Lane whitt

Started project and never finished, money was prepaid. Left mess in backyard and never came back to cleanup or finish. Also did a barter of services for vehicle never did this work either. Does not respond to messages. Unreliable and do not pay up front,. Only reason I paid was I never had this problem with him before, always finished, and he needed the money for the materials needed. Not reliable, and I have a mess and an unfinished project. Beware.

I did a quote request on Angie's List and Lane Whitt responded and called me. I sent him the information about the fence staining project. I gave him measurements and sent pictures of the fence. Lane gave me a price (which I thought was a quote) of $400 and he would use my power washer. I agreed and he came as soon as weather permitted. He showed up and power washed the fence using my cleaner. AFTER finishing the power washing, he indicated $50 needed to be added to the quote because of the palisade fencing and bushes that were blocking the fence. I agreed to the increase of $50. I didn't agree with him not knowing about the palisade fencing because it was clear on the pictures I sent him, but I did understand about the bushes. Note: I had the bushes trimmed before he started staining. He and assistant came the next morning and worked all day minus a long lunch. I was alarmed that they were moving so slow. At the end of the day, he came and said it was taking more stain than he thought and I needed to pay for the additional stain. He used a solid stain and he was using rollers and brushes, and not a paint sprayer. I had problems with the increase, but I was willing to meet him half way. He stated he couldn't do the project and not make any money. I requested copies of expense receipts and a quote or invoice of services provided, but told him he needed to finish the job. I visited with Lane when he arrived the next morning. I explained that he responded to a quote request on Angie's List. If he was giving me an estimate by phone, then he needed to give me a quote after seeing the job. He basically was just raising the price, as needed and stated he underbid the job. I asked him why he underbid the job several times and why he didn't give me a quote before starting the job. He said it was just inexperience on his part. Then I asked him who was accountable and he agreed it was him. After talking with his assistant, they left the job and he sent me a text. His text said that he was waiting to hear what Angie's List said and that his attorney and insurance company told him to stop working until it was settled. I informed Lane that a quote is pretty much what you would do the job for and an estimate could have some overage of about 20%, which was me trying to meet him halfway at $480. I even suggested renting a paint sprayer to finish the job more quickly. I have some pictures of their work.