CLEVELAND — All Maggie Kurtz of Cleveland wanted was to have the two single garage doors at her home switched to one single double door, but instead, she said she's been dealing with several months of frustration.
Kurtz said she paid CLE Door and Gutter Company of Lakewood $3,000 down on a new garage door back in 2021, but said installation delays have caused her nothing but frustration. Kurtz said she needed to go to a larger garage opening so she could safely park the custom Ford Explorer her husband bought her just before he suddenly passed away.
“My car is too big to go through the opening of the doors, I would do more damage to my vehicle trying to get it in," Kurtz said. “My husband chose a package that we didn’t pick together to surprise me."
"So here I am months and months later still waiting. I expect to get my $3,000 deposit back, I do not want to deal with you and your company.”
Travis Taunton of Cleveland reported a similar experience after he said he put $3,000 down in 2021 on a new rear door and screen door for his home.
“Well it hasn’t been fun, they took a lot of money from me and sort of disappeared," Taunton said. “It took a very long time to make something as seemingly simple as a door. You wouldn’t think it would take an entire year to make a single door.”
“I’d like a refund, the one that was promised to me, so I can get my door done. I mean $3,000 is a lot of money to just disappear on you, and I’ve been waiting for a year now.”
Angry consumers even set uptheir own Facebook pagehoping it would trigger a company response and a refund. Some consumers on the Facebook page reported the company did finally step forward and gave them their money back.
The Ohio Attorney General's office sent News 5 a list of consumers who filed complaints against the company and the Cleveland Better Business Bureau confirmed a list of more than a dozen unanswered complaints on its website, along with a complaint that the company was using the BBB logo without authorization, and incorrectly claiming it's an accredited business on the company website.
News 5 contacted the company business line several times, but each time we were met with a voicemail box that was full and no return phone call. News 5 made multiple calls and Facebook messenger contact attempts with a company leader but did not get a response.
News 5 was able to get a response from a former CLE Door and Gutter Company employee, who assured us they are working to get all customers their doors or a refund. News 5 was told pandemic-related supply chain issues were part of the problem and that the company is working with the Ohio Attorney General to solve all customer-related complaints.
Meanwhile, Kurtz and other consumers are left waiting and wondering when they will finally get their money back.
“I feel like I’ve been taken and treated horribly," Kurtz said. “I gave him a deposit of $3,000, he wanted half upfront. I trusted them and now I want them to do the right thing."
