq ft of *************** in usable condition.  

  Business response

  11/03/2023

  *************,

  I will work our Accounting Manager to refund the $750 delivery fee, and price for the 7sq. ft of Bark and 33 sq. ft. of ***************.  I have included the itemization of the order attached as requested. 

   

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