Pool owner left to sink or swim over lining woes
SINGING the praises of pool firm Prime Pools for a job well done was not worth its salt as the firm’s good work became undone before the guarantee ended, according to Julian Burger of Oostersee, Parow.
Prime Pools owner Mark Ekron said yesterday he has reached an agreement with Burger to attend to the matter shortly after Argus Action requested a response from the firm. However, he would not give any further details.
Ekron asked Burger to e-mail Argus Action to withdraw the article, which is not the policy of this newspaper. He said: “Mr Burger requested that the Argus withdraw the complaint and that the newspaper does not publish the article.”
Earlier, Burger told Argus Action: “I was recommended by Prime Pools to fibreline my existing pool due to the problems I had with the vinyl, which caused my pool to leak profusely. I accepted their quote in 2009 at a cost of R34 000, which included a two-year guarantee,”
He added that his pool looked good on completion of the work and he was so impressed by the firm’s workmanship that he wrote a letter of thanks for a job well done.
But his joy was short-lived as six months before the guarantee ended his pool’s woes recurred.
“I experienced loss of water and also discovered that the fibre lining was lifting in various places in the pool. I contacted Prime Pools and reported the problems in July 2011 as I was within my guarantee period. The response was that the pool would be sorted out.
“Over a period of time, various checks were done to find the leaking problem which has been going on for months now. I was also informed that the fibrelining would receive attention as well.
“Prime Pools eventually assisted by looking for the leak and over a few months were unsuccessful. I insisted that the fibrelining receive attention as well, as the water was becoming murky due to the nonrunning of the pump to determine at which point the pool would stop leaking.”
He said since then communication with the firm had been poor or non-existent as he only got two responses in four months. However, he admitted that appointments had been difficult to make because he was often at work.
Burger said when appointments were made they were not kept by the firm. He had also appealed to the National Spa and Pool Institute (NSPI) of which Prime Pools is a member. He got a response from the institute saying a letter would be sent to the firm requesting the matter to be attended to, but since had then heard nothing further.
“I chose a company which is affiliated to the NSPI for peace of mind if problems do occur, but alas, it is just fruitless. Spending all this money and still having problems with my pool is not acceptable and such poor service needs to be identified to protect consumers.”
The leaking pool has made a dent in his pocket as he needs to top up the water level of the pool more often: “Poor service in our country is becoming the norm and very few people are taking their stand against these bullying tactics. All I want is that I receive a product which I was promised and paid for.”
NSPI chairman Neil Cloete said the first thing consumers needed to do to resolve disputes with its members was to submit a claim to the organisation’s office.
“The NSPI will forward the complaint to the builder involved for his comment. Depending on the outcome, the client can then ask for a a physical site inspection at which time all the involved parties in the dispute must be present at the site meeting.” said Cloete. This will cost a client R600.
Martie Carstens of the Department of Economic Development and Tourism in the Western Cape said that this matter occurred before the Consumer Protection Act came into effect on April 1, 2011, so the Office of the Consumer Protector (OCP) would have engaged the Western Cape Consumer (Unfair Business Practices) Act 10 of 2002 to deal with it, if the consumer had approached them. In terms of this older act, the OCP would have investigated the unfair business practice contravention but would have required all the documents involved.
In conclusion, Burger said: “My concern is that I just want the job done. He (Ekron) has given me his confidence that he will see to it personally. We had an amicable agreement with the way forward.”
He thanked Argus Action for intervening, saying it was through the media that there has been a positive response.