Dugan Construction / Tree Service

Bare with me, some of this is unbelievable for a company trying to make a name for itself....The Owner's team showed up on the 7th day "due to weather" (it had rained on day 2, but dry days 3-5), tree #1 was promptly cut down IN FULL AT THE BASE, FALLING LONG-WAYS ACROSS MY NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS YARD! Some minor damage was done to 3-4 trees in the neighbors yard as the massive tree slammed toward the ground. After about 20 minutes of sizing up tree #2, the owner's team made a phone call, presumably to the owner, and then promptly left the site. 15 minutes later, the Owner called me, and told me that the price was going up. He said his team would not be back unless I agreed to pay him an additional 25% above the original agreed price...which he had seen twice before quoting and finalizing the contract. I told him that we had an agreement and he then told me that the contract was voided because the work wasn't completed within the date range on the contract. Ok. I then let him know that if he didn't have a contract to come cut my trees down, then he just cut the first tree down without permission. An argument ensued, and he left it all there...the massive tree across my neighbors yard, 2 more trees to come down yet, and a refusal to come back until I agreed to pay him more money. Throughout the whole ordeal, I never paid him a penny. He told me that he never accepts money until the job is done, which turned out to be ok. I ended up going thru two other contractors to finish the tree removal and grind the stumps, thanks to Angie's List. Luckily I had an understanding neighbor, that was sympathetic with my unfortunate contractor arrangement, and we worked together to fix the damage to his trees that Dugan Construction had caused. The only redeeming quality that I need to review is the last time I talked with the owner. He called me about a week after the other contractors had finished (2-3 weeks later, yes the massive tree sat for weeks in the other yard), and told me that he would come complete the job as originally quoted....because his lawyer told him what he had done was ILLEGAL! An admirable act of humility after what we had been through. I had the pleasure of telling him that the work had already been completed, and that I had paid double what he had quoted for the work. The principle of doing what you say you're going to do was worth it to me to have the job done right by a reputable company. I hope my unfortunate experience with Dugan Construction helps someone avoid a series of headaches that would otherwise have gone unnoticed.