HomeAdvisor (Powered by Angi) Reviews

I subscribed to ServiceMagic (now HomeAdvisor) and then looked at the reviews online. Equipped with the knowledge of the very many negative reviews, I watched them closely and with skepticism. Sure enough, the scene was playing out similar to the many I had read about. We had been going through a short period with little work when I subscribed. We resumed with our normal busy schedule, with more jobs than we can keep up with, not from leads generated by ServiceMagic, but by repeat customers and using word of mouth and customer referrals as our only form of advertising. After being billed for several leads we did not use, I requested ServiceMagic stop my service. The salesman was a very hard sell, and would not back down and take no for an answer.

I'm a New York city resident, whose experience with HomeAdvisor's service professionals is from poor to worst. If you need a roofer, please be careful with this roofer with many aliases, "Mr. Fix It."

I was with ServiceMagic for a few years as a contractor. After many good and bad experiences but mostly bad, this people closed my account in a very unfair way, after all the sacrifices I made to gain perfect ratings. These people are not there to conduct business the way they make it seem.

I used Home Advisor's website and actually hired a contractor that was listed. The contractor did an awful job, damaged my property, didn't clean up, etc., nor did they honor their warranty. When I contacted (HA) about their written guarantee, they made it virtually impossible to qualify. When I attempted to write a review, they (HA) restricted what my review could say, stating that I must be able to prove my review. That's why reviews are mostly very high. Use them as a "yellow pages" list of contractors only.

ServiceMagic/HomeAdvisor are not the best leads. However, reading the comments on here, I wanted to give a different perspective. I use Savvyshopper, Postcards and Kudzu.com and get better results with these avenues but I still get a lot of tire kickers. That is sales, folks. ServiceMagic is okay if you have time to sit by your phone and wait for a lead or are just starting your business. I've sold cars for 4 years. I was in the mortgage business for 7 years. My point is, most people waste your time in any sales situation.

I was given leads by Service Magic. Those leads were given to 3 or 4 other professionals. I could never get a return call when I tried to contact the leads, and money was flowing from my checking account into the hands of Service Magic. I was on the phone with Service Magic weekly complaining about the amount of money I was paying, and no response from the leads. This company is a scam and needs to be stopped. They were taking advantage of hard working professionals that are trying to survive in this economy.

Do yourself a favor and stay as far a way from this scam company. My experience was two non-phone returning, fake leads to the tune of $91. This company is a joke. I would like to sue them. It sounds like a lot of good guys are getting ripped off from these clowns.

Service magic is a scam. They constantly bill me and harass me for lead money, which were clearly bogus. They send me about 10 leads a day, in which nine leads out of that ten are fake. No answer when called or no address available. When I call the company, they pretend that they have no idea what I'm talking about or they say they cancelled the leads, but they haven't. I highly recommend that no one should register their business with this company. They are fake and pretensive!

I am a class A contractor, homebuilder, and remodeling contractor. I used ServiceMagic for 11 months in 2009/2010. My specialty was kitchen and bath remodels since the sub-prime lending practices ruined home building. These were big ticket items that most people understand little about the costs associated with major renovations. In that time, I received 63 leads. Out of these leads, I received two jobs. I spent most of my time fighting SM for credits, as 9 out of 10 leads I received were bogus, i.e. address doesn't exist; it's an apartment; the address exists but the people don't know what I'm talking about; and the person doesn't exist.

I too am a service professional with ServiceMagic/HomeAdvisor. I have 28 ratings, almost all 5 stars. So, I have got some clients from them. Over all, their leads suck and have become increasingly worse and more challenging to turn a lead into profit. Their system seems to automatically decline request for credit on a bad lead even if the reason is legit according to their policy. I have had some reversals on their decision upon calling them, but one should not have to go through all that to get a credit for a bad lead.

I do not rate this company as a good company. First, the first time I spoke to the person trying to get me to sign on, he said there was one fee unlike other companies. Well that was surely not true. Also, out of the 19 listings, I found only 4 to be legit. Their sales pitch is totally unclear after using this company. Now they say I owe $283.00. When I asked them to cancel my account, they said I owed $218.00. So where did the extra come in? I spent more paying this company than I made in 4 referrals that were legit.

I used to be a professional for ServiceMagic. I got in the hole because of all the bad leads. They charge us up to $70 per lead, and if you get a bad lead, you have to dispute it and that takes literally months. Anyway, this time, I told them that I was filing chapter 13 and I'd rather get reinstated and pay my bill. I was promised that with the new HomeAdvisor, the leads would be real, not all phony made-up charges. I paid my bill, got my first lead for a charge of $70, and right off the bat, it was a bad lead. The consumer had no idea why I was calling him. Then I tried to get in to my account to complain and I can't get in.

I have 25 top reviews from my clients I received from SM (HomeAdvisor). I say this to show I am not some angry client and I am a good builder that knows what’s up. As a contractor, I recommend you stay far away. They have a very confusing site for the homeowner, and the lead accuracy is almost nil. About 80% of the leads you receive will be wrong. And if you want a credit, you have to ask; and even then, it may be denied. So then you have to call. This takes your precious time. The scroll down menus to file a credit request are amazingly poor, and they are mandatory. You find one, but their construction terminology doesn't exist, so you can’t choose the right one. Most of the leads you do receive that are correct you will not land unless you are the lowest bidder. Some of the leads generated will be sent to you in the wee hours of the morning when you are asleep and cannot respond. They will not credit these, and you will lose every one. You can ask for your leads to be sent before 9pm and after 7 am, but you will still pay for all leads generated no matter what time.

I requested paint, carpet, landscape, fence, and roof repair. Three or four companies called me to book appointment and were very nice. Home Advisor calls me and says, “What is going on here? We are not giving you bids without a closing date.” One carpet company told me they would love to come and they have been doing work for Coldwell Banker for 15 years and had no problem with coming at all! He was Abbey Carpet, very professional.

We used ServiceMagic/HomeAdvisor to find a professional painter. This painter caused over $2,500 worth of damage by painting latex over oil paint. It immediately peeled and the painter refused to correct the issue. He was paid in full and insisted the job was complete. Look at the pictures! We contacted ServiceMagic about their guarantee and submitted a poor review on the painter. They refused to post the review. We sent ServiceMagic all the information they requested. We were told we'd hear from them in 24-48 hours. One month later, we still hadn't heard so we called them. They hadn't even reviewed our information. Then we were told that we would get a minimum of the $500 ServiceMagic guarantee, which we were later told they wouldn't honor. Never use ServiceMagic!

Service Magic/HomeAdvisor is a scam. They talk you into giving them banking/credit card information and say they're not going to charge you anything unless you get jobs, but charge you anyway. When you try to cancel, they refuse to let you, so you have to hassle with fighting it with your bank or credit card. I also got a letter claiming (from HomeAdvisor) I owed them $179.22. When I called, they refused to drop their false claim and said they'd send it to collections. Now, I'm having to fight it through the Better Business Bureau. At no point were they honest nor did I receive any jobs, yet they charged and threatened anyway.

I have been with ServiceMagic for only a few months. I had several bad leads and was only credited for 1. I had a recent experience with a customer who volunteered to give me a deposit for supplies for his job. I told the customer that I would be out of town for 2 weeks and would complete the job when I returned, and he was fine with that. I asked if he wanted a receipt for the deposit, he said no.

We own a landscaping company and joined Service Magic now known as Home Advisor Pros. I have gotten many leads and would say majority of them are a waste or not real leads at all. For instance, I call as soon as the text comes in and email. I made sure I was in charge of these leads as I wanted to track them to see if this marketing way was our best way to go. Out of five, two would never answer phone at all or respond to emails. In fact, many we would try to find and no such place or person. Then, one of those leads would be out of my license allows me to do, so I would have to decline it and ask for a credit back. It is a horrible fight to get credit backs as like one I had nobody ever answered phone or returned a call or email at all and it was a double contact. They credit me one but said it was a viable lead. So next one came in, it was not even a house at all.

I was a ServiceMagic/Home Advisor professional for a number of years and after paying for leads that almost universally ended up being dead ends, I finally terminated my relationship with them. The facts are I paid for well over 200 leads from these guys over the last 5 years and the vast majority of them ended up being bogus - either from customers who were uncommitted to moving forward with a project of any sort. Or, I was simply never able to reach the customer in the first place. Easily, 1/3 of the leads I paid for resulted in a dead end, no contact and I am out $60. And the majority of the other leads were from folks who were obviously kicking the tires with no intention of executing a project with anyone. Maybe 12 leads from these guys over 5 years actually resulted in a project. Not a great batting average.

Service Magic has contacted me many times to start an account with them and each time, I turned them down as we were doing well creating our own job leads. When we started to catch up on jobs, I received a call from Bo at Service Magic and he proceeded to tell me how great Service Magic was for contractors just like me. I did not expect anything other than a sales pitch but listened to Bo. I did decide to try them for this reason. I told Bo of my concern with this type of lead generation service; that they would just spam me with job leads that I would be stuck paying for. He told me that they did not work that way and that I could expect 4-5 leads per month.

ServiceMagic charged me $105.00 on August 17. I called the company to get a refund due to the fact that I canceled the account. They do not do refunds. For 5 days straight, I called to try to resolve this problem due to the account being closed because they were no help in getting me any leads that panned out to a job. August 25 and 27, they proceeded to charge me again, $186.00 and $77.00. I called my credit card company to try and dispute this, but my credit card company pretty much said I was screwed and had no choice but to pay. ServiceMagic said, since I never canceled my account, I had to pay August fees. Needless to say, it doesn’t matter - I am screwed, and nobody will answer a phone there.

I gave ServiceMagic a second chance to do business with me, but ServiceMagic did not even honor a written agreement. No one at ServiceMagic wanted to resolve the issue. No one at ServiceMagic ever called me back after I made several calls and sent emails to Darrick and customer service. And then ServiceMagic sent me the following email:

First off, I am a veteran and former Army Ranger and I own the Ultimate Builders. I had been receiving leads for about 3 years from ServiceMagic - some good, but most are bad. I had to constantly ask for credits and most of the time the homeowners were mad because so many contractors had called them. Homeowners would say things like, "They had enough quotes already. Thanks anyway," or, "Please take my number off your list, I do not have any work that needs to be done." I would call and ask for credit, most of the time being denied because the info SM sent my company was legit - that was their response to me!

I have it all in writing and they still did not notify me that they were going to turn the leads on. Now, Jerome (Account Specialist, Phone: **) said that it is my fault as an agreement is not a guarantee. They wanted me to pay $1,200.00, so we had to close our account.

Not even two days and my phones are tied up with computer calls and no emails. Then, I get leads and they don't respond to my calls or emails. I get hit six days later and $400. No leads, just no responses. Then I told them to turn it off and I got $1,300 bill for nothing. Now my checking account is a mess and checks are bouncing for lies and more lies.

I lost approximately $317 from this company that promised me free job leads and would not take money out of my bank account without my permission. But they did. I had to pay $99 start up fees as well as leads that were supposed to be free. They misrepresented themselves and took almost $200 out of my account, and promised there would be no more and I learned $27 more would be taken out from my bank. So I had to put a stop to it and close out my Visa debit card account from my checking account. I could not afford what happened because I am on Social Security Disability and only receive $924 a month and I own a home.

After contact with the salesman and telling him I had no licenses and no insurance and he saying he could waive all of these requirements, I came to this address and found out why. The salesman called me today and said the special promotion was running out. I told him I was not interested. He asked why and I told him the number of clients told me the leads were sold over and over and I was not interested. He then proceeded to tell me this was all lies. I was standing outside of the emergency room where my daughter was giving birth. I hung up. The salesman then left me a message that cannot be repeated here for hanging up on him. I see how these people would hook you and drag you.

Hi, I am here to write a review regarding ServiceMagic, which is an unfair and biased company. We hired a handyman through this company, and the handyman was a cheat who left our project in doldrums. When we complained to ServiceMagic, they coldly said that they are an advertising agency and they can’t help. I asked them about premium membership, and they refused saying “we don’t give it unless it is proven in the court who is right or wrong.” Secondly, they only post positive reviews. Perhaps, contractors have the option to pay more and maintain positive review. After such negative experience about the handyman, when we posted our review, it is not visible.

I am a flooring business owner. I first used ServiceMagic and it didn't work for my business. I called them and asked them to stop my account. Then a lady named Debby called me and tried for hours to keep using their service. I said it clear and neat that I didn't want to use their service. She has tried but I haven't accepted. She said that they have a service that I pay only when I accept the lead. I said, "No. I don't want to deal with your company because it doesn't fit my needs." She insisted and I refused. We finished our conversation and hung up. I started receiving those leads she talked about. I ignored them and I never used them. After a year and couple of months, I asked my bookkeeper to bring all the statements and at my surprise, I found out that ServiceMagic has been charging for the whole period.

When I signed up for this service, the sales person named Terry from Overland Park, Kansas informed me that the leads would be left turned off and I would not receive any until I turned them on. I never turned them on and I started receiving leads and did not even know what they were. Then, I noticed that Service Magic removed $180 from my checking account. Then, the supposed leads kept on coming. I would answer and hang up hoping that this would not allow the computer generated lead to bill me. Now, they are indicating that I owe them an additional $340 plus for the leads that I hung up on. I am not getting anywhere with the reps from Service Magic. They have offered to take $140 off of the $340 bill so they can turn my leads back on. I don't want their leads and any of their service. I want my $180 returned to me, the new bill removed, and my account canceled.

We are a design firm. We were told they would supply us lighting design leads which we would follow up. We were to pay for those leads. Each "lead" forwarded was for an electrical contractor. They had not vetted any of the leads for accuracy so we were charged for services which were falsely forwarded to us. When we complained and said we would like to withdraw from the program. They said we would not be charged for leads unless we responded and took them. We took none of the leads for the next 3 months and then we started getting phone calls about our past due account. My advice is do not do business with these folks. If you are doing business, hire a lawyer and get out. There is no business control in this organization. ServiceMagic did not represent their services in an honest way. It is not much more than a phone scam.

ServiceMagic does not back their contractor's work. I did everything that was asked of me; and after 2 months back and forth on our problem, they said they would help rate the contractor. That is it. Don't bother with ServiceMagic; it really means nothing going through them. They are useless.

I talked to Tyler ** and he assured me that I was to only pay on the leads I acquired. I got the bank statement and ServiceMagic is taking out $12.34 for every lead they sent me. I have got only 4 leads. It doesn't even come close to what they said I am paying for their advertising. So, if 4 guys go by and quote the job (and don't decide on the service), they just made 50 bucks for nothing. I called their customer service and they blew me off. I bet that slob Tyler is laughing his ** off. I sure would like to punch him in the nose!

I am a contractor in the DFW Metroplex that entered into agreement with Service Magic. The only thing they are interested in is the lead fee. The leads have a return of 1/20. So for every 20 leads you pay for, expect one job in return. The other 19 leads are completely bogus. They do not qualify their leads and when you request a lead credit, expect a miracle because it won't happen. My conclusion is this is a totally bogus company with unscrupulous business practices. Avoid at all costs!

Bear Brook, the landscaper, did my lawn at the beginning of the season. He hasn't been here in a month. My lawn is quite high. I was in the hospital at the time. I called him today and he said he will not come any longer because the parking is bad. I have a driveway and parking in front of my house which he used and also my driveway. It is the end of the season and it will be hard for me to get a man to mow my lawn. I am 86 years old and must have someone soon to do my lawn. Can you help me?

I was a pest control contractor with ServiceMagic. They say a quality lead is someone who says they don't have the money to pay, but still want a quote for work. I don't think this is a good lead. Also, I tried to contact them to suspend my account but still had 2 calls come through. When I wanted a refund, they told me it is a 48-hour turnaround to suspend on a weekend and it is in the terms, but I have not been sent a copy of the terms. The account manager was not interested until I asked to terminate my account. He then offered to refund one of the calls if I didn't term. When I agreed, he then refused to refund the call and told me to contact the customer. But the job was 9 days old by this time, so I termed my account.

Our family business was a member of ServiceMagic years back. I remember getting zero leads, but still having our credit card charged by them every month. We were told there is no monthly fee, you just pay per lead. So, we canceled them. About a year ago, my boss (grandfather) came to me and said ServiceMagic wanted us back again. I told him no, we lost a few hundred dollars the 1st time. He is 80 years old and trusts people more than me so he signed up. Once again, he was promised that if we get no leads, we pay nothing. I told my boss to get a prepaid credit card so at least when they steal money from you, there is a limit. Well he did that. He put $100 on a card and that is the card he used to sign up with ServiceMagic.

I get harassing collection calls and I don't have an account! - As a service professional, I signed up with ServiceMagic. They charged me more than the quoted rates for each lead and did not provide accurate leads (sent me work I'm not signed up to do). After weeks of being over charged with no resolution from ServiceMagic, I cancelled my account and contacted the BBB in Colorado. That actually prompted them to contact me and offer me a refund for the overcharges. I accepted the refund, and let them off the hook with the BBB - my mistake. They took several months and several people to finally mail my refund. The cherry on top is that on Fridays I receive a collections call from Service Magic saying that my account is overdue and I need to bring it current or they will take action. ServiceMagic calls every Friday to harass me and follows up Monday morning with the same call.

Service Magic lies to sign you up. I had previously used Service Magic to generate leads 3 years ago with very bad results. I got lots of phone numbers of people who wouldn't answer their phone to set an appointment. I was called by their rep, I explained how I was very unhappy with past results and their rep told me it had all changed. If I could set an appointment with the lead they send over, they were going to credit me the $50. Well, I got lied to again; that is not their policy. We had the rep's supervisor on the phone and he said his rep was not working under their guidelines. That’s nice but I got charge $500 for phone numbers of people who didn't answer their phone. Contractors beware; you will lose money with this service. Homeowners take your chances, if a company is not honest with one, they will not be honest with all.

Service Magic is exactly like other lead generation service. To the contractor, they promise they won't sell a lead to more than 3 contractors, giving you a fair chance to compete for business. The last lead I purchased for $70, and when I called the homeowner to schedule a time to view the work, the homeowner was pissed! I was the 12th contractor to call from Service Magic to ask about a project he had completed weeks earlier! So Service Magic not only sold me a bogus lead, they have sold the same bogus lead to 11 other contractors, and probably more after me! If you are running low on work already, keep your money in your pocket guys. This company will not solve the problem, but will be happy to make you even more broke!

Warranty not honored - Wolverine Asphalt company completed an asphalt driveway for me. It was a good job with the exception of a dip that gathers water. The owner has told me on several occasions that he would return to repair it, but has not done so. The warranty is for 10 years. I am very dissatisfied in the unprofessional manner in which this job has been handled.

I had ServiceMagic call me as I inquired about local house cleaning jobs for me to look at and possibly have family members work them, so me and the kids can survive and can get my bills all paid for the time being until the social security claim is processed. I've been out of work since Feb 2012. I was desperate, very depressed and unable to work due to over 3cm tarlov cyst and severe sciatica. This ServiceMagic company called me when I had only inquired about some home cleaning jobs. They asked name of my business and when I said I do not and have never had one, they created one for me and called it Peggy's Cleaning Service.

I was a former contractor for ServiceMagic. When I first signed up years ago, I was vetted by ServiceMagic. They made sure I had a business license, insurance, talked to a satisfied client, etc. A few years later, I signed up again and they did nothing to vet me. I thought nothing of it, thinking they had old credentials, although I found it odd that they did not want updated faxes (they were so strict before). It really showed very quickly. Most clients are finding contractors doing work for less than a legitimate business can do the jobs for. This may sound like a good deal for the homeowner, but read the reviews by homeowners here.

I spoke to a representative from Service Magic about having my land surveyed before installing a fence in my backyard. Two companies stood out: Elkins Survey and Tri Star Survey, but I chose Elkins because they assured me that the job would be completed within the week and we needed this done asap. Elkins called me on our scheduled date, 7/5 (Thurs), and said they could not make it until Friday - fine. They did not show up Friday. I called the next Monday, they said they would be there Wednesday...never showed. I went out of town, hoping they would show up while I was gone, nope.

In July 2009, on the recommendation of ServiceMagic, I hired Bishop Painting, LLC to repaint my Victorian two-storey house. Winsley Bishop, the owner, gave me a handwritten contract, specifying the work to be done, the time frame, and a statement that the paint was guaranteed for five years. The job extended way over the time frame, with the painters leaving to take other jobs before mine was finished. And it was not until November, with plastic covering the porch and space heaters, that it was completed. The cost overruns were in the thousands. I was told later by Mr. Bishop that his wife was the one who had written up the contract, that he had failed to review it, and that he needed more money. I refused to send the extra amount that he wanted, given all the problems and stress with getting the job done.

They won't honor promise lead credits - I am a real estate appraiser. I cannot appraise a property for a homeowner that needs the appraisal for financing if they are going to use any conventional financing options. The bank has to order the appraisal, oftentimes through appraisal management companies. I was told by three different ServiceMagic employees that these would be credited, but frequently, they will not credit these back. The homeowner might as well be asking me to replace his roof or kitchen sink. It is simply not an appraisal that I can do in good faith. I will be leaving now.

I am a sprinkler contractor. I have been with ServiceMagic for 9 years. I have a 4.9 rating with 568 reviews. I am very happy with their referral system. I get 75% of my leads through them. I close about 90% of all my leads. These contractors who complain about them are failing in their own business. They put the blame on the referral company. Only the hardest working contractors can benefit from this service. You have to work the leads. They’re not going to do it for you.

I've been a subcontractor for a long time and decided to try to do some contracting. I also registered with them for those '"leads". It’s not a surprise those leads were with disconnected numbers and one with a number of a clinic somewhere in Pittsburgh, PA. Of course, they refused to give me credit for those leads. What I think really happens here is these guys need to feed a lot of employees and pay for ads everywhere and I don't think they have enough real leads to generate good profit (at least in all areas). So, they need some extra profit and they generate somehow those bad leads. I won't speculate on how they do that or even that they actually do that or where there is a mistake in their service. But the fact that they refuse to accept that those numbers are really disconnected or fake and they don't check those numbers somehow tells that they just spin that money-making machine and don't really care about protecting their contractors or customers that need service.

The first company was a plumber. This was the second time they scheduled with me and either cancelled or didn't show up. I can't remember the name, but the woman didn't speak English too well. My main concern is a company called DDB Services. He came out on the 29th of June and gave us a $250.00 estimate to fix our countertop range and promised to call back on Monday. I gave him a $100.00 check. I haven't heard from him and he has no phone number on his receipt, so we are cancelling the check. Please do not send me any more referrals. I would never refer ServiceMagic to anyone.

This service sucks! I have been a contractor for over 25 years, and because of the weak economy, I thought signing up for ServiceMagic leads might give my business a boost. What a mistake! The leads are bogus; either the people don't get back to you, or they act like they are not interested in your service. After I pissed away approximately $300, I realized the people who are supposedly looking for work are in cahoots with ServiceMagic. They scam contractors out of money via electronic transfers from your account for leads that don't really exist. They don't even require insurance certificates from contractors which put homeowners at incredible risk. This alone says they are only interested in finding out what your checking account and routing numbers are. Make sure you cancel your bank account after you cancel your service, so they can't continue to drain your account!

I enrolled with them when I was working with a company, then we received a total of 18 leads that were useless because clients were not looking for contractors. Bogus leads and customers that when I call them were like, "Who are you?" So I changed with another construction company and I convinced my boss to give it a try and see. So we did. But this, she had the grand idea of going into the website as a client and as it turns out, the way ServiceMagic creates their website is call and they tell clients, "Help us plan your project," then the customers enters their info, which in a matter of minutes is being sent to a contractor in the area.

I got a phone call from Kyle who represented himself to be someone who can generate leads for my carpet cleaning business. All was great until I was trying to explain to him that this business model for getting customers would not work with my upper end service. When he got snappy and rude, I tried to ask him to not contact me again; but mid-sentence, I got the phone hung up in my ear. This man was rude and this Service Magic referral company smells of a rat. I wish companies like this would be illegal and rude people like Kyle shouldn't be allowed to have jobs where they are talking to people. Rude!

I used ServiceMagic to get 4 quotes on tree work. The guy from Tarzan came out and gave my neighbor and I quotes. I told him we had other companies giving us quotes to. I asked him, "If we were to call you back to hire, when is the soonest you could come out?" He said Monday. I received other bids and I and the neighbors decided to go with a different company. I never called Tarzan or the other bidders back. I then got a call from a tree company saying they couldn't make it out on schedule. I assumed it was the one I hired and not Tarzan. Today, while the tree service I had was here, Tarzan showed up. I never wanted any thing more than a bid from them. The secretary called me and said I confirmed their appointment (which I never called and initiated) and they were billing me from 10% of an estimate. She was extremely rude, yelling at me, calling me a liar and a **.

I signed up with ServiceMagic based largely on my brother's reportedly favorable experience. Well, having been in the construction industry for over 20 years, I can tell you that this is not the way to go if you are a service provider. I had a couple of leads provided by them which proved to be utterly useless. In one such case, the homeowner told me that, no, they were not looking for a contractor, and asked why I was calling. And others were the homeowner informed me that there was already some affiliates with ServiceMagic on site, this despite my having contacted the lead the instant that I received the message.

I am a contractor who entered into an agreement with ServiceMagic. I received one bogus lead (potential customer info not valid) and was charged a lead fee of $60. They refuse to credit this amount and are very rude on the phone. This is a scam. Do not use them either as a consumer or a contractor - you will be very disappointed. Not to mention, they will steal your money.

Rick has totally made my house windows look like crap. They don't work and ServiceMagic will do nothing. They said to contact you. This man has called me on the phone and screamed at me because I had someone else do the roof on my mom's house instead of him. I told him I was on a time limit and needed it done. He has hollered at me in my house because he ordered windows that were too small, then too large, and then one fell over in his truck and broke. I told them I didn't want him back at my house to finish the job. He called today and said (the 4th) new window didn't come in and he would be back on Thursday. ServiceMagic said they left him a message that he was not to come back. I do not want this bully back in my house. He has caused lots of stress, anger, and lost sleep over this project that has taken over a month and is still not complete. I have shutters off my house in the front, siding off in the back, and windows that don't fit or work. It is a terrible mess. Can you please help?

Mason work: total nightmare! I hired a company through ServiceMagic to do a cement driveway, brick-paver walk and steps. The pavers fell off the steps after the first day. There are half-inch gaps between each brick and the walk is completely off pitch. Forget the driveway - the whole thing needs to be ripped up and redone. As it turns out, this company lost their license two years prior to me hiring them. ServiceMagic does not follow up on accounts once they are approved on their site. You must do your own background checks. ServiceMagic will only reimburse for up to $500 - and I spent over $5,000. Now, I will be going to court. Don’t use Service Magic for any contractor recommendations - ever!

This is about bogus leads that they refuse to refund. Leads that do not check out by name or service were done over a week prior. They say that they do a background check. No, they don't. I was skeptical on the background check due to the fact they received the "go ahead" an hour after getting the information for me. I checked for a credit and background check for my information and no request from ServiceMagic ever showed up - which tells me that they never did the check. I cannot believe some people use this referral service exclusively. What a complete roll of the dice.

I signed up with this company to pick up work and I had to pay for each job to bid on, which they call leads. Anyhow, I was told roof jobs were $15 to $25 and additions and renovations were $20 to $45. Hell, when the bids came in, they charged me for a roof bid of $50 and the man would not return my call. I also had two other bids they charged me for and never got to bid on it or even get to talk to the customer. My renovation bid came in and was charged $75 because I was an exact match. Now what's an exact match? I'm stupid and should have seen the red flag when they want access to a credit card or checking account, so they can suck you dry. They got me for about $300 total and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm too far away to drive up there and beat their ass. They do bad business.

I paid over $40,000 to have a Gunite Pool installed last June. The whole process was a nightmare from them installing pool in the wrong spot in the yard to busting a main pipe under my patio when installing the winter cover. Now, I'm left with a pool which is getting ruined because of inappropriate ph levels because of faulty display board on my system and a malfunctioning filter. And he has not returned my phone calls and told the BBB that he has downsized and does not have the time to come or order my display which is still under warranty.

I have to agree with Robert. I, too, am a ServiceMagic contractor. I have found ServiceMagic to be fair and equitable in their resolution of disputes. I have, on occasion, challenged the quality of a lead and in most instances, ServiceMagic has agreed with me and reversed the charges. If you follow up on your leads and are diligent with your potential customers, you will have success. I have, on many occasions, worked for customers from other areas who I have never met and yet the contracts were signed, the work finished and the final payment received without any hassles. The service does work for truly excellent contractors. I too have a 4.94 rating with them (out of 5).

I received a phone call today from ServiceMagic stating that I owed them $265.00 and if not paid today, the matter would be turned over to collections. My response to them was that I have only received one call from ServiceMagic regarding a potential customer. The first time that I was contacted by ServiceMagic, I was not told that I would be expected to pay for any leads that I received. I was only told that if I was asked to do the work by the customer, that I would pay ServiceMagic a percentage upon completion of the job. ServiceMagic also stated that I would receive an email, as well as a text message regarding the lead. The one and only lead that I received was a phone call from ServiceMagic. I have never received any other communications from them whatsoever and now they are asking for $265.00.

I have been with ServiceMagic for 8 years. I have a 4.9 rating with 500 reviews. I have never had an issue with them that wasn't resolved professionally and fair for both sides. These people complaining don't know how to use a referral company. It takes work. ServiceMagic can only give you the leads. If you are good, then you should be able to take it and work it into something successful. I close about 80% of all leads. It works for me. Those complaining are those failing in their own business. To work it, you must be the best of the best.

Signed up for ServiceMagic. They said they have leads for service calls, well they don’t. They sell you web searches and say those are leads and they don’t refund your money. They are the biggest scam.

I work for a great moral roofing company, but leads were a little slow and as being an independent contractor for the company, I wanted to bring in some extra leads. So, I contacted ServiceMagic and set up an account with them. After receiving just a few leads, I found that most of them were filled with wrong numbers and emails or came to me a week after the customer had sent in their request for a contractor.

I checked ServiceMagic for good contractors to replace existing gutters on my house. Within minutes of completing the online questions, I received a call from Randy ** with Skytech Skylights & Gutters. He came out & emailed me an estimate. I advised him I would like for them to do the work and then the trouble began. Every time I had a conversation with anyone with Skytech Skylights & Gutters, they asked me the colors I had chosen. Randy and I had discussed this at length and I had made my choices. But no one seemed to have that information.

I hired a contractor through Service Magic for a new fence. He finished the fence, but still had to cut two of the posts at the gate and put the caps on all posts. I made the mistake of paying in full and he never showed up to finish the job. I had given him a good review trusting that he would come back as promised to finish. Two weeks later, I called Service Magic to ask to change my review. They told me I couldn't do it, but they would. I dictated what I wanted written in the review. They assured me they would change the old review, but nothing has changed. I called again, sent emails, but nobody answers my emails and on the phone they lie by telling me the reviews was changed. They say that they do a thorough check on the contractors, but I am sure that's not true. Do not hire Service Magic contractors.

We are receiving calls from all over the country on a privately listed phone number regarding a roofing job. We never even heard of this company. Someone gave them our information without our knowledge, and there is no way to contact their customer service.

Drywall - The company we hired got paid and left the job unfinished. It looks like crap and is unrepairable.

Your first question when trying to get a contractor/service person is, "Are you this company or are you ServiceMagic?" I researched companies for new windows and new countertops. When I called the numbers listed for the companies in which I was interested online, people answered and took my personal information (phone, address, etc.). Only after they had my personal information did they inform me that they were not employees of the firms but of ServiceMagic - and then only because I demanded that they tell me the truth. I told them to forget it, but within minutes I had all sorts of people calling my house and bugging me.

I used ServiceMagic to find a mold remediation specialist. I needed my basement to be tested in order to get a home equity loan. Pure Energy Pro responded immediately to my inquiry. We set up an appointment for Jeremy ** to come do the mold tests. He was punctual and the tests were completed. I expected mold to be present. It was a hot, humid summer day in August and my home is more than 200 years old. The floor is dirt and the walls are granite. Mold was found to be present and in order to proceed with the loan, I contracted with Jeremy ** to perform mold removal services. The job cost is $3235. His contract specified that $2000 (cash or check, no credit card) be paid in advance. A credit card payment would have insured his work be done to my satisfaction but he didn't accept credit cards. Now, I know why.

On 4/10/2012, I contacted ServiceMagic to inquire about a carpet cleaner. I specified that two of the rooms had some spots. This was because when I moved, I had a box with shampoo. The Carpet Magic company was provided based on the description of problems. I soon got a call from a man named Michael. We scheduled the cleaning for 4/13/2012 between the hours of 1 and 3 p.m. with a 30-minute call. Michael showed up without calling at 1:07 p.m. I told him that I needed the 30-minute call. He said that he did not have another cleaning and that he was going to wait outside until I was ready. He never told me that I needed to vacuum clean the carpet.

Their leads are inaccurate. Prices for leads differ greatly without rhyme or reason. There were late night leads just before the end of the day without positive outcome. Leads on computer are timed differently than the push onto my phone. However, they are always on time with drawing funds every Friday!

I had one sensor on my alarm system that needed to be repaired/replaced and I wanted a short term security monitoring contract using a cell device. Security Pros from Service Magic said they could honor both of my requests. The system failed on the second day. It has a battery failure because the technician used a receptacle that didn't have power. I called the monitoring company (Security Networks) to find out why no one called me about the failure. I was told that I didn't have an account with them. There were so many different stories about who installed the equipment and who did or didn't do the monitoring I had the system removed and stopped payment. When they came back to disconnect their system, they also disconnected all of my sensors. I would not recommend Service Pros. They do not do alarm system monitoring. They charged me $381.

I had had an account with them, but they were sending me leads I didn't get or couldn't get a hold of. So I told them I was disputing what they said I owed them. They never got back with me and I started getting calls from collection companies.

Very misleading when they said you will get a credit. They only credit your Service Magic account, not your checking account. We cancelled with Service Magic because of out of area leads and information we received about the fees were incorrect.

I signed up as a health care vendor. I was charged for numerous leads where the potential client did not want our specific service or never answered the phone (most likely a fake number) or was told to never call them back or was out of our service area. I realized that I could ask to dispute these types of calls. In the end I received a $54 credit on the account. I cancelled my service and was told they would not credit my previously charged credit card. That the $54 credit was merely a courtesy and was for in house purposes only. Due to the fact I only secured 1 client over the past 5 months, I have lost more than $54. I would not recommend this referral company to a colleague.

I have used ServiceMagic successfully in the past. This time, besides the four names given to me, I started getting calls from other very aggressive contractors not on the list. No one called and they told me no one else should call. They would investigate and call me back. They never called back and the calls continue from aggressive contractors, who have only the info I provided ServiceMagic, who said they got my info off the Internet. Either ServiceMagic is giving info to more contractors than they tell you, or they have a breach and are not dealing with it. I've had these contractors go to the extent of coming to my house. This is horrendous. I won't do business with them anymore.

I used this site to find someone dependable to remodel and repair a bathroom. I had a bad experience with trying to pick my own person and figured this would be safe. Wrong! I was better off finding someone off the street. The contractor that was recommended was unorganized, the work was rushed and sloppy and not even completed on time. A thousand things were promised and very few were delivered. If you live in the Miami area and Service Magic recommends Cutting Edge Solutions, don't use them! Their contractor is a money hungry liar!

I have been signed up with ServiceMagic for about five weeks. Of the seven leads sent to me, only two have been anywhere near serious "customers". One is a broke single mom with 4 kids who just wants to know how much it will cost to have her basement built in. The other has someone already working on their bath, but wants me to give them advice as to whether it's being done right! Out of the others, one man told me where to go and hung up. One politely said she wanted everyone to stop calling and remove her number from our list. Three have never answered my calls or e-mails nor called back on my messages. ServiceMagic is a fraud.

while I don't condone Mr. Limbaugh's choice of words in the public forum of talk radio, I feel as if Service Magic simply joined the drone of political side taking. Mr. Limbaugh's comments, while uncalled for, were certainly no less inflammatory than remarks in the public arena from those such as Bill Maher, Ed Shultz, Maxine Waters or for that matter the vice president of the United States. I refused this morning to advertise with Service Magic and will refuse to deal with any other company that has handled themselves in this way. Such obvious overreaction smacks of caving to political leanings and is undeserving of any positive response.

Hardwood stairs were put down in December 2011, and by February 2012, the stairs are all lifting up. I try to get in touch with the individual to come back and fix the problem, and up until now, no success.

Just to let Fix It Fast/Service Magic know, as long as you sponsor Rush Limbaugh in any media format, I will not use your services or your affiliated providers. I am going to actively work with relatives, friends, and acquaintances to boycott all Rush Limbaugh sponsors. Lastly, wow, are you guys behind the eight ball for not getting out of this bind by now?

I have been a roofing contractor for over 28 years. After trying Service Magic for just a couple of weeks, I found that only one out of 10 leads were legitimate. The first lead I received was a non-working number. The second was a hoax performed by kids. The third lead wouldn't call us back. We received two leads that had already signed with other companies when we promptly called them. One customer refused to allow us to come out because they were looking for a remodeler, not a roofer. Five following leads could not be reached and would not call us back. After complaining to Service Magic, I was informed that they would e-mail these last five that would not call us back and see if these customers would respond. They did not.

I am a contractor who signed up to get leads in our area. We were told by the salesman that they currently had leads for us. We received leads for areas that were hours away. These leads were either for services we do not provide or were just too far away. When we were charged for these leads, we called SM to complain and we were treated very poorly. We talked to many people and when told that someone would call back, they never did. We cancelled our account, but could not get reimbursed for all the useless leads. We spoke with many different levels of management and they still would not even consider returning the money they took from us for a service they did not provide. They stole our money and they do not care. When I would call the leads to tell them that I could not help them, they would get very annoyed. I don't blame them. Everybody makes mistakes. Only the decent companies own up to them; ServiceMagic will not own up.

Years ago our business was contacted by Service Magic offering to give pre-qualified leads for the services my company offers. In short, they charge hundreds of dollars for leads that are hundreds of miles away for "maybe" type fishing expeditions that people are requesting bids on and that are not even the type of work that we offer professional installation of. The more I contact Service Magic to tell them to take me off their call, email and fax lists, the more junk spam I get from them. I have had to threaten them with a cease and desist order to get them to stop filling my fax machine with junk leads. Their service reps are very polite but their sales staff is pushy, hateful, rude and nasty. They demand you do business with them or else.

ServiceMagic called and informed me of an online generating service. Leads were between $45 and $65 per lead. They allowed me to put a cap of $500 per month on the bill. I agreed to their terms. After the third month I got a bill for $781.80. They could not tell me why and refused to do anything about it. I disputed it on my Bank of America card but they said it would have to be a specific line item charge on my credit card bill. But it was only the amount over $500.00 I could dispute so the Bank of America said I could not dispute it. I closed the account. I would not use ServiceMagic ever again.

I am a veteran in dire need of work. In short, of all the leads I've been provided, only two have led to a contract. Approximately, 75% of the leads are for consumers that are just testing the waters and have no intention of moving forward with the work anytime in the near future. We're talking years in many cases, if at all or the consumer can't be reached, i.e. refuses to answer or return phone calls/emails. Service Magic does not give credit for these fruitless leads. So far, I have been billed nearly $1000 for the so called leads but the resulting work has been a pittance. Furthermore, Service Magic does not mention the fact that they give no credit for 'unable to contacts' or 'just testing the waters' scenarios when they make their sales pitch. I for one am going to see what the BBB has to say about this. They are preying on people that really need work and their practices are deceptive at the very least.

I'm not sure if they are a scam, but they are deceptive in their sales practices. As a contractor, I went through the phone sign up process, which includes a general terms and agreement phase. On one, I took exception to being billed up to $400.00 a month for leads. The sales representative, Ms. ** said not to worry and that they would agree to bill me for one lead a week. Long story short, they billed me $753.00 for a month and a half service. When I asked them about it, their account manager stated, "you agreed to $400.00 a month." Deceptive? You decide. Anyway, out of 17 "leads" non panned out. Most never returned phone calls or emails and when I was able to contact someone, they seemed surprised or irritated that I called.

I asked ServiceMagic if they had any tree service that would work without charge for disadvantaged seniors. I have a dead tree branch about to fall on my roof and as an 80 year old on welfare, I can't afford to have it removed. ServiceMagic knew all of this but still referred me to three companies without telling them I couldn't pay for service. The tree removal companies were extremely upset because the reference cost them $20 each (they told me this) and one man even phoned me back three times, cursing at me for a charge he'd have to pay to ServiceMagic for a negative reference. Bad stuff!

On1 1/01/2011, I engaged in a written and signed contract for remodeling of a property I own in Florida located at *** *** ave, Longwood, Florida 32750. The person who I signed the agreement with is Kevin **. This individual is a handyman who actually with other hired subcontractors did the work. He allegedly acts and contracts under the following qualifying certified contractor: Fernando **

When I asked for a quote on painting our kitchen I was called by PaintCrew.com. When I checked the phone number it was listed no number. I also call them at ** to cancel my appointment at 1:00. The person took down my info and said due to technical difficulty they would have to call me back. Shady company!

Two months ago or so, we filed a complaint against Service Magic in regards to a company they referred called Reese's Pressure Cleaning. After a long battle of proving our case against Reese's Pressure Cleaning, Service Magic finally came through under their "Service Guarantee" policy, refunding us $500 of the $600 we spent with Reese's. They discovered through the before and after photos that we were right. So in closing, Service Magic did the right thing and Reese's Pressure Cleaning was and still is a bad company because in the end, it's really up to them to make it right.

I hired an electrical contractor through Service Magic who showed up twice completing less than a third of the contracted work. When I complained to Service Magic, they didn't bother to call back for several weeks. When they finally called, they were spewing some ** lies told to them by the contractor. They didn't even listen to my description of the problem; they just took the word of the scumbag contractor. Remember folks, they earn their money from the contractors, so they will take their side every time. By the way, they only promise you a $500 refund, which is little solace after being ripped off for thousands.

They charged me for leads I did not ask for. They used my company name to get leads on the internet without asking or telling me. They used my cleaning company name with their telephone number on a website.

This is not a good service! The leads they send you are not all real leads. I had two leads the same week that had bad phone numbers. The people selling to you are getting paid by the leads. Yes, you can call and get credits, but it is not easy. I tried 20 leads and found that one was "ok". The lead rates compared to the work you get is so far off. Try it for yourself like I did--even after three people who had tried it warned me not to. I only want people to know it's not what they sell it to be. Very hard to get credits unless you go to the cancel department.

I received a phone call this morning from "Brad", claiming I had registered my business with ServiceMagic.com. I know I have not registered my business with any 3rd party businesses or websites. The guy who called me did not even have the correct name for my business. After reviewing comments on this and three other websites, I wont be returning his call. Thanks people, for your comments.

Service Magic called me and 'pushed' their services. They said that they will provide me leads for my handyman services. I received about 12 leads, only one was a real lead. 5 leads were already taken or stopped. They agreed to credit me for one lead only. 6 other leads, the customer did not return back the calls or did not meet me to see the job. Service magic kept telling me it was not their problem. I do not know how they are still allowed to operate with their fraudulent practices. I stopped the account after two agonizing weeks.

I signed up for ServiceMagic with the hopes of growing my small construction company. An enthusiastic salesmen promised me with world in order to get my credit card. From there, I was met with high monthly charges for "leads" that were unreachable, or on the odd occasion, I did contact someone they would inform me that they had no project to complete and the lead sent to me was a result of error. The salesmen who opened my account promised me that these types of leads were eligible for credit if the proper procedures were followed. However, after most of the requests were denied, I found out ServiceMagic does very little to resolve these issues.

Service Magic was trying to recruit our business over the phone promising leads for work in our area. They demanded SS#, date of birth and other private info to do a "background check" over the phone. And when we grew suspicious and asked them to send us something in the mail, they got all defensive. This is bad business practice. If you know in the state of Florida to be a licensed building contractor you already have to undergo lenghty background checks and fingerprinting, I find them ignorant and out to defraud the building trades.

I needed two jobs done. I first noticed that two contractors came to look at the job and neither had trucks. They both came with copies of their licenses. I chose one who seemed okay. I let him know that I had secured the funds so he requested on Monday to meet Friday and we would have to give him 25k; the two jobs combined to just under 40k. When I promptly responded that we can do 1/2 and 1/2 on the 6k job, which was to be done first, and then the standard This is a red flag! I googled the particular contractor up by name and his track record wasn't pretty. I hate to even give them a one star.

I started a Service Magic account with high hopes of growing my 2 man handyman business into a larger company. As it turned out, I ended up receiving leads that were bogus and dead ends. As a small business in a tough market, I could not afford to lose money. However, Service Magic automatically deducted $72.00 from my bank account without my approval. The kicker to the story is that I had closed the account several days prior to the charge. 6 months later, I'm still fighting and arguing with Service Magic reps and supervisors. They will not let me speak directly with anyone in the billing department, account managers or anyone with authority to help me with this matter.

We had just bought a new house that was only 10 years old. The deck was grey and needed to be restored and stained, so we looked online for local contractors and discovered ServiceMagic, who recommended Reese's Pressure cleaning. This guy, we felt he over charged us; but still we proceeded to use him. He totally led us to believe that all we need is to pressure wash, brighten and stain to make it look "brand new." His words. He went on to boast of the chemicals that he used, so we trusted in what he said. This guy totally ruined our decks. The first step broke, cracked and splintered the whole works. We contacted the contractor. No response. We contacted ServiceMagic which told him to contact us.

I had a service call for 85.00 dollars. I was not paying attention as I was expecting Cassidy's Plumbing Company (who came and gave a free estimate). I would give 5 stars to Cassidy. I would give no stars to Finnegan.

Through service magic, I hired Fresh Start Cleaning Services. They sent different people in bi-weekly to clean and I asked that the same people clean each time. I complained 3 times about the inadequate cleaning service and got no where. They did not clean as indicated on what they service claims. Horrible customer service and the house was left in a mess.

Service magic has stolen leads from our company. We have not worked for them for four months; we shut them down but they still are advertising our company. People looking up my company called them, and Service Magic tells them that we are no longer taking any work, and they send it to other contractors, so they get paid. A former customer lost my phone number and looked me up under handyman, the number he had gotten was Service Magic. I had not worked for them in four months. I called service magic four times and emailed them about this matter and didn't hear from them. I would love to see someone remove advertising for my company with Service Magic.

We agreed to a contract with ServiceMagic in January 2010 to have them provide leads for our building business. Of the 72 "leads" that they supplied, only 2 were valid. The others were either non responsive or not interested. ServiceMagic automatically charged us for over $3,500.00 for these bogus leads. The last "lead" they provided turned out to be a crack house where we were told to "Get the ** off the property or I'll shoot you!"

I also am a contractor with Service Magic and I have been noticing they have been deducting more money out of my account. I have called them and told them I'm not even getting the jobs and they're like, "Sorry, but we can't do anything about the problem." I've been thinking about dropping them. I haven't decided yet though.

A civil lawsuit was filed on October 19, 2011 in United States Federal Court against ServiceMagic, Inc., their subsidiary, Market Hardware, and Market Hardware's CEO Brian Kraff for bad faith business practices, unfair and deceptive trade practices, unfair competition, cyber squatting, and other serious violations of law. If you are a service contractor and have ever had a complaint against ServiceMagic, Inc, please consider downloading and completing the affidavit form provided at our website: ***

Back in 2010, I became a Service Magic contractor; they send me leads and paid for them. Most of the time, I couldn't get a hold of the customer, or when I did get a hold of them, they stated that they never requested the service or that they had an appointment with someone else. A lot of these leads were supposed to be exact match leads, and if they were exact match leads, why were they sent to multiple contractors?

I have, as a contractor, been taken advantage of by ServiceMagic as I have paid several thousand dollars in leads and have not had any work from their lead program. They do not replace bad leads as they say they would. I think the way to fix their lead program is to let the homeowners know that their contractors are paying a hefty price for their leads. Also, prescreen a little better on their part.

A rep named Josh contacted my business, asking if we wanted re-model work. I explained to him no and advised him to contact Home Builders Assoc of Southern Indiana for contacts. He then asked if we were out of business and made insulting comments asking why we don't need the work, etc. He was very unprofessional and he should have said okay and goodbye when we first responded with no instead of making rude and insulting comments.

I have hired different contractors through Service Magic and they all were good except one. The name of the house cleaning company is "Fresh Start." On August 3, 1010, a cleaning lady that worked for Fresh Start, cleaned my house. On finishing the cleaning of one of the bathroom bath faucet, she commented to me if I realized that that particular bath faucet leaked. I told her that that faucet did not leak.

I called a number listed on the internet to schedule an estimate for refacing cabinets. After I gave the person who answered the phone my number, she said "I see you have done business with Service Magic before". I replied that I had not contracted with any company through Service Magic. I told them I thought Service Magic was a ripoff company because my husband got ripped off by them to get leads for his business. He is still trying to get rid of them. They charged a lot of money for their "leads", which are mostly bogus. I hung the phone up and about an hour later, a man called from the cabinet refacing company so I know they gave him my number even though I told them not to send anyone. I'm sure this man is going to get "charged" for the "lead" even though I have no intention of doing business with him. I made it very plain that I did not want to have anything to do with Service Magic and they still gave my number to the business.

I hire them to get leads and that's when my nightmare started. They send leads that don't want any job done, people looking for jobs, and other kinds of person that don't pick up their phone. I had to pay for all that; then I cancel but they keep on. Now I have found out that I have a balance of $556.00 dollars after a year that I cancelled. That company is a fraud to the people who is looking for a better future.

My overall experience as a vendor with Service Magic is less than 1 star.

I went on ServiceMagic site to find a person to clean, inspect, and repair my chimney. I chose Kenny's Masonary and chimney sweep with a 4.56 out of 5 rating. Kenny refused to check anything outside like the roof flashing or brick on the outside. He took a brush and ran up the chimney a couple of times. He told me he would clean out the bottom clean out area for an additional $20. I told him that is part of cleaning the chimney, but he refused. He was at the house no more than 15 min and charged $125. I complained to ServiceMagic and tried to give Kenny a bad rating, but I kept getting an error message. I contacted ServiceMagic and they told me they would submit my rating for me. However, Kenny still has a 4.56 rating and no rating from me.

I hired them and got ripped off. I found these reviews after the fact. So, here's my question: if ServiceMagic is a fraudulent scam, how does the BBB have them rated A-? That's pretty good rating. Is BBB a scam too? Do they pay for their rating?

I used ServiceMagic as a lead referral service. The leads would come to my cell phone via email, text & call. I would call these leads back within 5 minutes (max) & the consumer already "found someone". Other leads I would call then leave messages (more than one) & I would never receive a call back. Other numbers were disconnected when I call back. The reason for my complaint is that ServiceMagic is still advertising using my business name & mailing address but is using the service magic number. With their continuous advertising it could lead to possible loss of my business. I can get possible complaints against my business, loss of income and defamation of character.

Prices are rising on bad service and bad leads are always generated. Now, they are rising fees. Not only did they rip us off but they also reduced our territory. We have to pay more for extending it. I don't understand why a company of this nature is permitted to act this way in the middle of recession. These people are trying to double their profits. I charge between $50 - $150 per cleaning a medium-sized carpet. With this kind of hike, I will have no profits. They are taking all your money. They left us with just pennies on a one time job. We survive with frequented or recurring customers; however, they don't provide us with any of those.

Service Magic gave me three names of handyman to fix the drip of the faucet. I chose Miguel to do the job. Miguel fixed the drip of the faucet but failed to put the base of the faucet correctly. I called him on August 19 and he promised to come on August 20 at 10 am. He did not show as promised. I called him and left a message which remained unanswered. I have already paid him $75 for the job and I expect him to put the base correctly.

I was sent a lead end of July. I called the lead up and found that it was not a good lead.

After several conversations with the sales rep and being offered a no fee chance to try their service I reluctantly decided to try them. they assured me that they would get me quality leads for fabricating and installing laminate counter tops. After 90 days with them they sent me two leads. The first lead the lady wanted a piece of a post form counter top 29 inches wide and 4 inches deep for the back of a slide in stove.

I signed up to use Service Magic for "carpentry remodeling" leads. I was told when I signed up that the leads are screened and if I ever had a problem with lead "information not correct, misleading lead work scope, etc.," the company would issue you a credit for that lead.

Service Magic harassed us on joining their company, offering great web space meaning, in turn, we would get more customers. We did sign up with them and I noticed right away that something was wrong. The first lead (a job they set up for you when a customer calls) was okay. It stopped, there was no answer, no contact info, even just an inquiry and we still got charged for everyone. If it stopped there and there were no other problems, I would have been so lucky. They debit money you owe them for leads on a weekly basis. I had been told without a shadow of a doubt that they never ever refund money into a bank account. They only credit your account. Okay, not great and I'm starting to rethink the situation.

I have been using Service Magic for about 2 years to the tune of $5,000. I got a lead yesterday for $82. I call the customer and they told me that the information was incorrect. I requested a credit but Service Magic denied the credit request twice within the same day. They owe me $72 of a balance. They told me that they are not set up to give refunds. So another $72 is down the drain. Has anyone considered a class action lawsuit against this corporate monster?

This is in response to your letter regarding Service Magic, Inc. and the collection of $1,755.00. This company violated every condition given to me when they initially sold me their "bill of goods." The calls from them to sign up for their service were borderline harassment. When I finally agreed to temporarily use their service, I followed up on every "qualified lead" they gave me. That was the first violation. The leads they provided were not qualified. None of the leads resulted in any business to me. When I tried to call them to cancel the service, not only were they difficult to contact, they refused to cancel the service and continued to charge my credit card.

I have spent hours on the phone on 3 different occasions convincing someone at Comcast to send a technician to help me with 2 problems-- wireless connection and unable to use my remote. I was able after many painful, humiliating, frustrating conversations to get service calls scheduled 3 different times. Each time, the service call was cancelled and I was notified via an electronic message saying the problem was fixed in my area. I have been paying for wireless service since December 2010 and was never able to use it. My TV remote does not work. I simply cannot fix these problems by walking through the solutions on the phone which Comcast forces me to do every time I call, until they finally scheduled a service call only to cancel it the next day.

Service Magic is making millions from the contractors and the home owner by scamming them and cheating people. Do not share your info with them. Be careful, trust me, I spend a lot of money. Do not do the same mistake. Do not give them your email because they will spy on you on line, also they have different company called Contractor.com. Many people are suffering right now but Service Magic doesn't care the only thing they care about is your money and your credit card.

I had an account with Service Magic as a residential designer. They never screened their leads at all. When I would call on a lead, the customer would usually say that they just clicked the submit button and they couldn't believe that I called so quickly. Out of over 20 leads, I met two people and signed one contract.

I was first contacted by a ServiceMagic representative who, at that time, had called me many times before, and the answer to join was always no. This time, he said that I could tryout the service for $99 one-time membership fee plus a start-up bundle of $200, for the cost of only $150. If i do not like the service, I do not have to use it and that I would only pay for leads I accepted.

Service Magic is anything but magic. I chose a contractor from their referral suggestions. The job was not completed. The cost to repair (what was done wrong) is crazy. The contractor bond was all spent on legal awards to previous lawsuits. The contractor's license has been revoked. Now, you would think that someone who pre-screens their contractors, would know about this? On top of these issues, Service Magic will not allow me to post a review. They say it's too harsh and doesn't meet their guidelines. We are all better off throwing a dart at a list and use that contractor.

I have tried Servicemagic a couple of times and both times received such bad referrals or leads that it ended up being a waste of time. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. They don't qualify any leads at all. Getting in contact with the person is nearly impossible and that's how I know they don't qualify their leads. On one of the leads that Servicemagic sent me, I asked the person about how SM got their info and they said all they did was filled out a form and there was never any verification. It turns out they were just curious about how much it would cost to redo their kitchen. And I paid for this.I ended up wasting time and money for what turned out to be bad leads. I did find another company called Find Professionals Now and at least they verified their leads.

I signed up to get leads for my small business. They stole my likeness and name! They put their phone number with my name in search engines and websites without me knowing it and effectively stole my internet traffic and sold it to me and other contractors. I have lost thousands of dollars in leads and business by giving these crooks my info to use to rope in unsuspecting consumers! They thought they were contacting me, but got ServiceMagic's crooked sales people who lied to them instead.

We hired a GC recommended by ServiceMagic to complete a renovation in our home. He in turn hired a plumber from ServiceMagic, as his regular guy was busy. This plumber procured a new fireplace, installed a tank less hot water heater, and did a few other installs for us. We figured he would be fine because he was ServiceMagic screened. The renovation is over and all the bills have been paid. But the plumber did not pay the Fireplace Company for any of the products he purchased which are now installed in our house. The supplier has now put a mechanic's lien on our house. Our GC paid the plumber in full, even extra to ensure that all of the work got done in time. But this guy never paid his suppliers and we are getting dragged into court. The plumber will also not take out phone calls. So, we have had to hire a lawyer.

They do not check the qualifications of the people that they list for home improvement. They sent an inexperienced tile person who did a terrible job. The tiles are starting to crack just days after installation. The person took my money and left his worker there. He never returned to examine the job. Service Magic avoid them. They don't check out their referrals for professionalism and experience. They need to be shut down.

Beware: Service Magic is a rip-off organization. Regardless of their cutesy ads, this company rips off the consumer. Promises verified leads for work and produces false and misleading trails. This company is currently threatening because of non-payment on bogus leads.

I contacted ServiceMagic in August 2010 to have a three panel fence installed, by J. Gardner Construction Company at 248-996-5199. What a joke! The owner of the company sent his brother to install the fence. The fence was uneven. He used the wrong brackets. The poles were uneven. What a sloppy job! The brother of J. Gardner took three weeks to complete the job. He was digging holes in the yard in the wrong place. I had to buy more cement because he had his measurements wrong. And he charged me additional fees because of his error. At this time, I contacted ServiceMagic to advise them of the poor workmanship. They stated that they would contact J. Gardner Construction Company. They made contact with the company which contacted me two weeks later. They stated that they would take a look at the work, which they never did.

Service Magic has taking me through so much. Service Magic charge me for bogus calls. I didn't even received the leads, also I found out later that Service Magic charge you for leads that was assigned to other people. My biggest charges was $1,300.00 through Service Magic. I received disconnected number, unanswered phone information and people saying they didn't put in a request for cleaning. Also, you have some of their Sale Associate that is very nasty. Something needed to be done.

They told me that I pay them for the leads that they give me for work. They said they would give me 3 or 4 leads a week but they sent close to 23 in 3 weeks. Most of the leads did not pan out. I never got any work from them. I tried to close my account but they say I owe them money, so they won't close it. I refuse to pay them. I did not sign a contract or anything with them but they are threatening to send it to collections.

Do not use ServiceMagic. They are a horrible and mean company. They sent us fraudulent leads one right after another then took our money . When I tried to get talk to them and get credit, they would only ignore the situation that was happening. They are mean to me also. The contractor relations department treated me horribly. Finally, they took my money, took my credit that they owed me and cancelled my account. They said it was because I complained too much.

On the complete opposite side of things, if you are a "valid, trustworthy and completely legitimate contractor", I highly recommend that you use ServiceMagic, Inc. As a very successful owner of one of the premier interior design and building companies in Denver, Colorado, I have seen tremendous success by using ServiceMagic. Their business model makes perfect sense! If you can pass a background check, meaning absolutely no felonies, no liens or judgments and have no bankruptcies, then you are considered a legit contractor and have the right to become a part of ServiceMagic.

I am an interior designer in the Washington,D.C area. I signed up for trial service with Service Magic. The leads that I received were for contracting or landscape services, not interior design service. They sent me two months worth of leads but since they mistook my credit card info. they could not access my account. Now they have the credit collection company coming after me to pay up $379. I told them that I would only pay $200 for the leads that were given even though they were not for my services or people were not interested in my service as the lead indicated.

The only magic about this company is their ability to scam. I am a contractor, I have an ad on Google Place. Today I checked my Place page ad and found that Servicemagic had attached links to their website on my Place Page. They did this by placing false reviews in the reviews section that leads to their web site. They also placed photos in the section for photos of my work, when these photos are clicked on to enlarge they connect to Servicemagic web site. They are trying to steal potential customers from me. I am wondering if this is considered fraud. These photos were falsely submitted and the reviews have nothing to do with me. Servicemagic is just trying to steal my advertising. What honest company does this? I believe this just proves that they are dishonest.

I have used ServiceMagic for years whenever I needed a contractor for my home. I think if ServiceMagic would check my records in their database, they will see I have used their contractors in their database many times. I had a huge project I needed done and I contacted ServiceMagic to send me a list of contractors. I wanted to do some home improvements that consisted of drywall work, installing a bathroom so a plumber was needed, and someone to paint my home. After talking with several contractors sent to me by ServiceMagic, I decided to go with Drywall Masters and Repair. Larry ** is the contractor. Larry turned out to be very terrible. He has taken $2700.00 of my money and has not completed the work. It is not until I started to experience problems that I went online, and to my shock, were many complaints on this man. I was so disappointed that I had trusted ServiceMagic to screen their contractors that I did not even think to go online to check this man out because that was why I was using ServiceMagic. ServiceMagic was supposed to take that portion of the headache away so I could focus on deciding which contractor I wanted to use.

I have been a loyal customer of ServiceMagic since Sept. 2008. I am a painting contractor in Southern California. I, on numerous occasions, have tried talking with representatives from ServiceMagic regarding their unscrupulous practices of providing substandard and not verified leads to me, and can never get anything but apologies and **. I am amazed at how vague their screening process is and they beg to differ. I continuously receive bogus leads where customers don't own homes, are renters and have no authority to get work done, shoppers who want over-the-phone pricing and will not let you in there homes, bad contact info, and people who just try to get or think that they will get a price off their website and have no intent of hiring anyone.

Avoid Service Magic's lead program. They blatantly swindle business customers.

Mr. D. was referred along with 2 other painters for an exterior house paint job. The job was not done as discussed in the agreement. Service Magic was called in to mediate the problem. Service Magic is an advertising company pushing their clients. They could not mediate the many problems nor would they post my comment about the contractor. They have no credibility. I’m not sure whether I received a quality paint job or not since the contractor never came to see the final inspection and they did not send a representative.

I am (or was) one of the contractors that Service Magic conned into handing over my credit card number to them. I agreed to let service magic send me leads because they were offering a $99 credit for new contractors. I was told that the leads would cost $3 each after the credit was used. They also told me that many leads would be free of charge because service magic received so many leads that they didn't have enough contractors to return all the calls. It was as if I would be doing them a favor for handling this overflow work, & saving their reputation by returning the calls for them. Soon after accepting this "cheap or free" means of meeting new clients, the phone rang many times daily with new leads pouring in faster than I could deal with. My own well established clientele was also calling for work to be done as well. I had no need for this amount of new business and just didn't respond to the recorded calls from service magic.

I'm glad to see that other people have complained about ServiceMagic being a total scam company. I had been looking on-line for a carpet cleaning service in my area. I came across the ServiceMagic website and it appeared to be a legitimate service. I filled in the requested information and about five minutes after I hit the send button, my phone starting ringing. Thing was this was 12:30 AM on a Sunday!