Destruction of Property by Builders Warehouse.

I am highly disgusted with the service I have received from Builders Warehouse, specifically the Atteridgeville Branch.

I ordered some tiles online to be delivered. On 11th February 2025 at 13:25 the Builders Warehouse truck arrived to make the delivery and the driver hit my entrance gate bending the gate causing about R21 000 damage.

I immediately tried to get hold of the Branch Manager, Angeline Mokoena, and after a very frustrating run-around eventually she returned my call. Ange immediately asked for photos depicting the damage which I sent immediately. I explained to Ange at the time that we run a hiking trail and events Company and the coming weekend we would expect close on 1 000 people through our entrance gate and now not being able to open or close the gate would severely affect our security. Ange asked me for a quotation and assured me that payment would be made to the Security Company to start the repair before the end of the week so that our main entrance gate would be operational and secure.

As the weekend got closer and no payment for repair was made, as a last resort I hired a TLB to attempt to straighten the bent gate so that we could at least have partial security with the appearance of the gate being closed.

We are in a rural high risk crime area and for our personal safety and the safety of our customers it is imperative that the gate operates without fail and closes fully which in turn activates the energizer that electrifies the gate against potential intruders. After spending four hours with the TLB to get it as straight as possible the gate and electric fence Contractor explained that the only way to repair the gate properly was to either build a brand new gate or install a more powerful motor that would be able to force the gate closed thereby activating the electric fence. The cheaper option would be to replace the gate motor to force closure.

After many frustrating calls and emails we still sit with a gate not working and compromised security about one and a half months after the incident. Builders Warehouse informed me they used a Contractor for their deliveries and that I should speak to the Contractor which I did attempt to do and the bottom line was he informed me that his insurance excess was R10 000 and he was not prepared to pay that amount.

I even agreed to a conference call between the transport Contractor, Ange and other Builders Warehouse representatives in which they tried to bulldoze me to agree to the transport Contractor attempting to cut my gate to pieces and weld new bits and pieces on in order to save cost. I made it very clear that they could attempt to do a repair as long as if the repair did not work Builders Warehouse would pay for a 24 hour security guard stationed at the gate until the repair was done satisfactorily. Builders Warehouse was not prepared to cover the cost of a guard if the repair was unsuccessful. I don't see why my attempt to help Builders Warehouse in agreeing to some 'patch and repair' job should compromise my security and the aesthetics of my front entrance. In my opinion if Builders Warehouse is not prepared to take that risk then they should simply honor the original quote. Builders Warehouse refused this and now I sit with a damaged gate and compromised security.

This morning once again I contacted Ange to find out what was happening and she informed me that she had done everything in her power and if we wanted to take it further we were more than welcome. We paid Builders Warehouse for the tiles and the delivery, NOT A TRANSPORT CONTRACTOR, therefore Builders Warehouse is responsible for the damages and how they want to sort it out internally is up to them. The signage on the truck clearly said "Builders Warehouse".

I am quite frankly disgusted at how Builders Warehouse has handled this situation. To date, I still sit with a broken gate and compromised security as a result of making use of Builders Warehouse. No real attempt has been made to either force the Contractor to honor the quote or for Builders Warehouse whom we paid for the delivery and the tiles to pay for the damages to our property.

This morning I also requested from Ange, the Builders Warehouse CEO's email address to enable me to escalate this matter to which I am still awaiting a response.

Max