ComplaintsforWaterside Pools Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  01/26/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We signed a contract on 1/31/22 with Waterside's salesperson ****** ******. We were encouraged to sign the contract at that point, with all parties knowing the pool was unable to be started until approximately February of 2023. We were also verbally told at the signing to not worry, "I've never known the owner to hold a deposit should something change." The total contract price was $75,255.00. Fast forward to the week after Christmas. We received a phone call from you, the owner of Waterside Pools, informing us that due to increase of your prices, the price is now raised $9,000 additional, and you would send over an addendum that we need to sign. I had you on speaker phone and both my husband and I heard that you offerred us an additional option of backing out and you to return our deposit of $3,800. (The check was cashed on 2/10/22) We ended the phone call, wanting to look at the situation. The addendum was emailed by you. There is no itimization of additional costs, just $9,000 flat out. It has not been signed by us. When I called back approximarely a week later, after receiving two additional quotes from other local reputable pool companies (both lower proposals than with your increase), I requested that we wanted to take you up on the offer to get a refund. You denied that offer was made to return the deposit. We were informed that our pool was $100,000 pool because of increases and we wouldn't find anyone to do it for less and other various reasons. You now want us to sign an additional form (which was emiled to us and has not been signed) identiying additional costs that we owe you, in addition to our original deposit. AND, if we sign that form, you'll decide IF you will penalize us additionally for pulling out of the contract. This has become an adversarial relationship. We feel trapped because if we don't agree to the $9,000 increase we're out even more money. We only request to desolve this relationship and return our original deposit.

  

  Business response

  01/26/2023

  This client was verbally explained too, and signed off on, the fact that there would be a potential price increase due to inflationary market pricing if the pool digging did not start within 180 days of signing the contract. They were also explained at signing that we were 12 months out from signing day until digging and therefore this escalation clause could come into play. They knew the financial risk at signing. NOTHING was fine print.    Furthermore, just so everyone is clear, we did not request this additional market price money during the construction process....we requested it prior to digging once we had figured out the amount that was needed.     

   Pool prices have escalated somewhere around 35% to 40% (minimum) in the past year since they signed. EVERY aspect of the project has escalated in a years time. This is unprecedented, but reality for the industry.....and I would almost say the country. I asked this client to pay less than 12% of that increase. Basically just enough to cover my raw cost.....no profit margin!! I could have required the entire 35% to 40% amount according to signed contracts.....but, I was working with them because I felt it was the right thing to do given this financial environment we ALL are in. And I still get this complaint??!!.....very unfortunate. 

  They were NEVER told verbally, or otherwise, that the deposit was refundable. IMPOSOSSIBLE to happen because of us moving forward with pool and screen engineering, survey work, commissions that were due, shop drawings, and many other expenses paid out before actually digging would have commenced......the $3,8000 project deposit didn't even come close to covering these expenses. This client is being unreasonable, and dishonest with the public.    

   I understand they might not like the fact that there are increases, I don't either, but an escalation clause was established in contract for a reason. Waterside Pools Inc., or any builder, can't absorb these type of price increases experienced and remain in business.

  Hopefully any person reading this complaint understands the world we have all lived in the past couple years, and that Waterside Pools Inc. just seems to be dealing with an unreasonable client.   What else can a business do but explain the situation before signing and have clients sign off on what is expected under contract? Unfortunately, it seems I will need to pursue getting the remainder of our invested costs from this client because of their potential breach in contract. 

  Customer response

  01/28/2023

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

   Complaint: In reply to your comments, it seems we are at a divide.  We hoped that this would not turn into a contentious relationship, which is not good for either party.
  The fact remains that if we cannot afford your pool with the $9,000 increase, we don’t understand how we can be forced to proceed.  What if you had raised it $15,000 or $20,000 more?  We don’t understand how, as a business owner, you would force a customer into a financial situation by not working with us.  Even our builder, Dream Finders, allows a customer to break their contract with no financial penalty,  and return of deposit, if they raise their price.
  Based on verbal statements made at the time of signing the contract, that we were signing a year in advance to get in before the price increase and it was stated that if something changed you, as owner, were never known to hold someone’s deposit, we request that you return our deposit. 
  As a matter of information for ourselves, we obtained additional quotes, to confirm if your claim of our pool now being a $100,00 pool was correct.  Both quotes came in at about our original contract of $75,000, nowhere near the $100,000 claim you made.  In addition, it is still a fact that during our conversation on the phone, telling us about the increase, you stated that our alternative to the increase would be to return our deposit.
  We are confident, since you are busy enough that it would take 12 months to start our pool, that you will be able to find a replacement customer that can afford the increases.  We just cannot.
  We only ask that you do the right and fair thing and honor your statement to return our deposit.

  I am rejecting this response because:   

   

  

  Business response

  01/30/2023

  Just to be clear....you signed the contract with us in a years advance because your home was going to be built and was supposed to be completed in a years time. You knew that we had a year waiting list, so you wanted to get on it. That is the reason...not from any pressure on our side.

  Furthermore, the quotes you received, if true, have no bearing on us or our pricing, or our particulars included under contract. There are always less expensive, and more expensive options for clients in the pool industry. Waterside Pools Inc. is an award winning company with the highest credentials in our industry....most other companies do not compare with the quality of construction we provide.

  Again, we have costs that you will need to pay for. I will not let this go at this point. You owe money to cover our expenses to date (additional $3,009.25 above your deposit amount we received). If you cover this expense, I will forgo the 20% contract penalty and will not lien your property or pursue any other legal means to collect further money. Then we can both go our separate ways. 

  In my view, your complaint to the BBB for something you knew about in advance could happen was wrong for you to do. Waterside Pools Inc. couldn't help the unprecedented inflation that occurred during the last year. This was not a "made up" situation.

   

• Initial Complaint

  12/12/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On 10/30/21 we signed a contract to have a pool built at our new home at a cost of $9529.50 . As Waterside was so backed up on contracts, we were told our construction would not begin until November 2022. *In August of this year we made a change resulting in additional cost of $12,332. Now that construction is ready to begin, the owner, claiming his costs have gone up, is demanding an additional $11,000 plus. When I balked and asked if I cancelled would my deposit be returned, he said no. Really want Waterside to build my pool at the agreed to price. If his costs had gone down he would not have given us a rebate

  

  Business response

  12/13/2022

  When this client signed our contract, they were explained that the construction timeframe was 12 months out until digging would start. We were on that timeframe, and ready to go.

  They were explained to at contracting, and signed off on this specific item, that the pricing was subject to change based on the 12 month extended timelines. The escalation clause was in our contract, again, that they accepted and signed. We needed to protect ********* ***** **** from the unprecedented inflationary costs that we were experiencing.

  The industry has experienced a 35%-40% increase in retail pricing in this last year since they purchased. ********* ***** **** only asked for 10% of that increase to cover some of the cost of the inflation. We could have asked for the 40%....but did not. I believe we were extremely fair with this client. We actually were willing to forgo our profit in the pool to still build it. 

  Obviously, this client is extremely ungrateful and unrealistic. We were ready to dig the pool......permits, engineering plans, survey work, design plans, etc. had been completed. Their 5% deposit given to us a year ago was spent. We were even willing to sacrifice the money difference of what we had spent to get to this stage of the project and let them out of contract.

  Based on them filing a complaint with the BBB, I think I will contact our attorney to move forward with getting the entire amount of money we spent to date on their project, plus hold them accountable for them breaching our contract. That would be a 20% minimum penalty.

  I have all the documents and contract they signed to prove they knew the deal before they breached our contract. This complaint is baseless, and I will look to see if it is retracted. If not, I will do what I need to do.

   

  Customer response

  12/20/2022

  We have resolved our dispute with Waterside Pool. Please remove or so note our complaint.  ****** *******

*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. ↩