Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. 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.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/14/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This contractor Lovotti was a third party hired by RHA to install a new heater. On May 9. 2022, Lovotti sent a team to remove and install a new heater. The contractors on the job left a mess of screws all over, causing me to get a flat tire. I filed a poor yelp review. The Heater wasn't used until November and stopped working at the end of December. I contacted the energy department with PG&E, an appt was made, and two men came on January 12 at 8 30 in the morning and inspected the Heater, found it had no power, told me R&R would need to be contacted, and they would forward the info, and I should hear from them. Two weeks went by with no call. I called PG&E back and was given RHA contact I called and spoke with them they gave me the number for Lovotti R&R. I called and talked to ******. I explained to her I needed a repair or replacement. ****** told me I would hear from you, and I'm calling because you haven't yet, and it's freezing with no heater. She told me the warranty is in Null because a third party touched it. I tried explaining it was PG&E energy people.Lovotti did not give me any papers. I didn't have any info on who installed the Heater. All I knew was it was all arranged through PG&E., So that's why I called PG&E since their energy program agreed and approved the new Heater to be installed. I called RHA back and told them what ****** said, and they called her and called me back and said you had a third party touch the heater, and yes, it does Null the warranty according to Lovotti's contract. I kept trying to explain that no third party ever felt it, only the players working on it, PG&E and Lovotti, and the City of Seaside. The guy they sent never gained entry to inspect and falsely reported he did. I was at work, and my daughter-in-law didn't hear the door. By the time I got the text, he had already left Monterey. He told me he would say he inspected it. I felt terrible, so I told him whatever he needed to do. I was very apologetic that we missed our appointment. I believe they are retaliating due to my poor yelp review. I want my heater replaced.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/14/2023

  This is in response to the above complaint. Customer was part of the PG&Es ************************* ***** program. This referred the customer to *************** who did weatherization at her home. She was then referred over to Lovotti *** to our Repair and Replace (R&R) program for her furnace. Lovotti *** installed a new heater in May 2022, which passed inspection in July 2022. She posted a Yelp review on July 11, 2022 stating that she had a negative customer service experience regarding her inspection. Our dispatcher that took the call tried to inform the customer about the inspection protocol. Customer was aggressive and hung up on our dispatcher. This is confirmed in her own Yelp review.  We responded to the Yelp review a few days after its posting and tried to make contact with the customer to remedy the situation and see how we could further help. She did not respond to our request. She posted on Yelp again on August 13, 2022, now claiming that our crew left screws in her driveway causing her to get a flat tire. This was not part of her initial complaint, nor was this ever brought to our attention. Again, please note that the unit was installed in May 2022, three months prior to this claim.

   

  According to the customers complaint, she contacted PG&E at the end of December to state that her heater was not working. She was referred first back to ************** so that they could inspect the furnace. When the technician from ******* arrived, he noticed that the furnace was torn apart and it appeared that someone else had been working on it. The customer informed him that someone else had indeed been working on the heater. Customer was further advised that since the heater was installed through the R&R program at Lovotti, that it would need to be referred to Lovotti ***. ****** from our company (Lovotti ***) contacted the customer. It was during this call that the customer informed ****** that PG&E had two men come work on the unit and take it apart. PG&E has since stated that no one ever went to her home in January 2023.  ****** explained to the customer that the warranty is voided due to the customer having the unit taken apart (see attached pictures provided by **************)  and Lovotti would be unable to go back out to service the unit. According to the manager of our R&R department, customer has been verbally abusive to not just ****** but to other office staff since the beginning of the project in May 2022. This has also been confirmed by RHA (the administrator for the *** program), who has received threatening voicemails from same customer.

   

  We provided the customer with a working furnace that passed inspection in July 2022. During the period of time between installation and final inspection, we worked in good faith to ensure everything was working properly and that her needs were met. Lovotti *** provided a working unit to the customer per the *** program. The warranty was voided when customer had a third party attempt to work on the heater. Any and all additional allegations (screws in the driveway) were noted and we attempted to make contact to address this, but customer refused to communicate.

   

  If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact us.

   

  
  *****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/28/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I contacted Lovotti *** on 10/11-12,22 through InderpalSingh to run wire from main electricpanel for ovenplug.Representative quoted rate of $180 for 1sthour of project and $110/hour from 2nd hour onwards which was agreed to and asked to bring the materials and wiring. Workers from Lovotti, Inc., ************************** arrived on 10/14/22 and worked 9-3 total 6 hours.They cut a water pipe that caused a leaky roof and work was stopped for 1 hour while waiting for plumber and made 2 trip to HomeDepot for more than ***** mins each.While leaving ****** informed still missing 1 breaker for which he will arrive tomorrow morning, will not be charged for that visit.I contacted them again on 10/19/22 and asked about the breaker,was told that the workers did not inform the electrical manager for missing part and they will come the next day to install it. Nobody came on 10/20 and I called again on 10/21,was told they will make sure somebody comes and were not aware that no one had shown up on 10/20 and offered a 10%discount for this. I called again on 10/22 (left a voicemail) and 10/23 after which the work was completed. I received invoice dated 10/19 before work was completed,which did not include the 10% discount,charged for 2 workers at $110/hour and $85/hour.I was never informed that I will be charged for 2 workers and that 2 workers will be sent. Never given a written estimate,billed for total of 15 work hours or 7.5 hours at $195/hour,not given an itemized list for the materials charged. I contacted Lovotti, Inc. and the person on the phone acknowledged that she was person who had quoted us the rates and she hold the phone and talk with someone and agree on $750 labor I sent check on 10/27 $750 which was deposited on 11/01.I received another email from ******************************* 12/30 saying I owed $1117.45, will be sent to collections on 01/06/23. They didn't contact after 10/27/22 and cashed check and then dispute on 12/30 with 7day notice for payment which is highly unprofessional

  Business Response

  Date: 03/08/2023

  Good morning,

   

  This is in response to a BBB complaint ID# ********

   

  We were contacted by *************************** to install power to a wall oven. At first, **************** was offered a free estimate by our electrical manager to do the job. He stated he did not want an estimate and then asked for the parts required to complete the job. Our front desk clerk, **********, reached out to the electrical manager to get a parts list. She began to provide **************** with the parts lists, which was extensive. As she continued to give him this information, he stated that he just wants someone to come out and do the job. ********** informed him that this would be based on labor and material costs and stated the labor cost of $110/hour ($180 for the first hour) for our electricians and $85 for any helper. She again offered to have our manager come out and provide a quote. He again refused the free estimate and told her that he just wanted the job done.

   

  Our electricians, ****** and ***** went out to the property on 10/14/22 to do the job. During that time, they had to run to ********** for additional parts. This is common when employees are sent out to do a job that is labor and materials only, as they are unaware of what may be needed for a particular job. To avoid this, we always encourage our clients to get a free estimate. The job took the entire day. There was a breaker that was installed in five minutes the next day, 10/15/2022. **************** was not charged for this time. No additional employees were ever out to his house on any additional days. We are unsure as to why **************** is referring to additional days on site.

   

  **************** called our office after the invoice was sent out to state that he would not be paying the total invoice, and that he would only be paying $750.00. There is no indication as to where this number came from. Our front desk clerk does not give out estimates nor is she authorized to arrange deals. He simply told our front desk clerk that he would only be paying $750.00. Out front desk clerk informed him again of the total amount and that he would still be billed for the remainder. He yelled at her that he is only paying $750 and that if we wanted the rest, we would have to *** him or go through BBB. She kindly informed him that the process is for an account to go to collections first if he is refusing to pay. He hung up on her. **************** sent in a check for $750, which was deposited on 10/31/22. Calls to **************** were attemped multiple times between 11/01/22 and 12/22/22. We also sent out the balance bill twice during this time. We received no response.and Our business manager, *******************************, emailed **************** to inform him of the remaining balance. He again repeated his concocted story about getting a quote for labor of $750 and stated that ******************************* was the one who told him that. However, this email was ******* first interaction with ****************. In the email, he continued his refusal to pay. He was informed that this would unfortunately need to go to collections if he did not want to pay the balance. He stated that our cashing of the $750 check was an agreement on the price. He then stated that if there were additional concerns that we need to raise it to the BBB or small claims court. ****** tried to respond that this was never agreed upon. **************** threatened that if we dont drop the charges, he would take it up with the BBB. ****** responded that unfortunately, the account would be sent to collections for non-payment.

   

  These emails with ******************************* were on January 4, 2023. There was no further communication with **************** once the account was sent to collections, as is law. This is why contact was terminated.

   

  In his email, **************** mentioned that he had an estimate from another company to the work for $750. Our thoughts are that he believes he spoke with someone at our office and came up with this number and is now confused with the companies he spoke with, just as he is confused regarding who he spoke to. Again, he was offered a free estimate to get the work done, which he continued to reject and wanted someone out there to complete the job immediately, which we did.

   

  There was no stated labor rate that is absolutely not our practice, nor has it ever been since we first opened over fifteen years ago. We are happy to waive the late fees on the account, but the balance is still due.

   

  Thank you,

   

  Lovotti Inc

   

  
  

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/11/2023

  I am rejecting this response because: 

  I'm ready to pay the remainder $930.70. This is the the amount remaining after taking the 10% off of the bill sent to me for $1867.45. *********** has to provide me evidence/letter of no outstanding balance and notify the collection agency upon cashing the check.

  Lovotti *** claims about their 15 years of business practices and I will be basing my response upon 20 years of dealing with vendors and contractors for both my business and residential projects in ******** and recently in the Central Valley.

  Lovotti *** has stopped just short of calling me a liar by using language such as "salicious allegations" and more recently the tone of their response to BBB. I'm presuming this was written by ********************************** who has even managed to misgender me and calling me "***************" whereas I have talked to their front desk on at least on 2 occasions and I would like to say I sound pretty feminine. On other occasions, my uncle has talked to them and he identified himself clearly so. This is a clear example of the credibility of Lovotti ***'s claims, lack of attention. I have copies of emails from ********************* which do not sound like they were written by someone in a professional manner, let alone someone who can be a "Business manager".

  I won't even address the "might have confused" part of their response.

  You might also notice that Lovotti *** clearly and conveniently forgot to address the issue of taking 10% off my bill.

  Regarding the claim of Lovotti *** contacting me multiple times between 11/01/22 and 12/22/22, I challenge them to produce evidence of the same. I'm ready to submit my phone records and possibly my mail history. Lovotti *** won't be able to produce any records because there are none!!!

  Spending any more time with this disrespectful and dishonest company with shoddy and shady business practices is a waste of time for me and BBB.

  Let me know if Lovotti *** agrees to the $930.70. And a friendly advise to the owners, ********************* needs a refresher in her writing manners, because judging by her responses, I'm pretty sure she is ***************** in real life.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/29/2023

  This is in response to our customer response on 3/11/2023 regarding Complaint #********.

   

  First and foremost, Lovotti *** did not refer to our customer as a liar. It was made clear that the amount stated by the customer was not provided by anyone on our staff and, by the customer's own admission, that exact same amount was quoted from a different company. Our last response asked if perhaps the customer "might have confused" the quote and the company in their desire to complete the stated job. This could happen to absolutely anyone who is seeking multiple quotes and was certainly not meant to have a negative connotation. We also did not intend to misgender our client, as communication has unfortunately been almost exclusively through email with my staff and our receptionist indicated a male. Perhaps our receptionist confused **************** with **************, who was also party to the complaint (who also called the office). For that, we sincerely apologize. The tone of *************************** emails were based solely on the hostile and threatening nature of the communication received from ****************. There was an attempt to collect payment, which was received with a threat to report should we not send a $0 balance statement. *********************** simply stated that the account would go to collections should **************** not agree to payment. She further stated that she would not be engaging in future communication with threats and intimidation. No employee in any industry should be bullied for simply doing their job. These emails are available. Collections laws strictly prohibit communication with clients once the collection process begins. I am happy to speak with the client directly, or if she prefers, she can call ********************** directly. It sounds like the intent behind all emails, by both parties, was misconstrued, as can often happen in writing. I applaud **************** for her 20 years of business and wish her well. We have never been labeled as shoddy or shady, and strive to be incredibly transparent with our customers, with both our work and our pricing. Even though I am certain **************** will not use my company again, I am happy to settle on an even further reduced cost of $650.59, a 25% reduction in the invoice. Please let me know if **************** agrees to this reduced cost. Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/05/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to my concern, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.