A Moses & Aaron

I contacted Moses about providing excavation, torpedo and water line replacement services for my attached neighbour and I. This was upon discovery of lead pipes in my neighbour's basement as part of a joint underpinning exercise, and with the understanding that I likely also had lead pipes. My neighbour and I received what appeared to be reasonable, albeit generalized, quotes for the services required, and agreed to proceed. The excavation work took longer than anticipated. The contractors had difficulty finding my neighbour's water line, despite being directed to its approximate location prior to the work commencing. My water line, however, was uncovered in a matter of hours, at which point it became clear that my water service had already been upgraded, and the remainder of anticipated work at my property was no longer required. Despite this, Moses directed his team to torpedo a new water line into my property, which was not necessary for my purposes. I had to direct the contractors to stop with the work, once the realization had been made. However, my neighbours water line required full replacement, and the contractors were then able to direct their attention exclusively to that portion of the remaining work. To my surprise, I then received correspondence from Moses indicating I would be billed $1,500 for my portion of the excavation work, and the time spent attempting to torpedo a new water line. For context, this represented 65% of the original contract value. I made clear that the torpedo work was not necessary and, from my perspective, I owed him half the cost of excavating the hole. I had a difficult time communicating with Moses, and negotiating something I felt was more reasonable. I requested an itemized breakdown of labour and material costs, as justification for the expense. I never received this, despite repeated requests. In fact, Moses took the liberty of dropping business cards in my mailbox in the months following completion of the work, instead of simply sending me an invoice. I found this to be strange, and very unprofessional. In the end, I agreed to pay a lesser amount, rather than continue to pursue the issue with Moses, for the sake of my own mental health. This is despite failing to received the information I had requested, and feeling the amount was not entirely reasonable or justifiable.