GREENSBORO, N.C. — Patti Jessup sat in her living room looking around the new home she just bought. It was a welcome home party of sorts in the fact the house was in the same neighborhood where she grew up.
The single-story home was perfect but there was a lot of work that needed to be done.
“I took (this house) down to the studs. I redid the plumbing, the wiring, everything,” Jessup said.
Part of the renovation and upgrades including the outside. Jessup invested in a new driveway and some other improvements as well.
“I had an asphalt driveway that was cracking really bad,” Jessup said.
The new driveway was not cheap, but it was worth it to improve the overall look and quality of the home and property. The driveway certainly looked good, and Jessup was initially pleased with how it came out.
However, she would soon discover that it was not designed or constructed properly. The driveway was slanted toward the house and the cement was a couple of inches higher than the concrete slab for the house.
During the first significant rain after the driveway was installed, one of the rooms next to the driveway flooded. Water drained from the driveway onto the slab and seeped inside the home.
The wood floors and part of the baseboards were damaged. Jessup immediately reached out to the contractor she hired.
“He didn’t return my calls, my texts, or emails,” Jessup said.
After a couple of weeks, Jessup contacted another person to come to look at the driveway and assess the situation. The verdict was tough to swallow, the driveway needed to be replaced.
“He said we have to dig it up. I was like you have to dig it up, are you kidding,” Jessup said.
She tried to reach the person she originally hired again but had no luck. At that point, Jessup hired a different company to dig up and replace the driveway and contacted News 2 for help.
While the new driveway was being put in, we contacted the contractor Jessup initially hired. We explained the situation and provided an estimate and an evaluation of the issue from the company Jessup hired to replace the driveway.
In the end, he agreed to refund Jessup $3,000.
“I’m so grateful, I can’t afford to just throw away (money),” Jessup said.
The new driveway was completed in just a couple of days and Jessup is thrilled with how it turned out. More importantly, it’s built so the water drains off to the yard and not inside her home.