Metro Snow & Ice Management

Rating: 2.7 out of 5

Metro Snow & Ice Management reviews (438)

  • Review from Sandy Shaw
    Rating: 5 out of 5
    Review left on 13 Apr 2017

    Great Service, Great Company

    This is our first year with Metro having used a snowblower for many years. Their service in Barrhaven was superb. They quickly cleared our double driveway and returned for the city snowplow pile at the end of the drive. Ken Dale kept his customers informed by email when there was snow event and gave estimates on when the Metro plow would be out. He also provided updates during the multiple storms we had in the 2016-2017 season. So very, very happy with their service and will renew our contract next year. I have no complaints and highly recommend the company.

    Answer from pro:

    Many thanks for this Sandy. Myself and all staff appreciate the positive words. Ken

    Reply created 13 Apr 2017
  • Review from Amy Gartner
    Rating: 0 out of 5
    Review left on 5 Apr 2017

    Worst thing about this company is the owner

    The owner is the problem with this company I've been reading all these reviews, and I have been a client for 10 years, first with Appleseed then with Metro, and I have to say, the replies back from the owner show what a mismanaged company this is. Instead of taking constructive criticism, he fires back at everybody. Yeah, I'm blunt, I don't tickle ears, I only like good customers, well, if half your customer base is upset, then you aren't doing your job. He only likes "good" customers, so basically shut up and take our crappy service? Not this customer, never again. Never the first on site, crappy removal of snow, my laneway was never fully cleared. But the worst thing about this company is the rude and belligerent owner who can't take a step back from his ego and treat customers with respect and courtesy. At the very least get someone else to be your mouthpiece and for the love of god, proofread your emails. And client satisfaction isn't just "did you plow my driveway?" It's the whole package.
  • Review from HomeOwner
    Rating: 2 out of 5
    Review left on 4 Apr 2017

    Snow Removal Ottawa

    This was the second year with Metro they bought Appleseed and from that point the service seemed to go downhill perhaps it was too much to manage this winter. My driver didn't show up 3 times this year I shoveled the end out twice and sent in notices to get service so they came later. I opted to not continue my contract for year end and was told I still had 5cm left on my current contract but my signs were removed and no-one showed ever again. Others who didn't notify them seemed to get free service though as a sign of good faith. Won't be returning. If you don't think the owner is aggressive ... look at the company comments left on some reviews just wow.

    Answer from pro:

    Sorry you feel that way Shawn. Ive reviewed our emails with your name and found no complaints. I'm not 'aggressive' , I just don't tolerate abuse and insults from clients. Isn't that my right as a small business owner? Only those that 'opted in' and informed us of wanting extra clearings were done. Ken

    Reply created 4 Apr 2017
  • Review from Customer of Metro Snow & Ice Management
    Rating: 0 out of 5
    Review left on 3 Apr 2017

    Unprofessional, rude, poor quality service and even worse customer service

    I agree completely with the other reviews about poor customer service. You can never get in touch with office staff, and they do not reply to email or telephone messages. Company does not live up to their own business promises (clearing snow at 4cm). If the owner spent as much time plowing driveways as he does composing poorly written email messages with "misplaced" "quotation marks" everywhere only to "explain" why he is not going to plow your driveway, then maybe review would be better. Owner is rude, aggressive and ignorant if you do dare to complain. Thoroughly unpleasant to deal with. I have a group of 10-12 family and neighbours who are just as fed up with crappy service and won't be going back next year. I know several people who have property damage because of this company also. Latest email said he would not "bother" sending plows out. Nice to know customers are a bother.
  • Review from Customer of Metro Snow & Ice Management
    Rating: 1 out of 5
    Review left on 28 Mar 2017

    Argumentative Unprofessional

    When you call and complain about poor service they do not return call or get mad at you for bringing an issue to their attention. They put snow on others property causing issues with neighbors also.

    Answer from pro:

    i don't believe your comments to be accurate. We've never gotten 'mad' at clients unless of course unless they become verbally abusive. Then we simply say 'good day' and hang down the phone. Fair is fair isn't it? Why should my hardworking staff take abuse, swearing and insults from anyone? I hold them in high regard. Ken

    Reply created 4 Apr 2017
  • Review from Customer of Metro Snow & Ice Management
    Rating: 1 out of 5
    Review left on 20 Mar 2017

    Customer service lacking

    First there gaurantee should be removed from website. False advertising. Shovellers do fine job..not great but acceptable. Difficulties dealing with office staff. Advise not happy with lnwy as they show up late constantly thus snow gets packed and 2 swipes cannot remove that and it builds and builds but they say checked out and are happy with it. What is cost to have a supervisor with a plow truck who takes 5 mins to scrape down a bit to satisfy customer. If owner is to be believed at over 11000 customers then im sure approx 4.5 million for 250cm of snow can cover this. If you constantly hear we have many customers and it was big storm...then either hire more staff and lease more equipment or cut back on amnt of customers. This way maybe the drivers would take an extra 40 seconds on each lane which makes a difference. And when a customer lets you know there was 5 cm's in their area and the city plow came by...believe them or send a supervisor and dont simply state...didnt get 4.5cm...sorry. The business plan is a good one with emails etc. Just need better customer service which in this writers opinion is severely lacking. If you unfortunately are blunt with customers...hire a proxy and become a silent entity. I could not recommend as you feel like a 'annoyance' when calling. If a customer service turnaround was advertised then possibly.

    Answer from pro:

    I have 10 capable women 'in house', 6 managers and a General Manager which 'oversight' each area. The tractor/driveway ratio is lower then most companies out there. Every company (including city graders) had issues with snow/ice buildup on streets and driveways alike. We DO have Managers driving around each storm doing "quality checks" on each drivers work. In terms of being 'blunt' with customers? No,you ate right there, I don't 'tickle ears' when dealing with issues and complaints....I give the customer the reasons, the facts and move on to deal with other customers. When someone 'doesn't hear what they want to hear'....it's an ;excuse' or 'I'm too blunt'. I am usually very accommodating to polite or reasonable customers. Rude or aggressive customers? 'Not so much'. They don't pay us to take abuse, just to get snow out of their driveway. And that's what we do and do it well.'thanks Ken

    Reply created 20 Mar 2017
  • Review from HomeOwner
    Rating: 1 out of 5
    Review left on 14 Mar 2017

    Service

    At time of opening my file and charging my credit card they said the service is for the season and there was no mention of any condition in their service like the amount of snowball fall. At the end of Feb they sent me a letter saying we had too much snow this year and this amount was not covered in the service, so if you want our service till the end of winter you have to sign this paper consenting us to charge you extra. This made me not trusting this company anymore and not recommending to anybody.

    Answer from pro:

    I don't understand where the confusion is here. The surcharge is spelled out clearly and in bold letters on the contract you signed. Ken

    Reply created 20 Mar 2017
  • Review from Joanne Pare
    Rating: 5 out of 5
    Review left on 14 Mar 2017

    Metro Snow Removal

    I have been very pleased with Metro's service this year. I've tried other companies in the past but to my knowledge only Metro actually connects with customers via email to let them know when they are coming. Drivers can't be in all places at all times so it may happen that I have to leave before the driver has cleared but that is the case with any company. Metro shows up when they say they will and return again about 20 min after the city plow. This is the first company that I plan to use again next year. It's been a tough winter but Metro did an admirable job. Thanks!

    Answer from pro:

    Many thanks for this review. Ken

    Reply created 20 Mar 2017
  • Review from HomeOwner
    Rating: 0 out of 5
    Review left on 10 Mar 2017

    Snow Clearing (not?)

    The snow was not cleared as it should have been for most of the winter and seeing numerous other neighbourhood Metro customers' properties in the same state as mine, this certainly wasn't an isolated incident. While all the other neighbours' driveways were being cleared, by other snow clearing companies, ours got messier and messier until the accumulation became unmanageable. I know this isn't an isolated incident because I saw many other Metro clients' driveways in the same state as ours, and all the horribly poor reviews online confirms that. The owner, Ken Dale, keeps claiming that they met their obligation, but we, and many other Metro clients, know differently. If he were to instead offer an explanation as to why this happened and take responsibility for it, we would at least respect that. As it stands now, he continues to deny any wrongdoing or accept responsibility.

    Answer from pro:

    I stand by my position that we cleared well each time and usually 'before' our competitors were out. This is a fact not a denial. Ken

    Reply created 20 Mar 2017
  • Review from HomeOwner
    Rating: 5 out of 5
    Review left on 26 Feb 2017

    Snow removal

    There seems to be a lot of angry customers in here and I wanted to make a fair review for this company. We were with appleseed for 3 years and no problems. They changed their name to metro and so far we still have not had major problems. I'm a bit confused why so many dissatisfied reviewers are giving this company 0/10 when clearly they've come and cleaned their driveway on almost all occasions. A 0/10 is when they literally do zero service so I think a lot of these reviews are pure hyperbole. They have good equipment, gps tracker, send email updates, and are reasonably priced. Problems with them showing up late? OK -- but at least they showed up! That's not a 0/10. That being said the company isn't without fault. There was one occasion when we were snowed in because the driver came in a bit late (mainly because city plow came late as well). Two other instances where I had to shovel my way out of the city plow's second 'dump'. To be fair, most of my neighbours are with a different company and they were in the same boat (and happened when we were with appleseed). We also did not let them know that we leave the house fairly early. Surcharge seems fair except I'm not a fan of the $50 invoicing and would prefer to pay $10 per sweep. They say they will refund the money if less than 5 snowfalls but only if you re-sign with them (e.g. what if we decide to move out of Ottawa or simply decide to go with another company?).

    Answer from pro:

    Thanks for this Sam for this well balanced and constructive review. I'm pretty much known for being blunt and 'upfront' with customers and maybe that upsets some. Here's why we have so many '0'/10 reviews in a nutshell... Being the largest, most visible company doing snow in Ottawa we obviously attract the most 'new,1st time users' who sign up with us. They are new to using a snow removal service. So, they sign up with the 'largest and most credible' company they see from the many stakes out there. Now, as much as the contracts and services are clearly spelled out, as much as we try to 'educate and indoctrinate' new customers about 'how we, and ANY company usually operates' through many emails AND unless we are there immediately or 'when they 'feel' we should arrive'...they just dont 'get it', don't understand their contract and and 'time thresholds' and simply lash out, rant and criticize. I dont take this all personally but yes it frustrates me each season. I feel comfortable in the knowledge however that we have a 92% 'Renewal rate' each season. This speaks volumes on our service. So where do these negative reviewers go? They 'shop around next season' for a cheaper service. They get No email alerts, no GPS alerts, no updates from their new 'company'. They 'fly blind' through storms with their 'new service provider', rant and rave at him and return usually to Metro the following year. Im not being arrogant here but after 25 years doing snow I see this every year. What I'm considering doing actually is implementing a 'rebooking' fee for those many clients who return a year after trying another contractor 'after they have basically trashed my service' and now want to come back. RE: $50 250 cm surcharge: With over 11,000 clients we cant possible bill each client $10 every time out snow....people wouldn't send a $10 cheque in once let alone 5 or 6 or 7 times...Ive tried this before in 2009. A one time 'rebateable fee' seems the safest and fairest option to clients and most people have readily paid this graciously. I've learned in life..."you cant unring the bell". My reputation ,integrity and image are paramount to myself and my very hard working people in the company and we always try to protect that. Thanks again Ken Dale President

    Reply created 28 Feb 2017
Get in touch