Home Paramount Pest Control

September 18, 2021:

We had phoned to arrange an inspection for a recently discovered yellow jacket problem in the porch ceiling immediately outside our front door. We were advised that an inspector would have to first come out to assess the situation. This inspector notified us that the cost of treating the yellow jackets alone would cost $350. When I asked why so much, his frank answer was "supply and demand; this is one of the worst years for yellow jackets and we're doing a lot of these and chemicals are harder to get, so the price is higher. That and we pretty much know we'll have to come back a second time to get them all." When asked whether the soffit would need to be removed to completely eliminate them (I pointed out the loud chewing sounds throughout the porch ceiling), the inspector assured me that it was actually best to leave everything in place, but that the chewing sound indicated thousands of bees. He also said the sooner we had it done the better because he was surprised that they hadnt chewed through the wood into the house by now because, even though we hadnt seen them until only a few days prior, they must have been there for a long time. He further advised that because of the epidemic of yellow jacket infestations it could take a few days or even weeks for them to be able to schedule us, that other businesses in the area were the same, and advised on what steps we might be able to take in the meantime, stressing most importantly to use another door. Feeling rather anxious over the waiting period, I nevertheless agreed to pursue the emergency treatment under our circumstances of imminent health threat.

The inspector then abruptly turned into a salesman and advised that treatment would be $100 less if we arranged a full year quarterly service plan, an offer which I initially declined citing our previous service agreement with Home Paramount that was not renewed due to recurring problems with scheduling (leaving after-hours automated voice messages notifying of service the next day, which did not allow for us to be home or phone to change, and which resulted in unconfirmed outside treatments and no indoor treatments as were contracted and billed for) and performance issues with our final in person quarterly service (inadequate pressure in the spray canisters that led to large running streams of insecticide running down our walls and pooling on the hardwood and vinyl floors and soaking the carpets, their argument that this was normal when it had never occurred in the past, and my having to follow him around and sop them up before they damaged the baseboards and flooring). I further advised that due to these experiences, we were interested in treatment only as needed. The salesman acknowledged that this had been a problem in the past but assured me that the company had new management and had made huge improvements to the scheduling system, and that the problem with the puddling was solely technician-based. In addition, he stated that each local service area has a dedicated serviceperson, and that they are aware of their customers preferences, so will change a scheduled service themselves if they see it is not a time the customer wants. He further stated that our local technician gets nothing but rave reviews and assured me that our customer service file will indicate our preference to phone to personally schedule service.

Silly me, believing this pack of now obvious lies, agreed to try the annual service plan again, under the assured improvements. The salesman filled out the service plan and emergency treatment plan documents and asked for my credit card information for the emergency service. Along with the paperwork, he handed me a small typed form for signature that stated I would waive the agreement cancellation period since the service was being initiated emergently. I asked if this was for the quarterly service, and he responded that it was for the emergency service only, explaining it was because they would be pulling the serviceperson away from regular duties to schedule us. To emphasize this, the word emergency was underlined on the form. Once signed, the salesman advised hed get in touch with our local service person to arrange the emergency treatment. As an aside, we later received an invoice for the emergency treatment, so I am very suspicious as to what the salesman intended to use my credit card information for.

A few minutes after he left, the salesman phoned to inform me that the service technician just happened to be working in our area and could be at our home the same day. Well, to my additional surprise, the technician who reports appears to possibly be the one we had challenges with previously. OK, so anyone can make a mistake, and I'll be a sure to clearly relay my expectations about the spray to him from the get-go. I requested that he put more pressure in the tank, explaining that more of a heavy mist sort of spray rather than steady stream was customary per my experience over several years of having indoor treatments and per my conversation with the inspector. He begins to show me the "normal" spray without pumping the canister, which immediately leaves a small puddle on the floor. After I ask if it would be better with more pressure in the tank to make more of a heavy mist than a solid stream, he reluctantly pumps the canister and tries again. Much better, and all seems to go well from there. Until...

I showed the technician all the areas where the yellow jackets had been observed entering and exiting the soffit, and where the salesman and I agreed the treatment would be best applied, and then I went indoors while he applied the treatment. As he was leaving, I notice he only sprayed part of the areas where the yellow jackets were entering the porch roof, so I managed to flag him down as he was leaving. I explained to him that the inspector and I saw them entering a different area as well and he says, Ill get it, and retrieved a large rubber bulb device from his truck. Again, all seemed well until about an hour I was alerted by a third party to white stuff all over my driveway. Upon inspection, I noticed two significantly disappointing things: 1)I discover the treatment powder was not applied into the soffit openings, but in willy-nilly globs all over the porch ceiling, the stone walls, the floor, and only SOME of the openings this approximately 5 foot 5-inch technician did not bother with a ladder or stool but instead squirted a dry powder from a rubber bulb device without a wand, up to an 8-foot high ceiling area from the ground. The random placement appeared as though he attempted to jump up and get the holes, missing on several attempts. 2)Upon inspecting the driveway, I found thick white powder, not spilled in a small area, but POURED across a nearly 8 x 10 area of our the freshly sealcoated driveway surface where his truck was not even parked! And he NEVER came to report any sort of accidental spill or make any attempt to clean it up!

The second was most concerning because I suffer from a medical condition that causes weakness in my extremities and extreme fatigue with exertion, yet I was forced to spend 45 minutes manually scrubbing my driveway to remove the powder before it caused damage to the freshly applied coating or potential harm to my grandchildren, who frequently visit. I was not able to remove all the powder, and what I was able to wash away went into my immediately adjacent flower beds and left a white residue along the street and driveway edging wherever it flowed.

I immediately phoned the only number listed for the company to report the incident, and was referred by a customer service representative to report my concerns to a supplied email address. I did so with photos of the impacted areas but received no response by the Wednesday of the following week.

September 22, 2021

I phoned Home Paramount to report I had not heard back and was advised by the customer service representative that the email had been forwarded and confirmed received by the local manager. I was able to speak with the local manager who advised he was presently sitting with the regional manager discussing my issue. He said the technician had been written up so not to worry. I said his being written up was not my business and was not the point; that I had notified the company to cancel my contract unless they can assure me a different technician could be assigned to our account. He asked with a surprised tone, wait, you dont want this technician to ever come to your house? I confirmed.

It quickly became apparent that this local manager hadnt even bothered to look at the email when he asked me to tell him what actually happened, and said he would have to come out and look at the driveway himself to figure out what to do (HELLO? My email and just finished explanation clearly stated I had to clean the driveway myself and included pictures)! When I again corrected him, the manager advised he would still need to come take a look, and said hed be there the same day but that I didnt need to be here, and he would call me back before the end of day. I told him we could speak when he came since I was working from home. I NEVER SAW OR HEARD FROM HIM from that day until this, and neither did the construction crew that was working on the outside perimeter of my home that week. Coincidentally, this was the day of cancellation, which I had notified Home Paramount in writing would take effect if I didnt receive the assurance of another technician (I didnt).

September 23 through October 30, 2021

I have made numerous (easily no less than a dozen) phone calls during this time to Home Paramount requesting to speak with a regional manager since the local manager is not responsive. I have also requested to speak with someone higher than the regional manager when no response was made by him but was always put on hold while they looked into it and then referred to the regional manager again. Each time it has been s a new excuse: I have sent a message and also texted his cell phone, so you can expect a call today (never happened); Oh, hes really busy because were short-staffed, but I sent another message and it confirmed that he received it. *** call you today (STILL NOT); Oh, they should have told you last time hes been on vacation (then how did he confirm receiving the messages?); Hes in meetings all day but will call tomorrow (guess what. HE DIDNT); Your regional manager didnt call because he is no longer with the company, and we were just advised this morning that a new one started (HE DIDNT Respond either to THREE confirmed messages over 2 weeks). Then the kicker on October 29, 2021; (after a long hold and confirmation that the customer service representative had been reading the history in my file); I just spoke with the regional manager and reviewed your history with him. He said he has to talk with the regional manager to find out the history, (you just reviewed it with me from my file so why cant he) but the regional manager is on vacation until Monday, so *** call you on Tuesday. I asked, wait, you said you just spoke with the regional manager so how can he have to talk to the regional manager for the history? The CSR replied, the NEW regional manager has to talk to the old one. (they previously told me the old one was no longer with the company). I told the CSR that this was all rather confusing to me, and offered that it would be much easier if the manager she spoke with would phone me himself and explain the plan, specifically stating that I did not expect him to solve my issue today, just take a couple of minutes of his day to explain directly to me what the plan is, so that if I had a question we could have a direct conversation rather than going back and forth through a third party. I emphasized that this was not a reflection on her competence as a CSR, rather a more efficient way to communicate, and that I felt this entire string of communications was abhorrent professional practice, and that being familiar with the history she should well understand my feelings of being disrespected and regarded as simply a means to falsely charge payment for services that are never able to be confirmed as having been performed. I ended the conversation by respectfully asking if it was at all possible for the phone call with the regional manager to please be arranged, citing the gesture would lend sufficiently to the situation. The CSR said, yes, that can be arranged; Ive just sent a message to the regional manager and *** call you today (you guessed it; HE DID NOT!!!!!!)

Before contacting the existing residential customer service line on October 30th, I was unsuccessful in locating a corporate office contact to speak with someone higher than a regional manager, so I phoned the only number available and selected the option for a new customer desiring service. I asked that representative for information on corporate contacts, who in turn insisted that he works in the corporate office and that they dont have anyone in management there except for the person you would complain to if a one of us is rude to you on the phone. I asked, oh then you arent the corporate office; youre just a call center, to which he responded, no, we ARE the corporate office. I said, then you must have an Operations Manager, Executive Director, Human Resources Manager or President. He replied, no our company doesnt have any of those. WHAT KIND OF SHADY OPERATION IS THIS?!

The ONLY action they have taken is to leave a note on our door notifying us that a technician was there - conveniently while we werent home to notify us that he couldnt do a complete (and undocumented) service. They also had no problem in expeditiously sending us a bill within less than a week of this undocumented and unauthorized service.

So please save yourself the torment and in-your-face deceit of these wolves in sheep clothing by and RUNNING, not walking to anywhere but Home Paramount Pest Control.