- Report: #377834
Complaint Review: David Minotti - Artistic Tile - Levittown Pennsylvania
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David Minotti - Artistic Tile
325 Thornridge Drive Levittown, 19054 Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
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David Minotti - Artistic Tile - Dave Minotti, talks a good story ... delivers a nightmare, liar, thief beware Levittown Pennsylvania
Read our story ... We contracted for a professional tile job with a critical time schedule for completion (all made made perfectly clear and agreed to). We got far more than we could have ever imagined possible WRONG!!! It is a long story but you need to read it to make sure you are not this guy's next victim.
April 23, 2007
Mr. David Minotti - Artistic Tile
325 Thornridge Drive
Levittown, PA 19054
Re: Xxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxx, Southampton, PA
Dear Dave:
Please accept this letter as my formal advice of the fact that the work done thus far in my home is absolutely unacceptable. As I made very clear to you, I wanted tile work done by a professional. So that you had a clear understanding of what we expected, I showed you our kitchen/dining area tile job which was done by myself and my son-in-law. The (first time) tile work we did was really quite good but, not professional. We wanted better we wanted the work to be professionally done especially in the master bath which we explained we wanted the quality and artistry of the work to offset the extreme smallness of that room so that if we ever try to sell our home, a prospective buyer won't see a little bathroom but an amazing bathroom. You agreed that the work done in our kitchen/dining area was very good and you had a visual as well as verbal understanding of the quality of work we required and believed you were up to the task. Further, you offered that you were not just a professional you were an artist; hence, your company name Artistic Tile.
With regard to the professional and artistic quality of your work the work done thus far in the kitchen and bathroom in the in-law suite fall into the category of careless, sloppy amateur. The grout is weak in the bathroom with an obvious and unsightly large space between the tiles at the doorway. The kitchen area is the worst! Tiles are high in some spots and low in others with spacing that clearly could not have been done with spacers! There is not a straight line to be found. The instructions were to do the spacing as the spacing was done in my kitchen/dining area which I thought was 3/16th but to be sure, you were instructed to take a measurement. In any event, 3/16th, th, 1/8th, 3/8ths even ignoring instructions -- anything consistent could have still looked OK; but, a combination of every possible spacing is a clear (careless/sloppy) indication that spacers could not possibly have been used. In addition, the tile spaces were not swiped clear of the underlying cement (very unprofessional!) and the cement has leaked through the grout to the surface leaving white stains in the grout in a couple of places. And, just to give artistic a new meaning one of the tiles was put in backwards (which, without question, has to be chopped out and replaced!).
I got home from work late Friday night and had no opportunity to see this work until after the carpenter I hired for the kitchen had already done his work on Saturday. During that work, he had the floor covered (as it had not yet been sealed) to protect it. With the cabinets set, the countertop on and sink in place, the floor protection was removed and Xxxxxxxx proceeded to seal the tile. She called me down and said LOOK AT THIS! Look at this, indeed! That is what I ask you to do. You look and let me know if you feel that the work done is, by any stretch of the imagination, acceptable. I can assure you I have never seen anything like your work!
Sooooo.Now what! Frankly, the entire floor should be ripped up and redone but that would mean that the entire kitchen would have to be torn out. So, the question is, What do you propose?!?
The next question is, Is what has been done thus far a good representation of the quality of work you do? If so, that quality is not acceptable and I cannot allow you to do another thing in my home. We spent a great deal for the tiles for our rec room and the master bath and will absolutely not accept such poor workmanship with such expensive material. Expensive material notwithstanding, I just will not accept this kind of work. I have been in the construction business for 44 years (housing for 20 years); and, as a project manager for stores and other commercial properties from Virginia to Connecticut (with flooring obviously a part of every job), I have a very clear understanding of what is reasonable to expect in terms of workmanship.
Finally, recognizing that tiles were missing, I asked Xxxxxxxx to ask you if you checked (against the invoices) to make sure that you picked up everything that we ordered. She asked and you responded that Of course I did and something to the effect that you are a professional and you know what you are doing. We are missing a great deal of material. We didn't check the kitchen tile count yet (s/b 55) but we are missing 10 57-737 @ $10.95 10 22-672 @ $2.50 48 (4 boxes) 45-105 @ 3.49. If, for some unknown reason, you are driving around with them in your truck, Xxxxxxxx will be giving you instructions to bring them immediately into our home. If they are not in your truck and you believe that you received a complete order from Tile Creations, the extremely important question is, Where are they?
With regard to the time schedule on this project I believe that it is absolutely reasonable for me to expect that your workday would be, at least, a 9-5 workday. During the three days so far, Wednesday was 12:30 to 3:45 with Thursday and Friday also late start times. When Xxxxxxxx questioned why you were 2 hours late on the first day and did not call to let her know that would be so late, you cursed at her and (in the presence of my mother-in-law, sister-in-law and niece) told her that if you're going to make my life hell on this job, I'll leave right now and you can hire someone else! Not a good start! She told you that she should have been at work but instead missed those 2 hours while waiting for you. She asked that you let her know what time you expect to be at our home each day and that you, please, let her know if for any reason, that time would change. The next day you were quite late again no call, lots of excuses. Again, she asked that you, please, let her know the schedule. You indicated that the next day you would be starting early like 9am. Late again, at 11:15 you appeared no call, more excuses. You told her that I'm not the kind of guy to get up at 8 and out the door by 8:30 and no one else has ever had a problem with that and I was tired and got up and went right back to bed. Xxxxxxxx explained that she too was tired as (except for Wednesdays when she works from 10 5), she works nights and does not get home until 9:30 pm and would be very happy to have the luxury of going back to bed (as would Mom who also told you that). However, if you say you are going to be there, they both must be up, showered, dressed and ready for your arrival. I think that a more professional and respectful attitude in this regard is also quite reasonable to expect.
If you feel that you are capable of fulfilling your obligations under this contract, the next room to be done would be the powder room. We need, however, to discuss this entire situation before any further work can continue. I can be reached on my cell phone at 484-xxx-xxxx and look forward to resolving these very important issues.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxxxx T. Xxxxxxxx
After going over this letter in person with Dave by wife and then, immediately discussed with husband, Dave agreed that he could not do the work and ... read the next letter summarizing the result for more details. Note: Dave had the tiles in his truck and brought them into our home immediately after being called on it.
May 18, 2007
Mr. David Minotti
Artistic Tile
325 Thornridge Drive
Levittown, PA 19054
Re: Exxxxx and Sxxxxx Kxxxxxx
xxxxx Drive, Southampton, PA 18966
Dear Dave:
On Monday, April 23, 2007, after Xxxxxxxxxx personally showed you the serious problems with the tile installation in our home, she presented you with a letter from Xxxxxxxxxx detailing those problems in writing. That letter ended with
If you feel that you are capable of fulfilling your obligations under this contract, the next room to be done would be the powder room. We need, however, to discuss this entire situation before any further work can continue. I can be reached on my cell phone at 484-xxx-xxxx and look forward to resolving these very important issues.
After further discussion with Xxxxxxxxxx, you advised both Xxxxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxxxx that the quality of work that you had promised was not a quality of work that you would be able to deliver. You indicated that you had been lying to us with regard to why you were not coming to our job until noontime and why you were not (personally) able to do the tile work. The truth be told, as you used as your excuse for the horrific workmanship, was that you were really still working on another job and did not have time to do our job; hence, your reason also for leaving our promised professional work to the limited time available by your lesser-skilled (a polite version of how you referred to him) assistant. You also indicated that, under your current circumstances, you would not be able to fulfill your obligations under our contract with a level of workmanship that would meet or exceed the amateur (yet outstanding as you agreed) workmanship that my husband and son-in-law (carpenter and electrician) did in our kitchen/dining area. This kitchen/dining area is the area that we showed you in the beginning of April at the time of the preliminary contract to provide for you a visual (as well as verbal) understanding of our expectations of the quality of work that was to be exceeded. We did not want an amateur job we were paying, for a reason, for the professional work you promised.
Having advised both Xxxxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxxxx that you were choosing to void the contract, Xxxxxxxxxx accepted your cancellation of the contract and the contract was marked Cancelled under which both you and Xxxxxxxxxx signed your names. With regard to the monies paid ($1,100), you agreed to refund the $400.00 immediately (I'll have my wife write out the check tonight. was initialed on the contract by you). Further, you indicated that the balance of $700 would be refunded to us upon your receipt of funds from your insurance company. (Note: Xxxxxxxxxx indicated that she did not know how you could possibly get your insurance company to cover poor workmanship and advised that she would not, under any circumstances and for any reason, lie in order to help you with your claim.) You told her that the claim against your insurance would not be a problem and she would not have to lie You asked her, simply, if you could take pictures (which you did) so that you could use them for the insurance claim. You promised that the balance of $700 would be sent to us (as also initialed by you on our contract.)
Frankly, we do not care where you get the money we simply require that we get back our money. We are being very generous in not requiring that you completely rip out the horrific work done as well as purchase and properly set new tiles. If, however, that is the manner in which you wish to correct this situation (a far more costly resolution) instead of refunding the monies paid, be advised that:
(1) exactly the same tiles will be required (note: the kitchenette tiles were an excellent quality tile purchased on closeout none left at Tile Creations to my knowledge);
(2) all fixtures, cabinets, counters, etc that must be removed in order to reset the tiles are to be removed/reset at your expense and you are solely responsible for any damage done in the process including, but not limited to, paint, walls, plumbing, electric, etc.;
(3) we are to be compensated for punitive damages for the additional time we are without the use of these areas of our home and for the additional mess that is experienced.
If you were honest and honored your word and your contract (Your contract stated Contractor understands and agrees that time is of the essence.), we would be enjoying life as usual in our home as the work would have been done by May 2nd (earlier actually as you indicated repeatedly that you would definitely be done well before that date). Instead, it is May 18th and 2 bathrooms remain demo'd, the rec room remains demo'd, and mom's kitchenette and bathroom remain without plumbing. We have, now, engaged another contractor who is to begin work next week three weeks after your promised completion date. A little bit of honesty and integrity on your part and our life and home would be on the happily ever after page right now.
At this point, you have not provided any refund and you refuse to take or return our calls. Xxxxxxxxxx called your home and left a message on your machine. Xxxxxxxxxx called again and left a message with your wife to no avail. At this point, we are requesting the immediate return of all monies paid. Accordingly, if we do not receive your check in the amount of $1,100 within 7 days, we will file the necessary Small Claims Suit papers at the Court House to include all damages, property as well as punitive, and you will be served shortly thereafter. We do hope that this matter can be resolved before such action becomes necessary and we look forward to your immediate and honorable response.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxxxxxx T. Xxxxxxxxxx
Xxxxxxxxxx L. Xxxxxxxxxx
(1) Sent Certified Mail / Return Receipt Requested 5/18/07
(2) Sent Regular Mail 5/18/07
Unfortunately, the contractor who stepped in to help us out in completing our home improvement project was not able to start the following week as we had hoped and our multiple room home improvement was really seriously delayed ... what a mess. The new contractor who did the job did an amazing job. That is the one thing I am thankful for ... there is absolutely no way Dave would have done the truly "artistic" work that our new contractor delivered. With all of the time and effort that we put into finishing the work in our home we did not leave us the time we needed to take action against Dave and Artistic Tile. I have not given up, however, and if the statute of limitations has not run out, I hope to seek justice. In any event ... do not --hire Dave Minotti, Artistic Tile to do any work in your home. I hope that this post can save you from the nightmare we endured with this rude, lying, butcher.
Anonymous
southampton, Pennsylvania
U.S.A.
April 23, 2007
Mr. David Minotti - Artistic Tile
325 Thornridge Drive
Levittown, PA 19054
Re: Xxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxx, Southampton, PA
Dear Dave:
Please accept this letter as my formal advice of the fact that the work done thus far in my home is absolutely unacceptable. As I made very clear to you, I wanted tile work done by a professional. So that you had a clear understanding of what we expected, I showed you our kitchen/dining area tile job which was done by myself and my son-in-law. The (first time) tile work we did was really quite good but, not professional. We wanted better we wanted the work to be professionally done especially in the master bath which we explained we wanted the quality and artistry of the work to offset the extreme smallness of that room so that if we ever try to sell our home, a prospective buyer won't see a little bathroom but an amazing bathroom. You agreed that the work done in our kitchen/dining area was very good and you had a visual as well as verbal understanding of the quality of work we required and believed you were up to the task. Further, you offered that you were not just a professional you were an artist; hence, your company name Artistic Tile.
With regard to the professional and artistic quality of your work the work done thus far in the kitchen and bathroom in the in-law suite fall into the category of careless, sloppy amateur. The grout is weak in the bathroom with an obvious and unsightly large space between the tiles at the doorway. The kitchen area is the worst! Tiles are high in some spots and low in others with spacing that clearly could not have been done with spacers! There is not a straight line to be found. The instructions were to do the spacing as the spacing was done in my kitchen/dining area which I thought was 3/16th but to be sure, you were instructed to take a measurement. In any event, 3/16th, th, 1/8th, 3/8ths even ignoring instructions -- anything consistent could have still looked OK; but, a combination of every possible spacing is a clear (careless/sloppy) indication that spacers could not possibly have been used. In addition, the tile spaces were not swiped clear of the underlying cement (very unprofessional!) and the cement has leaked through the grout to the surface leaving white stains in the grout in a couple of places. And, just to give artistic a new meaning one of the tiles was put in backwards (which, without question, has to be chopped out and replaced!).
I got home from work late Friday night and had no opportunity to see this work until after the carpenter I hired for the kitchen had already done his work on Saturday. During that work, he had the floor covered (as it had not yet been sealed) to protect it. With the cabinets set, the countertop on and sink in place, the floor protection was removed and Xxxxxxxx proceeded to seal the tile. She called me down and said LOOK AT THIS! Look at this, indeed! That is what I ask you to do. You look and let me know if you feel that the work done is, by any stretch of the imagination, acceptable. I can assure you I have never seen anything like your work!
Sooooo.Now what! Frankly, the entire floor should be ripped up and redone but that would mean that the entire kitchen would have to be torn out. So, the question is, What do you propose?!?
The next question is, Is what has been done thus far a good representation of the quality of work you do? If so, that quality is not acceptable and I cannot allow you to do another thing in my home. We spent a great deal for the tiles for our rec room and the master bath and will absolutely not accept such poor workmanship with such expensive material. Expensive material notwithstanding, I just will not accept this kind of work. I have been in the construction business for 44 years (housing for 20 years); and, as a project manager for stores and other commercial properties from Virginia to Connecticut (with flooring obviously a part of every job), I have a very clear understanding of what is reasonable to expect in terms of workmanship.
Finally, recognizing that tiles were missing, I asked Xxxxxxxx to ask you if you checked (against the invoices) to make sure that you picked up everything that we ordered. She asked and you responded that Of course I did and something to the effect that you are a professional and you know what you are doing. We are missing a great deal of material. We didn't check the kitchen tile count yet (s/b 55) but we are missing 10 57-737 @ $10.95 10 22-672 @ $2.50 48 (4 boxes) 45-105 @ 3.49. If, for some unknown reason, you are driving around with them in your truck, Xxxxxxxx will be giving you instructions to bring them immediately into our home. If they are not in your truck and you believe that you received a complete order from Tile Creations, the extremely important question is, Where are they?
With regard to the time schedule on this project I believe that it is absolutely reasonable for me to expect that your workday would be, at least, a 9-5 workday. During the three days so far, Wednesday was 12:30 to 3:45 with Thursday and Friday also late start times. When Xxxxxxxx questioned why you were 2 hours late on the first day and did not call to let her know that would be so late, you cursed at her and (in the presence of my mother-in-law, sister-in-law and niece) told her that if you're going to make my life hell on this job, I'll leave right now and you can hire someone else! Not a good start! She told you that she should have been at work but instead missed those 2 hours while waiting for you. She asked that you let her know what time you expect to be at our home each day and that you, please, let her know if for any reason, that time would change. The next day you were quite late again no call, lots of excuses. Again, she asked that you, please, let her know the schedule. You indicated that the next day you would be starting early like 9am. Late again, at 11:15 you appeared no call, more excuses. You told her that I'm not the kind of guy to get up at 8 and out the door by 8:30 and no one else has ever had a problem with that and I was tired and got up and went right back to bed. Xxxxxxxx explained that she too was tired as (except for Wednesdays when she works from 10 5), she works nights and does not get home until 9:30 pm and would be very happy to have the luxury of going back to bed (as would Mom who also told you that). However, if you say you are going to be there, they both must be up, showered, dressed and ready for your arrival. I think that a more professional and respectful attitude in this regard is also quite reasonable to expect.
If you feel that you are capable of fulfilling your obligations under this contract, the next room to be done would be the powder room. We need, however, to discuss this entire situation before any further work can continue. I can be reached on my cell phone at 484-xxx-xxxx and look forward to resolving these very important issues.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxxxx T. Xxxxxxxx
After going over this letter in person with Dave by wife and then, immediately discussed with husband, Dave agreed that he could not do the work and ... read the next letter summarizing the result for more details. Note: Dave had the tiles in his truck and brought them into our home immediately after being called on it.
May 18, 2007
Mr. David Minotti
Artistic Tile
325 Thornridge Drive
Levittown, PA 19054
Re: Exxxxx and Sxxxxx Kxxxxxx
xxxxx Drive, Southampton, PA 18966
Dear Dave:
On Monday, April 23, 2007, after Xxxxxxxxxx personally showed you the serious problems with the tile installation in our home, she presented you with a letter from Xxxxxxxxxx detailing those problems in writing. That letter ended with
If you feel that you are capable of fulfilling your obligations under this contract, the next room to be done would be the powder room. We need, however, to discuss this entire situation before any further work can continue. I can be reached on my cell phone at 484-xxx-xxxx and look forward to resolving these very important issues.
After further discussion with Xxxxxxxxxx, you advised both Xxxxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxxxx that the quality of work that you had promised was not a quality of work that you would be able to deliver. You indicated that you had been lying to us with regard to why you were not coming to our job until noontime and why you were not (personally) able to do the tile work. The truth be told, as you used as your excuse for the horrific workmanship, was that you were really still working on another job and did not have time to do our job; hence, your reason also for leaving our promised professional work to the limited time available by your lesser-skilled (a polite version of how you referred to him) assistant. You also indicated that, under your current circumstances, you would not be able to fulfill your obligations under our contract with a level of workmanship that would meet or exceed the amateur (yet outstanding as you agreed) workmanship that my husband and son-in-law (carpenter and electrician) did in our kitchen/dining area. This kitchen/dining area is the area that we showed you in the beginning of April at the time of the preliminary contract to provide for you a visual (as well as verbal) understanding of our expectations of the quality of work that was to be exceeded. We did not want an amateur job we were paying, for a reason, for the professional work you promised.
Having advised both Xxxxxxxxxx and Xxxxxxxxxx that you were choosing to void the contract, Xxxxxxxxxx accepted your cancellation of the contract and the contract was marked Cancelled under which both you and Xxxxxxxxxx signed your names. With regard to the monies paid ($1,100), you agreed to refund the $400.00 immediately (I'll have my wife write out the check tonight. was initialed on the contract by you). Further, you indicated that the balance of $700 would be refunded to us upon your receipt of funds from your insurance company. (Note: Xxxxxxxxxx indicated that she did not know how you could possibly get your insurance company to cover poor workmanship and advised that she would not, under any circumstances and for any reason, lie in order to help you with your claim.) You told her that the claim against your insurance would not be a problem and she would not have to lie You asked her, simply, if you could take pictures (which you did) so that you could use them for the insurance claim. You promised that the balance of $700 would be sent to us (as also initialed by you on our contract.)
Frankly, we do not care where you get the money we simply require that we get back our money. We are being very generous in not requiring that you completely rip out the horrific work done as well as purchase and properly set new tiles. If, however, that is the manner in which you wish to correct this situation (a far more costly resolution) instead of refunding the monies paid, be advised that:
(1) exactly the same tiles will be required (note: the kitchenette tiles were an excellent quality tile purchased on closeout none left at Tile Creations to my knowledge);
(2) all fixtures, cabinets, counters, etc that must be removed in order to reset the tiles are to be removed/reset at your expense and you are solely responsible for any damage done in the process including, but not limited to, paint, walls, plumbing, electric, etc.;
(3) we are to be compensated for punitive damages for the additional time we are without the use of these areas of our home and for the additional mess that is experienced.
If you were honest and honored your word and your contract (Your contract stated Contractor understands and agrees that time is of the essence.), we would be enjoying life as usual in our home as the work would have been done by May 2nd (earlier actually as you indicated repeatedly that you would definitely be done well before that date). Instead, it is May 18th and 2 bathrooms remain demo'd, the rec room remains demo'd, and mom's kitchenette and bathroom remain without plumbing. We have, now, engaged another contractor who is to begin work next week three weeks after your promised completion date. A little bit of honesty and integrity on your part and our life and home would be on the happily ever after page right now.
At this point, you have not provided any refund and you refuse to take or return our calls. Xxxxxxxxxx called your home and left a message on your machine. Xxxxxxxxxx called again and left a message with your wife to no avail. At this point, we are requesting the immediate return of all monies paid. Accordingly, if we do not receive your check in the amount of $1,100 within 7 days, we will file the necessary Small Claims Suit papers at the Court House to include all damages, property as well as punitive, and you will be served shortly thereafter. We do hope that this matter can be resolved before such action becomes necessary and we look forward to your immediate and honorable response.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxxxxxx T. Xxxxxxxxxx
Xxxxxxxxxx L. Xxxxxxxxxx
(1) Sent Certified Mail / Return Receipt Requested 5/18/07
(2) Sent Regular Mail 5/18/07
Unfortunately, the contractor who stepped in to help us out in completing our home improvement project was not able to start the following week as we had hoped and our multiple room home improvement was really seriously delayed ... what a mess. The new contractor who did the job did an amazing job. That is the one thing I am thankful for ... there is absolutely no way Dave would have done the truly "artistic" work that our new contractor delivered. With all of the time and effort that we put into finishing the work in our home we did not leave us the time we needed to take action against Dave and Artistic Tile. I have not given up, however, and if the statute of limitations has not run out, I hope to seek justice. In any event ... do not --hire Dave Minotti, Artistic Tile to do any work in your home. I hope that this post can save you from the nightmare we endured with this rude, lying, butcher.
Anonymous
southampton, Pennsylvania
U.S.A.
