SEND BEN: Local homeowner not high on Lowe’s

Tony DePinto is trying to get a handle on a sliding door problem with Lowe’s.

“I’m going on eight months and I still don’t have a finished product,” DePinto said.

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“Eight months?” asked Action News Jax’s Ben Becker.

“Eight months,” repeated DePinto, who ordered three sets of Pella sliding glass exterior doors and two large Pella glass window panels for $14,600.

“I kept getting emails promising me another date, another date, another date, so it was constant delays,” DePinto said.

One email from Lowe’s in October 2021 said the new estimated ship date for the doors was October 20, followed by another email saying October 25, and then finally a promise for November 3.

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The doors and windows were eventually delivered in January 2022, but DePinto said one set of doors had missing handles and another opened on the wrong side of the frame.

“So this door over here is supposed to be over there and this door over here is supposed to be there,” Becker observed.

“That’s correct,” DePinto said.

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As a result, DePinto can’t close his shutters or get through the doors as intended. And worse yet, he said no replacement was re-ordered.

“They make promises and don’t live up to them,” said an exasperated DePinto.

Becker emailed Lowe’s to get DePinto some answers and a spokesperson told Becker there was a “shortage of materials.”

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Wally Conway is a certified master inspector and President of HomePro Inspections.

“The delivery of materials from the manufacturer is complex,” Conway said.

According to the Better Business Bureau, Lowe’s does have an A+ rating, although the company has received nearly 5,000 complaints in the last 12 months, not to mention a one-star rating.

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“They need to get materials to make the window, need to get them trucked and they have (their) own people issues,” Conway said. “It’s a honest challenge.”

Lowe’s continued in its email sent to Becker, “We worked with the vendor to expedite the manufacturing and shipment of the final door, which the store should receive by March 24th.”

However, that didn’t happen and when more due dates were missed, Becker checked back in with Lowe’s.

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The spokesperson only said, “We’ve been in regular contact with Mr. DePinto and are committed to working directly with him to resolve this as quickly as possible.”

When the doors finally arrived on May 2, DePinto told Becker in a text message “the screen did not work” and there were “scratches in the doors.”

DePinto still has not been able to close the door on his problem.

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“How frustrating is this?” asked Becker.

“I wouldn’t buy a candy bar from Lowe’s anymore,” DePinto said.

Becker continues to press Lowe’s to find out how they’re going to make this right for DePinto with either with a credit or refund. The spokesperson said they will address that once the installation is complete.

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