Athens Lawn & Gardening Inc

My first exposure to this company was in the Fall of 2013. We were looking for a new lawn service, and found this company listed in Angie's List. With one positive review and one negative review, I figured the negative might just be a bad experience and decided to give them a shot. I should have seen warning signs early, but persisted. It took several attempts via email and phone to get them to respond. It was explained that the owner is deaf, and therefore I would need to leave voicemails and then expect a response later, so I patiently tried. A couple times, I did get a response once I threatened to take my business elsewhere. When I did get them to come get me an estimate, the guy who called gave me a decent estimate and mentioned a dead tree in our backyard that needed to be removed. He gave me a quote and I said I'd get back to them. Because of the expense, it took a week to decide if we wanted to proceed, but we did, and given the impending bad winter, I wanted the tree removed quickly. Again, I couldn't get a response until I threatened to cancel my business. Finally, the owner came to our house, apologetic and willing to work to get the work done. However, he claimed that the quote I received couldn't have happened, and quoted my a price at least $500 more than his employee had quoted me (I asked and repeated the quote several times, so I know it was accurate.). At this stage, however, I needed the work done, so went with it. The work, when it was done, was OK. The lawn was mowed, and while some clippings were left, overall the yard looked decent. During the tree removal, they did stack up the wood - not too neatly, but it was stacked. There was sawdust left in the backyard. Nothing horrible, but nothing to rave about, either. After it was done, the owner told me he was "taking a sabbatical after April". I took this to mean he wouldn't be doing any more work, so I was prepared to find a new provider. Then, in late March, I received a text saying they would be doing a cleanup and resuming mowing. I never replied to the text - incorrectly assuming that they wouldn't start again until I said OK. At this point, we had decided we would probably find another company. The mowing started again. So, we decided to let it continue until we could find someone else. Our yard service is paid through our wife's employer. Apparently, there was a miscommunication and the checks for the service were not sent. I never heard any issue until 11:00 on a Sunday night when I received a text from the owner. I replied that I would look into it and get him a check. At this point, Mr. Martin became abusive. He used very abusive language over text. Calling me names, using vulgar language,and saying he would continue to harass me until I paid. It was only after I threatened to contact the sheriff that he backed off. The missing payment was because of a miscommunication on my part, but before the discussion could get to working it out, he was using vulgar, insulting language. I will never, ever use this company again, and will recommend anybody to stay as far away from them as possible. I had read a negative review before and assumed it was a one-off thing. To help alleviate that misconception, be sure to read the Complaint Resolution Log at the BBB regarding this company. He used the same abusive language in response to a formal BBB complaint.

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The company did an outstanding job. The crew of three arrived promptly as promised and got to work immediately. I was impressed that all three crew members (including the owner) worked nonstop during the day. Work was performed exactly as I was described and my property was left looking amazing. Further, the cleanup done after work was performed was top-notch, especially given the amount of work that was done. I was very, very pleased with the work that was done and would definitely use this company again.

I will NEVER use this man (Kevin Martin, owner), his company, or his associates again! While he started out communicating with me very professionally by e-mail, after I discovered that he had an "F" rating with the Better Business Bureau, his attitude, language, "professionalism", and behavior began deteriorating to the point that it was offensive and disgusting. Unfortunately, I did not think to check his rating with the Better Business Bureau until the evening before the work was to be done. Because (1) he had spent a great deal of time with me during the estimate (which included estimating some handyman jobs), (2) we had already made the work/payment arrangements to take place the next morning, (3) we had agreed on exterior yard work only, (4) I had been unable to find anyone else in the area willing to show up to do the work, and (5) frankly, I was afraid to back out at the last minute, I had him go ahead with the work. I did, however, e-mail him to let him know (tactfully) that I had discovered his rating with the BBB, primarily so he would know that I would be evaluating his work with a close eye. Unfortunately, I did not receive his reply to that e-mail until he was already engaged in the work, or I would have cancelled it then and there: His communication suddenly became nasty and vulgar (though not toward me personally), and from that point on, the entire thing was a downward spiral. The yard work was acceptable enough, though nowhere near what he claimed was "better than any city park." (This was at an out-of-town location; I was unable to be there while the work was performed, so I did not see it until after the fact.) I paid him only half of what we agreed to on the firewood because he (1) put it in the wrong place, (2) brought pieces that were not useable because they were HUGE in diameter, too long for my fireplace, and/or rotting, despite my specifically having given him instructions on all these details. Worst of all, he or one of his workers entered an outbuilding without permission (it had an unlocked padlock on it), and I discovered that at least one item had been stolen. (There was a hodgepodge of stuff in there, and more may have been taken, but because I just bought the place and the items had not been put there by me, I wasn't familiar enough with the contents to know what all was missing.) Although I mentioned (and he acknowledged and blamed on a worker) that someone had entered the building, I did not even confront him about the theft because I think it would have brought even worse trouble from a man with whom I never want to have contact again. Initially, I had considered hiring him to do some indoor handyman work also, but now there is NO WAY I will let this man inside my house! Furthermore, he seems to take pleasure in bashing other people's work and claiming that he is a rare bird who does impeccable work that no one else can match and that he rarely makes mistakes. (I had to laugh at the fact that the sentece he wrote claiming this contained three mistakes!) In addition, he freely uses derogatory and offensive language to refer to people against whom he is exceedingly prejudiced. When I mentioned my displeasure with his vulgar language and unprofessional attitude in general, he had the audacity to blame it on PTSD from his military experience. (I happen to be a retired mental-health professional; while the man may or may not have PTSD, the behavior he displayed is most certainly NOT a result of PTSD!) His web site is impressive--primarily because he has a "slave" (his word) who designed and manages it for him--but don't be fooled. I have owned a home and property nearly 30 years and have had my share of negative "learning experiences" in the home/yard maintenance arena; this man by far represents the worst of them. Even if he had done top quality work, I would never, but never hire him, his company, or his associates again!