American Awning and Blind Co Inc

During his sales pitch, the owner showed me some neighbor's homes explaining what was wrong with their awnings and bragged about how his product was better. When it was time to install the awning, the frame was the wrong size. It had to be returned to the shop, cut, and re-welded. This added another day to the installation. During the installation, a worker made a snide comment to another in Spanish about me. The second worker informed the first, in Spanish, to watch what he was saying because he knew I understood. Fast forward 4 years. The stitching has come completely out of one seam creating a 16' long gap in the awning. The owner came to survey the damage. He refused to fix it, saying it was out of warranty, nor could it be repaired. The entire fabric has to be replaced at a cost of $1600+. The velcro used to secure the privacy panels closed has dry rotted and fallen apart. When I asked why they didn't use tie-backs he answered, "velcro is easier". The frame is rusting in several places and needs to be sanded, primed and repainted. I mentioned to the owner when he initially estimated the job, we discussed that strong winds frequently occur on the patio. I asked why didn't he take precautions to make sure the awning didn't billow/flap in the wind (this is what caused the seam to burst) by adding additional "wind pockets" (fabric wrapped around, and secured to the frame to prevent just this). He had no answer, but then began to tell me how much windier it is at his home, and he has no problems with his awning (could the fact that he is the owner of the company have anything to do with it?). He then stated that he has no negative reviews of his company on his website (what company puts bad testimonials on their own website?). He said to check his prices against any other awning companies in town and I would see that he was among the least expensive. I told him that it is apparent that I got what I paid for. I'm not saving any money if I have to pay for a whole new awning 4 years later.