Dishonest, incapable and irresponsible agents

Item: Propertycoza
Rating: 1
Author: Peter X

Following the unsatisfactory response from Propertycoza Edenvale/Bedfordview and Propertycoza SA, I decide to post my email correspondence to raise public awareness regarding the quality and integrity of certain agents and principal agent. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To whom it may concern, to Management of Propertycoza, I am the owner of Acacia Estate Unit ***, Greenstone Hill and this is my letter of grievance regarding an incident that happened today. All details in this email are part of my testimony to the incident. The agent in question (Sherill M) informed me that she has passed on the incident details to the management. Background: Memory was my original rental agent who is responsible for the sourcing of potential tenants, after a couple of unsuccessful tenants reviews (Memory is exceptional in her professionalism, work ethic and efficient), she informed me yesterday(15/06/2016) that she will hand over my rental case to her colleague, Sherill M. As confirmed with Sherill, she received 2 keys from Memory : 1: Small key for my front door security gate 2: Key for the glass sliding door between the living room and garden I have informed both Memory and Sherill that renovations are in progress for the two showers and painting of the apartment. There are 3 sets of keys distributed for myself, Sherill (Memory) and contractor: Myself: Both front gate key and glass sliding door key Sherill(Memory): Both front gate key and glass sliding door key Contractor: Only front gate key The sliding door leading to the garden is always locked, only accessible when the Memory takes the client for a tour. The following is chain of events involving the agent (Sherill) and my shattered shower door: 15/06/2016 (Wednesday) 2-3pm: I visited my apartment to follow up on renovation progress with the contractors, contractors busy painting, all is in good shape. Contractors continue to work after I left. 16/06/2016 (Thursday) 8:11am: Sherill contacted me for the first time via Whatsapp and she informed me that she will be dropping by the apartment later to have a look. She confirmed that she have received the keys from Memory. 11:39am: Sherill whatsapp-ed me again asking if my unit was 141 or 148, I responded "148" 11:48am: Sherill informed me regarding the shattered shower door with the following message: "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." 11:51am: I phoned Sherill to inquire regarding the incident, she repeated that the sliding door was open and there was glass on the outside and inside that belongs to shower door. She also said that she was feeling scared and therefore left the apartment. My first impression was either a break-in or the contractors's misplacement of the shower doors. So I told Sherill that I wonder if it is the contractors misplacement of the shower door, thanked her for the information and immediately phoned the contractor's boss (Shaune). Shaune responded that he will check with his team and reflect back to me. 12:00pm: I promptly arrived at the apartment and found the scene to be littered with glass (particularly the interior). I began to take photos. What is most strange is that the sliding glass door was closed and locked! Although, the Trellidor inside of the sliding door however was slightly opened. I initially do not understand why Sherill emphasized twice that the glass door was opened, while it is actually closed and locked! I then phoned Sherill again but she did not picked up, instead for some reason she phoned me back as an unknown caller. I asked her again regarding the sliding glass door of which she insist that the glass door was open. I then told her that the glass door was closed and locked, but the Trellidor was opened slightly. She then rep**** that she is not too sure and can't remember clearly. I asked her if she has locked the door, but her response was that she did not lock the sliding door as she did not even know which keys are for what. (It was less than an hour ago, when she was at the scene messaging/calling me regarding the incident.) For some odd reason, Sherill suddenly brought up news about new developments booming in Greenstone hill area and apartments that will be available on 1st of July, and she reflected that it might present a challenge to rent out my apartment. Why would an agent suddenly bring up this out of the blue? Contractors Shaune and Nico (Team leader) also then arrived at the scene and they were just as puzzled as I was. The only explanation at the time was that their workers misplaced the shower door which resulted in the falling/sliding of the door and its shattering. With much integrity, they accepted that the damage was probably their workers and willing to absorb the costs of repair/replacement. After going through the rest of the apartment, I left the contractors to clean up and continue with the project. 13:02pm: On my way home, I received a call from the contractor Shaune and he asked me who has the keys to the sliding door of the apartment, of which I responded that both myself and the estate agent (Sherill/Memory) has the keys. Suddenly, it became clear to myself that Sherill and myself are the only two people who is able to unlock and lock the sliding door! Yes, the shower door could've slide or fall over and shattered, but if the sliding door is closed and locked... how is it possible that the shattered glass is outside?? 13:03pm, 13:04pm: Phoned Sherill twice and no pick-up of her phone. 13:08pm: Sherill phoned me back as an unknown caller again. I explained the contractor's point of view to her, she was calm and did not attempt to provide any counter-reasoning. All she said repeatedly was: "If I did break it, I would've said I am sorry immediately" I have informed her that I will have to escalate to the management of this incident. My hypothesis for the entire incident is the following: 16/06/2016 (Thursday): 11:30am - 11:50am Sherill arrived in Acacia Estate. Poor handover from the original agent regarding information of my apartment, asking me for my unit number. Why Sherill have to access from the garden? Arrived at my apartment, successfully opened the front gate but due to the second door being stuck, she thought it was locked. And so she then went into the garden through the back, hoping to gain access through the sliding glass door. Why is the inner trellidoor partially opened while the outer sliding door was closed and locked? After successfully opened the sliding door, attempt to open the Trellidor but as soon as she opened the Trellidor slightly, the shower door leaning against the slide/fall and resulted in its shattering. She probably was in shock and messaged me in a hurry, revealing that sliding door was open. (It does seemed like a break-in) Upon receiving my call, she probably decide to lock the door to make it seemed like a misplacement of the shower door. Why is it impossible for the shower door to fall and shatter due to misplacement or other mischief? Shattered glass was found outside the closed and locked sliding door. Only myself and Sherill have the keys to the sliding door. Acacia fingerprint access will be able to prove my access times into the complex. (15/06/2016 between 14:30pm and 3:00pm, contractors were there to be witness; 16/06/2016 between 11:55am and 12:00pm) In conclusion, the shattered glass found outside the closed and locked sliding door is the key indicator that the shower door shattered when the sliding door was in the opened state, and why it is closed and locked when I arrived, is because someone who has the key for the sliding door locked it. Yes, I could've opened the door, broke the shower door and close it because I have the key to do so. But the timing is not right, because I left on 15/06/2016 before the contractors and never returned until the next day 16/06/2016 to respond to Sherill's notification. I have spoken to the estate manager, and he can assist me in acquiring the access logs on the following Monday (20/06/2016). I request that the management to review my grievances and provide me with a just and fair answer as any honest, down-to-earth company would. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Propertycoza then responded via a phone call informing me that they will respond the following Monday. And as expected, your standard 'sweet talk' before denying any involvement with the damages. Understandable...until Sherill's comments on the above findings start to contradict - She even went as far as to get an affidavit. Below is my response, which will explain the contradictions: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Tania, Thank you for providing me with a written statement from Sherill. As you can expect, I am not satisfied with her responses or Propertycoza's decision. There are plenty of discrepancies in her statements, I will point them out. 1. Poor handover of information from one agent to another: The original agent Memory Miholo is perfectly aware of the renovations as I have been through two clients personally with her. Logically, Memory should've passed all the required information to Sherill during the handover of client's details or Sherill should've requested it from her predecessor. Within the email containing the pictures, I have also advised Sherill about the renovation within that same email that Sherill apparently read "141". I have just received further confirmation from Memory that she did provide her with the apartment number and block number. And how could Sherill place the responsibility of the client apartment details on a "email heading" ? (by the way, the heading is not by me but from another property agent) She initiated the idea that she will go take the photos herself, and that's before I forwarded the email to her - So she still do not know anything about the apartment at that stage! 2. "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." Sherill's whatsapp message: From her blue responses below, she repeatedly state that she is not sure if the door was locked or unlocked (even bolding one of the statement). The above in quotation was the exact whatsapp message received from Sherill. There are no blue responses from her regarding the opened sliding door that she found at the scene. In her affidavit, Sherill mentioned: "I did not gain access to the unit as I believed I had the incorrect keys. I contacted the landlord immediately and advised what I saw." "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." Sherill's whatsapp message At the scene, she saw that the door was OPENED, and hence messaged me, describing what she saw. In her statements/sworn affidavit, the door was apparently closed. Why are there such contradictory statements from her? 3. "I do not know that the glass sliding door was locked, if prospective tenants from the complex see empty garden units they will go through the garden and try and see inside the unit. " Sherill's response Aside from the scenario established above that the sliding door was indeed opened when Sherill arrive at the scene, let's look at how Sherill's response contradicts herself again. The sliding glass door are always locked, the only 2 keys to open the sliding gate is mine and Memory/Sherill's. Therefore, if there are uninvited guests in the garden, they will not be able to open the door. But what if the sliding glass door was unlocked? Sure, someone could open the door and the trellidor and break the shower door... but there is no way to lock the sliding door without the key! The contractors were initially willing to absorb the cost of the shower door until he found that the glass was on both sides of a locked sliding door! Once again, who found the door opened, informed the owner and left in a hurry with a key capable of locking the door in question? 4. My statement/email send to the management : "For some odd reason, Sherill suddenly brought up news about new developments booming in Greenstone hill area and apartments that will be available on 1st of July, and she reflected that it might present a challenge to rent out my apartment. Why would an agent suddenly bring up this out of the blue? " was removed from her responses. Dear Propertycoza management, what on earth is going on here? Removed and obviously, no blue responses from Sherill. It is understandable that any good company would defend their employees, subjected to reason and probable cause. But after all the evidence, contradictory statements, is it still worth your while to risk your reputation? You have good employees, Memory was a good example and I am sure Sherill is too. Please kindly review my responses and findings above, and decide on what is the right thing to do for your employee and the company. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The following is the response from the Principal agent (Sherill's Manager): -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Good Afternoon Peter, Thank you for your email. As you stated, we have good agents and Memory was a good example and Sherill is a very good agent too. I am not sure what you expect from us as a company? Obviously we would not like to risk our reputation. As a principal of Property.CoZa Edenvale, I cannot tell my agent that she is lying and that she will pay for the shower door. If she is indeed telling the truth, that will be very unfair. I know you believe that any good company will defend their employees and this is true but if the employee is in the wrong we will address it accordingly. Sherill had no reason to open the sliding door. She had 2 keys and thought both were for the front door. And as she mentioned, why would she even try opening the sliding door with all the glass leaning against it. She made it very clear that she did not at all attempt to open the sliding door. She said not once did she touch the door. Sherill honestly do not know what else to add as she already explained what happened on the day. We understand that there are pieces to the puzzle missing but Sherill honestly cannot explain this as she sworn that she did not break the shower door. How can she explain it if she does not know how the shower door broke? Nor can I because I was not at the scene. Not all the discrepancies are relevant to the incident. We will comment on it but confirming the unit number and giving information on the area is not relevant to the actual explanation of the shower door being broken. 1. Sherill was aware of the renovations but not aware of the placement of the shower doors against the trellidoor. We understand that this is not expected to be communicated because I am sure this could have been seen clearly from the outside and anyone would have seen it and not attend to open the door knowing that it won’t be possible to enter from the sliding door. Sherill did not know that she had the keys for the sliding door as mentioned before. Sherill was also under the impression that she might have the wrong keys as she could not open the front door. Agents normally enter through the front door unless they are told otherwise. I do not believe confirming the unit number was wrong from her side. Memory did provide her with the correct unit number but unfortunately the email she received where the other agent mistakenly put the wrong unit number on the subject line she just had to confirm and make sure she is going to the right unit. I do not think this is relevant to the incident. 2. At the time she saw all the glass she thought the siding door was open. She did not stay and investigate the scene. That is what she believed she saw but then you informed her that the door was locked. She was confused and that is why she rep**** that she is not sure anymore. In her affidavit she referred to a statement you made in an email that she could have gone back and lock the door. She did not say the door was locked. 3. I understand this all does not make sense but Sherill said she cannot explain this as she thought the door was open but you said it was locked. She cannot confirm if it was indeed open or locked. At the time she thought the door was open. She did not open or lock the door. She only had 2 keys and thought it was for the security gate and front door. She did not once think to try opening the sliding door with the front door key. 4. Sherill at this stage did not think that she would be blamed for the breaking of the shower door and thought while she was on the phone with you she will give you information on what is happening in the area. Sherill just feel that there is nothing she can add to the above. She cannot create more information to what she has already provided. We can try to fit the missing pieces to the puzzle by saying that the contractors could have placed the broken glass pieces outside but it is not for us to try and figure this out and blame others unless we have prove. We believe, if Sherill indeed open the sliding door and trellidoor, and the glass broke, that there would have been more glass outside. Could it be possible that the glass, when shattered into a million pieces like that, have gone through the smallest gabs of the sliding door itself. I believe the right thing to do, from a Principal prospective, is to trust and believe that Sherill is telling the truth. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My last and final response: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Tania, The contractors have just sourced a replacement glass for the shower door to the sum of R1430.00, I request that Propertycoza review the incident and cover the damage incurred by your agent. I went back to the apartment yesterday to double check the sliding door groove and it is not possible for anything as big as the glass particle seen in the picture to pass through. There is a guider groove to guide the sliding door! Most of the glass are found on the inside is due to the direction of the fall. Similar to your decision to stand by Sherill, I stand by the contractors. And my decision came from the manner they handled the incident, their initial willingness to absorb the damages, and most importantly, how the glass on the outside are distributed - it do not look like a man-made mess but more like if a door was opened! And moreover, they would not know Sherill will be visiting (not to mention through the garden!). It was broad daylight, with her standing by the scene, messaging me that the sliding door was opened. Looking at the pictures, how is it possible that she is confused about a opened sliding door? "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." Sherill's whatsapp message She just left immediately after leaving me a text message, without taking a single picture of the incident puzzles me. That is the problem. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You did not provide any factual reasoning in your arguments to my previously mentioned contradictions on Sherill's statement, your responses seems to be based on personal feelings and presumptions. I need honest arguments based on facts, provided by Sherill herself - Not forced reasoning. I reiterate my earlier statements regarding conflicting information provided by Sherill and her affidavit: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Poor handover of information from one agent to another: The original agent Memory Miholo is perfectly aware of the renovations as I have been through two clients personally with her. Logically, Memory should've passed all the required information to Sherill during the handover of client's details or Sherill should've requested it from her predecessor. Within the email containing the pictures, I have also advised Sherill about the renovation within that same email that Sherill apparently read "141". I have just received further confirmation from Memory that she did provide her with the apartment number and block number. And how could Sherill place the responsibility of the client apartment details on a "email heading" ? (by the way, the heading is not by me but from another property agent) She initiated the idea that she will go take the photos herself, and that's before I forwarded the email to her - So she still do not know anything about the apartment at that stage! 2. "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." Sherill's whatsapp message: From her blue responses below, she repeatedly state that she is not sure if the door was locked or unlocked (even bolding one of the statement). The above in quotation was the exact whatsapp message received from Sherill. There are no blue responses from her regarding the opened sliding door that she found at the scene. In her affidavit, Sherill mentioned: "I did not gain access to the unit as I believed I had the incorrect keys. I contacted the landlord immediately and advised what I saw." "Hi Peter I can't get in. I went round to the garden and I found the sliding door open and the shower door is broken." Sherill's whatsapp message At the scene, she saw that the door was OPENED, and hence messaged me, describing what she saw. In her statements/sworn affidavit, the door was apparently closed. Why are there such contradictory statements from her? 3. "I do not know that the glass sliding door was locked, if prospective tenants from the complex see empty garden units they will go through the garden and try and see inside the unit. " Sherill's response Aside from the scenario established above that the sliding door was indeed opened when Sherill arrive at the scene, let's look at how Sherill's response contradicts herself again. The sliding glass door are always locked, the only 2 keys to open the sliding gate is mine and Memory/Sherill's. Therefore, if there are uninvited guests in the garden, they will not be able to open the door. But what if the sliding glass door was unlocked? Sure, someone could open the door and the trellidor and break the shower door... but there is no way to lock the sliding door without the key! The contractors were initially willing to absorb the cost of the shower door until he found that the glass was on both sides of a locked sliding door! Once again, who found the door opened, informed the owner and left in a hurry with a key capable of locking the door in question? 4. My statement/email send to the management : "For some odd reason, Sherill suddenly brought up news about new developments booming in Greenstone hill area and apartments that will be available on 1st of July, and she reflected that it might present a challenge to rent out my apartment. Why would an agent suddenly bring up this out of the blue? " was removed from her responses. Dear Propertycoza management, what on earth is going on here? Removed and obviously, no blue responses from Sherill. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My arguments are based on recorded facts, and text material to prove every point I state in my email. I believe I have enough contradictory statements from Sherill to make my case. Since you've advised that Sherill have nothing more to add and Propertycoza have made her stand. I believe everything is on the table. If this is Propertycoza's final response, I will seek legal advice by providing all statements recorded in this email, including Sherill's affidavit. The public needs to know about the incident and how Propertycoza's management choose to respond, even after all the facts and contradictions from their employee statement. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I received a Whatsapp message from Tania, informing that she will respond my mail later that day or the next. But nothing from her at all. I was advised by family members against taking legal action against the estate agent or Propertycoza as the damages are not significant. Sure, I can afford a few grand of damage, but it is frustrating to know a blatant lie was forced upon myself and worst is the company that backs that lie. On a principle level, I believe companies who bullies their way through the public should be shamed and made aware of. Go in blindly once, it's a learning experience. Go in knowingly, you must be a fool.

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