Business ProfileforSuffolk Sheet Metal, Inc.

I feel that this company is ******* ****. We had them come to our church to fix a gas leak. Their first bill was over $ ********* we had questions about the first bill. Then never returned our calls. our second encounter with Suffolk Sheet metal was beause , we felt they capped off our gas to our heat pac. Which was working before their first job. We called many times, only to be put on hold for more than 15 minutes sometimes. We consistently asked for a returned call. Never received one. After about 5 months, where we tried getting in touch with them including emails and letters, we paid our second bill. we feel that because we are a prdominant ******* ******** church, they took advantage of us and ignored our pleas for communication. We cannot in good faith ever recommend this company. as a matter of fact, we posted our greivances on their ******** page. They removed our posting. If this was not a biased act of ignorance, then why did they not contact us , and ask us what was wrong ?. You know some communication is better than NO communication

In response to a BBB Customer Review that accused our company of being racially bias towards their predominately ******* ******** Church, we would like to offer the following response. While we admit that we failed to perform a complete check of the system after we completed our work, in no way, shape, fashion or form did we act in a bias or prejudicial manner towards our customer. In fact, our response will show that we responded to their request in a quick and professional manner in an attempt to help them get their facility operational in time for an upcoming function. Also, when another problem later presented itself, we responded in the same manner to rectify the situation. On Saturday June 10th, 2023, our after-hours answering service received a message from *** ********* ****** in Suffolk, VA stating that they had a gas leak and was looking for someone who could come fix it. On Monday June 12th, 2023 we respond to call and spoke to a representative from the church. We agreed to meet someone from church at 10:15 to look at the building and determine how many gas appliances they have. The church told us they were having an event/meeting/wedding/etc… this weekend and need to have gas to the kitchen. It turned out that *** was updating the gas meter at the church, detected a gas leak and then RED TAGGED the meter. Our company representative explained to the church representative that when *** changes a meter, they turn off all the gas appliances in the building and put a 5 minute clock test on the meter to check for leaks. If the dial on the meter moves at all during that time, they determine that you have a leak and they RED TAG/lock meter. Our rep tells church rep that what we have to do is apply a large amount of consistent pressure to the system to see if/when/where leaks appear. We tell them that their system gas piping system is 40-50 years old and small leaks could be present due to aging pipes/old valves/dried out pipe thread sealant. Won’t know how much it will cost to repair until the leaks appear. They agreed and told us to move forward. On Tuesday June 13th, 2023 we placed 3-4 men on the jobsite to start looking for leaks and make plans to begin repairs. Multiple small leaks appear at different places and we start making repairs by re-piping sections, replacing gas valves, and assorted fittings. After the repairs were completed, we applied a pressure test but it failed. We then located another section of pipe with pinholes in it. This pipe leaves the crawlspace of the church and goes into the ground under the slab on the back of church. We ASSUME that this pipe most likely has additional pin holes since it is lying directly in the dirt. We also could not determine if this pipe actually supplied gas to an appliance. We then cap off this line, apply another pressure test and the system held pressure. On Friday June 15th, 2023 we call for the city inspection and it passes. We then check the (2) gas furnaces in the sanctuary and the gas range in the kitchen to make sure they are working properly. Gas service has now been restored to the church and they are able to have their scheduled event that weekend. We then sent an invoice to the Church and they paid us in full on September 13th, 2023. On November 7th, 2023 the church called to tell us that the furnace in back of Fellowship Hall was not working. Our technician goes to church and immediately realizes that the gas line we capped off in August must have gone to that furnace. He tells the church representative what he thinks has happened and that we will check to qualify. It was the line he suspected and he tells the church we will fix it right away. He then tells the church representative that because the line goes in the ground under the slab, the best way to fix it to make sure there are no more hidden leaks would be to branch off of the line that is running up into the ceiling and down the wall to serve the gas stove. He tells them that he initially thought back in August that the furnace in question was supplied gas through the line in the ceiling and that was why we capped off the line under the church. If we had realized it then, we would still have made the repair the same way. Our technician said he simply forgot about that furnace back in August because it is somewhat hidden behind two sliding doors and is out of sight. That same day, we placed (3) men on the jobsite and the repair was completed on November 10th, 2023. The furnace was tested and was operating properly. On December 16th, 2023 an invoice was prepared and mailed to the church. This invoice was only for the materials and labor needed to repair the gas line that supports the furnace in the rear of the church. Shortly thereafter, a representative from the church called to contest the bill and asked for an explanation. In addition to the explanation we gave them on the jobsite in November, we gave them an explanation two separate times over the phone which they did not accept. At a later date, a representative from the church came by office to contest the bill. We again offered an explanation. He said he was not going to pay the bill until someone came by the church for a visit. We agreed and said we would have a technician come by and do that. On July 19th, 2024 we received a letter from the church expressing their displeasure with the work and the bill. On July 22nd, 2024 we received check in the mail for payment of the work we did in November. At this time, we still have not been to the church to perform a walk thru. As such, we have not cashed their check. On August 22nd, 2024 a church representative posted an angry letter on BBB claiming we were a racially bias company that took advantage of them. She also posted a grievance on our ******** page and claims that we removed her post. A quick check of our ******** page will show that her review is still there. We understand and acknowledge that our communication with this customer after the completion of our work has not been met with their satisfaction. The primary reason for this is that we have been blessed with a high volume of work since the beginning of the year. For a small company like ours that has been serving residential, commercial and faith-based customers in Suffolk for over 50 years, we make every effort to respond to the needs of our local customers as quickly as possible. Much like this situation, it requires that we assign every available man we have to each project in order to have it completed in a timely manner. For this, we apologize and would very much like to rectify the situation. As stated above, we have not yet cashed the check that was sent to us as payment for this project and will not do so until we have met with the customer to discuss the steps we took to complete their project. We look forward to doing so at your earliest convenience.