Incorrect heavy pavers sit in SJ front yard for 2 months after contractors forget forklift 6 times

ByRandall Yip KGO logo

Friday, August 26, 2022

Pavers sit in SJ front yard as pickup crew forgets forklift 6 times

When a San Jose homeowner discovered the pavers for his landscaping weren't the color he ordered, he had a long road to get the wrong ones taken back.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- Tons of trouble. That's what a San Jose man bought when he ordered some pavers for his backyard remodel.

If you've ever undertaken a remodeling project, chances are you've brought home samples to ensure the color of the paint or tile is what you want. That's what one local man did, but it didn't quite work out.

Geoff Griffin had big plans for his backyard remodel in San Jose.

"Everything that you see that is concrete here was going to be pavers, including over into this section right here," he said.

Griffin visited a local Home Depot and came back with sample pavers to make sure the look and color were exactly what he wanted.

And they were.

"They were supposed to be a darkish gray," he said.

He ended up buying six pallets of pavers that a Home Depot contractor dropped off in front of his home.

"So it was only after they left and we started to look through the pavers, that we found that they were well off of the colors they were supposed to be," he said.

Griffin described the several tons of pavers as almost adobe in color. Others a light brown and still others almost beige.

He called Home Depot and it agreed to take them back.

The contractor it hired missed the first pickup date.

Then on the rescheduled date, it failed to bring a forklift.

"They were told at least a dozen times that I had six pallets, and they were heavy pallets and that a forklift would be required to get them onto their truck," Griffin said.

He said the same thing happened on the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth pickup dates.

"On the seventh time, they brought out the right truck with the forklift. And that was the first time that then they indicated, 'Well guess what? Your pallets aren't wrapped properly. We can't take them,'" Griffin said.

That's when he decided to call 7 On Your Side. We contacted Home Depot -- and now the pallets are gone.

The company told us: "It's not the experience we want for our customers. But, we're grateful for the opportunity to make this right."

"It's just a relief to have that gone from our front yard after dealing with this for over two months," Griffin said.

He says he's now likely to delay his backyard remodel until after the winter rains.

Take a look at more stories and videos by Michael Finney and 7 On Your Side.

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