Last Friday, I had HandyLectric come out and look at a few lights that weren't working in our kitchen and bathroom. They suggested the issue was the ballasts and suggested removing the lights and replacing with LED cans to avoid future ballast problems and save money with LEDs. So far, so good, as I think this was good advice. They posed this as a reasonable and easy replacement, but said nothing more about the process or work involved in doing that switch other than (1) to say it would take 2-3 hours and cost $100 per can, (2) that they would like to tell us what color light we preferred in the meantime, and (3) that they would be here at 8am this Friday. The men were in and out quickly, saying they had to work on another job and the other crew wasn't available to handle the work that day. Again, this all seemed fine and we were so far pleased with the professionalism, even if it meant taking another day off of work.
Today (Friday) at 8:15 (15 minutes after they should have arrived), I receive a voicemail from Jeremy at Handylectric to see if they can send out the workers and go over a couple of things. I call right back and, at that point, I'm told that the work will involve removing the ballasts by ripping up the ceiling stud-to-stud, work that they would not patch, something that he wanted to make sure I realized. I did not, in fact, realize that. While I understand they're electricians not painters/plasterers, obviously if they had fully explained the work ahead when they proposed it last Friday, I could have arranged for other contractors to come to patch (perhaps seeking a recommendation from them), or sought a company that could do both (which certainly exists, since I've already discussed it with other electricians). I am not an electrician or a contractor and thus had no familiarity with what would be involved in the work when proposed; when it was put to me as a 2-3 hour straightforward job, I assumed that, at the end of that, I would have attractive and efficient LED lighting without accompanying holes in my ceiling.
When I asked why the full scope of the work (especially the holes that would not be patched) was not explained to me in advance, Jeremy at first said this was why he was glad he talked to me before sending the guys over. I said this was unacceptable given that it was a week after the guys initially looked at the lights and after the time they should have arrived on a day where I'd obviously already taken off work without having the opportunity to make other arrangements to have my ceiling patched. Jeremy then claimed that the man who came last Friday HAD told me the ceiling would be opened but not patched. This wasn't true, as both my wife and I can attest. Nor would it make sense that (1) I was so surprised by it today if I had been told or (2) Jeremy would need to tell me about it again on the day he was supposed to be sending the guys to my house since he would have already known that I fully understood the process.
Thus, while I thought the price was good and initially was happy with the professionalism of the men who visited last Friday, today's response (and attempt to retroactively cover for their prior incomplete explanation) means I will be finding a different company to do the work.