THE IMPORTANCE OF LEGITIMATE REVIEW SITES
We wanted to address some of our customers concerns about our company’s online reviews. We appreciate any feedback from you and completely understand any and all concerns and wanted to reach out to hopefully help put your mind at ease.
We understand negative reviews can be concerning and want to assure you that we strive to address all issues no matter how small. It is important to note that no company can please everyone 100% of the time. Despite some isolated issues, we are proud to say that the vast majority of Kayak customers are beyond satisfied with our products and services. We have been the #1 dealer of Kayak Pools since 1996 and please look at our historical record since inception, it is impeccable. Coming out of the financial recession of 2007, it was a very challenging time for the swimming pool industry. Finally, around 2015-2016 we saw some daylight and things started turning around. Then COVID hit in March of 2020 and we all thought that was the end. With everyone on lockdown, 2020 unexpectedly came in as the best year we had ever had far as sales go. Until that time, we had an impeccable record with the BBB and the Attorney General in all our states, with an A+ rating at each. That’s when the issues started.
First, we had massive backorders from Kayak Corporate and couldn’t get pools manufactured or shipped out. This was a very sudden & unexpected obstacle, along with having one of the wettest Springs that year, we were unable to start installing until late May/early June – which caused significant delays for our install teams. In the midst of these delays we had crews in the field who came down with COVID, along with we lost numerous employees, service techs and installers because with the Federal Stimulus Program (they were making the same if not more on unemployment thus they just quit or did not return). With no other choice in the heat of the season, we used temp services to hire employees and that’s when the breakdown in communication with our customers started.
Also at this time, with the stress level of so many more customers and backorders/delays, our installation and customer service departments imploded. Most of our customers (around 94%) understood our situation, but it was a snowball effect. A few customers started yelling/screaming/threatening and then it was like someone turned on the water faucet. Our customer complaint percent went from around 3% to around 6%. We were told this was a common problem for companies that excelled during COVID. We take BBB complaints very seriously so we would respond to and reference detailed notes on every single complaint, which was very time-consuming.
2022 turned into a clean-up year for us as a company to get our bearings and go through each customer and try to resolve any and all issues amicably. We continuously tried to do the right thing and get back to where we were pre-COVID. Currently we do have some new key managers we brought on last year mid-season and we have spent countless hours resolving all issues and trying to handle each and every concern in a professional, courteous businesslike manner. We definitely had some issues the last 2 years, but we are working diligently to resolve them one by one to the best of our ability to ensure we get back to where we were just a few short years ago, and we have seen much improvement. In regard to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) ratings, we are proud of our 4.25-star rating with the BBB. When compared to other companies that we all do business with every day, our ratings are quite high. For example, Costco is not accredited with the BBB, Target currently has a Government alert and a 1.19-star rating. Even Sprint/T-Mobile and Verizon only have 1-star ratings and are either not accredited or have a NR rating with the BBB.
Again, thank you for allowing us the opportunity to hear our side and we thank you for that. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any further questions or would like to discuss specifics of this matter further. We would be more than happy to address any concerns you may have.
It is important to use legitimate review sites such as BBB, Google, Angie’s List, and the Attorney General to research any company. Currently, there is a new scam using review sites to create mass profits. These review sites have no real interest in helping consumers or businesses and are solely created for monetary profit. They hold companies hostage by posting very negative reviews and then offering the business the option to pay them money. One of those reviews sites is called: ConsumerAffairs.com. It intentionally leads consumers to believe that they are a government agency by using the name “Consumer Affairs”.
On their website in very small print it discloses the following:
ConsumerAffairs is not a government agency. Companies pay us to be accredited or when you click a link, call a number or fill a form on our site.
– Emily D.
-Lisa W.
– Mary Milby
THE FACTS:
MORE THAN 100,000 SATISFIED CUSTOMERS
Kayak has been in business for 60+ years. We have over 100,000 satisfied customers.
4.4-STAR RATING OUT OF 5 ON GOOGLE
Kayak has 239 reviews on Google and we have a 4.4-star rating out of 5.
4-STAR RATING WITH ANGIE'S LIST
Kayak also has a 4-star rating with Angie’s List.
Brett Bunker
The entire experience, from consultation to installation, was wonderful and efficient. I can only imagine the difficulties in coordinating all the necessary tasks to install a kayak pool in the age of COVID-19. They did an exemplary job. I would highly recommend a Kayak pool to anyone thinking of getting a pool in the future.
AWP 123
I love this pool! Very happy with our purchase and I am confident we will enjoy it for many years to come. Thank you Kayak! Best thing that happened at our home in 2020.
Sonia Hillyer
Kayak Swimming pools are beautiful, durable, easy to order, easy to finance and are installed in just 1 day! From order to installation took 2 months (during Covid-19; may have been quicker without unforeseen delays.) Customer service is top of the line. I was able to communicate easily through every step via email and phone always speaking to the same person!
Tim Snider
Great Pool. Great service. in- depth review before the sale. each step of the process was Clear. delivery and Install crew were professional. Install was less than a day. And cleaned up. Our kids and Grand-kids have enjoyed our Pool for 2 seasons now. Highly recommend this company for your new pool needs.
Perdita Terry
I never thought it would be so difficult to find a replicable pool company that provides not only quality work; but exceptional customer service until we found Kayak Pools Midwest. Our experience with Kayak Pools has been fantastic from day one! If we had any questions or concerns along the way, the Kayak team was on it! I will definitely recommend a company that believes in customer satisfaction, and Kayak Pools is one of them. Dr. Perdita Terry Michigan
Barb Pfaff
We just had our Kayak pool installed, it was delayed because of Covid, it was well worth the wait, John and his crew were great installing the pool, took like 6 hours and they cleaned up everything and explained everything we had to do, Lesley and Tammy were their to answer all our questions, looking so forward to next season and having our grandkids swim all summer, thank you Kayak Midwest!
Kristel Sims
I had my pool installed with Kayak at the end of last summer. I am absolutely impressed with how the installation process went! Great communication and steps for the installation preparation were clearly provided. Once the pool pieces were delivered and they came out to get it installed, it was done and ready to go in two days! The crew took the time to go through the opening, closing and seasonal maintenance very thoroughly. Very simple, low maintenance and VERY efficient filter system. I’m very happy with our purchase! I love every feature of our Kayak Pool!
