I had a horrible experience with Zerorez Carpet Cleaning. Have any other moms been put through the same experience by this company? I hope someone finds the account of my experience helpful, so they don't fall victim as I did. We just finalized the adoption of our special needs foster child, and money is very tight. Being scammed by this company didn't help things.
Zerorez is a dishonest company. I am a retired school teacher on a fixed income, and my husband is a disabled veteran. We thought we could trust this company because they advertise on two radio stations we listen to. I had them come out to do a "3 rooms for $129 special". The man used vey pushy, high-pressure sales tactics once in my home. I kept having to say, "no, thank you" to all of these extras they were trying to sell me. The cleaning took less time than the selling portion (maybe 1/2 an hour), and OUR CARPET NOW LOOKS worse than before they arrived. At the end of all this, I was presented a BILL MORE THAN TWICE WHAT I WAS TOLD. I asked about the hidden charges and the man became very intimidating, so I just paid them to be done with this company.
My son is a former prosecutor. He was furious when I told him about this scam, and he began investigating Zerorez. So far, we have found:
1.) Zerorez Omaha has only been in business since March! These same Zerorez owners are listed on the Minnesota website where the Better Business Bureau has had to settle 14 BBB COMPLAINTS!
2.) There are MULTIPLE ZEROREZ LOCATIONS WITH "F" RATINGS WITH THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU, including Redwood City, CA, Houston, TX, and Sonoma, CA.
3.) There are COUNTLESS COMPLAINTS very similar to mine throughout the internet.
4.) in 2010 one of the owners of this company, James Hoag, was investigated, implicated, and, subsequently faced legal action for his part in a well-publicized, Minnesota Ponzi scheme known as the "PETTERS FRAUD". The United States Attorney's Office was involved, and over 200 victims. This information id public record, and is also detailed on the Minnesota Public Radio website. Evidently, MPR was one of the victims, and they had a vested interest in seeing the fraud perpetrators prosecuted.
It looks very much as if Zerorez was run out of Minnesota and has set up camp in Omaha to scam us. Zerorez took advantage of me, and I do not want them take advantage of you.
I know a lot of people don't like to use rented carpet scrubbers but I rented a Rug Doctor and had really good results. My carpets were really dirty so I used a rented one then bought a Hoover on sale for less than what you spent on a service. My carpets came out nice and clean.
Just a thought.
File a report with your local Better Business Bureau.
I personally use my Bissell Pro Heat machine I purchased from Bed Bath And Body and I love it.
I do use Dalworth or Stanley Steemer at least once a year because they have machines with greater suction than my Bissell
Word if mouth advertising works better than radio/tv . Get personal references
Updated
File a report with your local Better Business Bureau.
I personally use my Bissell Pro Heat machine I purchased from Bed Bath And Body and I love it.
I do use Dalworth or Stanley Steemer at least once a year because they have machines with greater suction than my Bissell
Word if mouth advertising works better than radio/tv . Get personal references
I know a family who used a Zero Rez company here in Texas and they were VERY disappointed. The carpet felt nasty when it dried (no longer soft) and it looked really dirty soon after it was done.
Thanks for the warning! Noted.
Write letters of complaint, with details, to your local Better Business Bureau (you can check with the Bureau about whether this firm is a member); your local Chamber of Commerce; and your state's consumer protection bureau. Send these registered mail, so you will get a card back when the letter has been received. (If the cost of registered mail is an issue, send them regular mail.)
Especially since your son's a former prosecutor and you have some very serious info on this firm: I would find out if a local TV station -- your local ABC, NBC, CBS or Fox affiliate -- has a consumer affairs reporter. I bet every one of them does. This is exactly the type of story that local TV consumer reporters want to pursue. It seems like every local station around us has a reporter who specializes in "We uncover scams!" stories. Then do the same with your local newspaper; see if they have a consumer reporter.
Do these things to help others in your local community. Posting here is great but, for instance, I don't think this firm even operates in my area so the warning is better made where you live. Go after them. Even if nothing happens, it is not a big effort for you to send the letters and call or e-mail the local TV stations and newspapers. Take care about online postings and reviews done on web sites, though -- there have been recent cases of businesses going after people, legally, for posting reviews online, if the business wasn't happy with it. Bad? Yep, but it's beginning to happen in a small way now that there are so many online review sites.
If you are members of a reputable site like Angie's List you can post there but it does cost to be on Angie's List.
I bought a Hoover steam carpet cleaner for $150. It paid for itself the first day we had it. Sorry about your experience. Report them.
