In the case of tree services, the pattern is incomplete or unsatisfactory work, particularly with stump removal, she said.
“Sometimes it may be that they come and cut down a tree and say they’re going to come back and get the stump and they don’t,” Sword said.
Part of the problem is that many area tree services don’t own their own stump removal equipment and have to rent it, she said. That means the work piles up.
“Instead of renting the equipment for each one, they wait until they have several and do it all at once,” she said.
Mike Adams, owner of Adams & Son Tree Service, one of the businesses on the list, said his company is under new management. He acknowledged some problems in the past with former employees, but said those issues have been resolved.
“We do good work and we finish our work,” he said. “A lot of guys out there don’t.”
Since 2003, tree service has been on the BBB top-10 list of types of business that receive the most complaints, Sword said.
The ratings came after a 36-month evaluation that covered seven counties.
LIST OF LOW-RATED SERVICES
The Better Business Bureau of the Miami Valley has issued failing grades to 20 local and 30 area tree services.
Typically, businesses with F ratings have unanswered and/or unresolved complaints or patterns of complaints that reflect failure by the businesses to deal with the causes of customer problems. (The list was accurate as of June 1.) The 30 are:
A Plus Tree Services, 5693 Willowdale Road, Springfield
Ackley’s Tree Service, 1359 Klobidenz St., Springfield
Bennett’s Tree Service, 3937 Folk Ream Road, Springfield
Cardinal Tree Care Co., 320 N. Belmont Ave., Springfield
J & K Trees & More, 1612 Broadway St., Springfield
Jim’s Tree Service, 609 Old Mill Road, Springfield
K & R Tree Trimming & Removal, 324 Ludlow Ave., Springfield
L. A. Trees, 5500 Lower Valley Pike, Springfield
Larry’s Tree Care, 2440 E. Possum Road, Springfield
Lonnie’s Tree Service, 2515 Irwin Ave., Springfield
Natels Tree Care, 225 S. Greenmount Ave., Springfield
Nationwide Tree Care, 651 S. Douglas Ave., Springfield
Premiere Tree Service, 4920 W. National Road, Springfield
Red Oaks Tree & Mulch, 453 Red Coach Drive, Apt. 10, Springfield
Rife’s Tree Service, 150 W. Pleasant St., Springfield
Roberts Tree Care, 1210 Linden Ave., Springfield
Tri-State Forestry, 917 Kenton St., Springfield
True Line Tree Service, 316 S. Greenmount Ave., Springfield
WANO Tree Service, 2731 Conestoga St., Springfield
West Wind Tree Care, 2112 Amarillo Ave., Springfield
Adams & Son Tree Service, 10431 Chenoweth Road, South Charleston
A Ace Tree Service, 5960 Brantford Road, Dayton
Buckeye Gutter and Tree, 34 Rue Royale, Kettering
C & D Tree Service, 8509 E. SR 571, New Carlisle
Charlie’s Tree Service, 5659 N. Dayton Lakeview Road, New Carlisle
Dyer’s Tree Service, LLC, PO Box 115, Enon
Enterprise Tree Service, 1375 Ginghamsburg Fredrick Road, Tipp City
Mike Werner’s Tree Service, 6918 Athens St., Waynesville
Nelson Tree Service, Inc., 3500 Office Park Drive, Suite. 205, Dayton
Save A Lot Tree Service, 627 S. River St., Franklin
TREE SERVICE TIPS
The BBB offers the following tips to consumers for hiring a tree service:
Get a written estimate and don’t always go with one because it’s the lowest.
Make sure they work with certified aborists.
Check their insurance and make sure they are properly covered.
Ask for references and check them. Visit the sites where the business has done work in the past.
Make sure they have their own stump removal equipment.
Don’t give in to heavy pressuring. “A legitimate company is going to give you the time you need to check them out,” said the BBB’s Sheri Sword.
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