Woman Appalled at Painting Job Provided by Local Company; Company Says She Abused Their Staff

Last Updated on 2023-05-23 , 9:45 am

Anything having to do with home renovation can be stressful.

From financial concerns to worries over the company’s quality, it can be a headache.

One woman faced such a nightmare.

She was appalled at the painting job done by a local company she had hired.

However, the company has since alleged that the woman abused their staff.

The Incident

On 17 May, Facebook user Syura OnSeven posted about her experience with local company Knoc Knoc.

She engaged the company in April to paint her home after seeing the company’s advertisements on Instagram.

She paid $1,271 for their services.

According to her. The job was supposed to be done on 7 April between 9 am to 6 pm.

However, the painters only arrived at 1 pm.

Moreover, they only finished the job at 3 am.

She explained, “This was during the fasting month. We had to leave the house to them because we had to go for our break fast and also to the mosque for our night prayers. We waited till 11 pm, and the job was still not completed. It was midnight, and we had to head home because our three kids were very tired.”

According to the post, her kids are nine, seven and one year plus.

She continued, “Reached home, and the house was a total mess! Put the kids to sleep in the master bedroom. We went around the house to do a spot check and realised they had missed SO MANY AREAS.”

She added that the painters also broke their prayer frame.

“So from midnight till around 3 am, we had to tell and show them they had missed this part and that part.”

Her ordeal did not end there.

Uneven Painting, Many Walls Missed

When she woke up the next day, she realised with “horror” that the painters had missed many walls and that the painting was uneven.

She added that many of her household items were covered in paint.

She wrote, “I feel like crying! The house was in a total mess, and painting was not done properly.”

Contacted Company 

Syura OnSeven DMed the company on Instagram.

According to her, the manager argued with her and accused the family of damaging their items.

She said the managed went to her home and used thinner to remove the paint stains on her gold bed frame.

Unfortunately, this backfired, turning part of her bed black.

On 9 April, two workers went to her home to touch-up the job, but she felt it was not done well.

The job was supposed to be done from 9 am to 1 pm but extended till 8 pm.

According to her, the workers touched up the wall with a different colour.

It was supposed to be dark grey, but the workers used light grey paint instead.

Contacted Company Again

Fed up, Syura OnSeven messaged the manager again. Unfortunately, this did not resolve the situation.

She alleged that the manager called her “pathetic”.

She said the company refused to refund or compensate her family for the damages and that the owner wanted receipts for all of her home’s items.

She made a police report and contacted the Consumer Association of Singapore (Case).

“Case reached out to them, and their reply is the same thing. ‘Job done and they won’t be able to refund us’.”

Since then, the company has allegedly blocked Syura OnSeven on Instagram.

Company’s Response

A Knoc Knoc spokesperson told STOMP, “I think this case is straightforward. Touch-up was done. Cleaning was offered, but the customer refused and used degrading words against my foreign staff.”

The spokesperson noted that the company had asked Syura OnSeven for the receipts for all the items she posted on her Facebook page. However, she was unable to produce any photos of the receipts.

The spokesperson added that the company had compensated her for the prayer frame, which she neglected to acknowledge in her post.

“If a customer refuses our touch-up service and rectification, there’s only so much we can do. ‘Customer service is always what a customer is’.

“Calling our foreign staff names was a degrading move as we do not allow our staff to be abused. We always believed in mutual respect with our customers. Being a Singaporean does not give you the right to belittle or bully foreign employees. When our staff tried her best to send our cats (workers) to rectify and clean the paint off, the customer refused and asked her to go back to her own country.”

Another Knoc Knoc spokesperson added that Syura OnSeven did not include the part where she “demanded” free painting of her house’s door frames and skirting.

“[It was] something she did not pay for but as a form of compensation because we started late.

“Painting of door frames and skirting is even more time-consuming than typical walls. We agreed, and her husband went off to purchase the paint and came back in the late afternoon. 

“All these are the domino effect for the work deliverables. I think that was the reason for the 3 am completion time as well.”

Syura OnSeven’s Response

Syura OnSeven told STOMP, “I did not use any degrading words with the foreign workers. I did not ask the manager to go back to her country. I didn’t say all these things.”

On 19 May, she updated her Facebook post with some clarifications.

She wrote, “No, I did not call the staff names and tell her to go back to her own country!

“I know better!

“All lies!”

Not the First Time Knoc Knoc Made the News

While it’s uncertain if Syura OnSeven or Knoc Knoc is telling the truth, this isn’t the first time the company has made the news for all the wrong reasons.

Just a few weeks ago, on 7 May, a Stomper by the alias of Stomper L detailed her experience with the company.

The incident occurred in April.

Then Stomper had engaged the company to paint her four-room flat as she had seen good reviews.

She said, “On the day itself, three Bangladeshi men came at 9 am as promised, not dressed like how it was posted on Instagram. They didn’t look like professional painters. One was clad in a towel to paint my home. At 2 pm, only two rooms were halfway done and badly painted.

“The painters left at 6 pm, leaving behind a mess and paint all over the place without cleaning up.”

The Stomper proceeded to contact the company.

However, they did not come down to do a site visit.

She alleged that their responses on WhatsApp and Instagram were “rude” and that they did not acknowledge her request for a refund.

They offered to come and touch up her home on another day.

The Stomper made a police report and reported the incident to Case.

Company’s Response

A Knoc Knoc spokesperson told STOMP that the Stomper had engaged the company to paint her home on 16 April.

However, on 16 April, half the company’s teams were COVID-positive.

When the company asked the Stomper if they could send their workers down on another day to complete the job, the Stomper refused.

Even after explaining the situation, Stomper L said, “I expect the job to be completed within the timeline given.”

The spokesperson added that the Stomper called the company again at 5 pm and cried, citing that she was a single mum who had to bake for Hari Raya.

Thus, on 17, 18 and 19 April, the company’s workers contacted her to arrange for a touch-up before Hari Raya, but she said, “Don’t make your customers like a beggar”.

On 20 April, when asked if the company could do the touch-up on 21 April, the Stomper apparently refused.

On 21 April, the Stomper texted the company on WhatsApp and cited that she was no longer interested in their services and would launch a police and Case report against them.

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Other Similar Experiences

Other people have come out with similar experiences.

On 10 May, Facebook user Nora Jasmine Aly posted in response to an AsiaOne article on Stomper L’s experience.

She wrote, “Finally! The contractor, KnocKnoc, we engaged, who did a terrible job and gave us a hell of a time, is in the headlines now. 

“Bad workmanship, after-sales service, service recovery and I got screamed at because I kept calling for sales recovery and collection of their tools outside my doorstep after 5 days!”

On Google Reviews, Knoc Knoc only has one out of five stars.

Notably, this rating comes from 16 reviews written in the past few days and could have been influenced by media coverage.

While some reviews are based on seeing media coverage and not on personal experience, one reviewer detailed their experience enquiring with the company.

The reviewer wrote, “This company is not transparent with their painting service rendered. Such as whether or not they provide moving of furniture before painting, basic cleaning after the job is done, and filling up a small hole or crack before painting.

“They are not specific, and I hope homeowners are aware of the expectations when it comes to home painting services.”

The reviewer added, “Bad customer service. Engage them at your own risk. This company is not even apologetic.”