A San Diego homeowner who lives about 100 yards from Mission Beach turned to NBC 7 Responds after his nearly $17,000 aluminum fence began showing paint chipping, bubbling and rust a little over a year after it was installed.

NBC 7 Responds helped arrange a face-to-face meeting between homeowner Rich Martin and Mulholland Brand, the company that installed the fence about two years ago. The meeting helped clear up what appeared to be a communication breakdown and ultimately led to repairs at Martin’s home.

Rich Martin from San Diego stands next to his new aluminum fence he say deteriorated faster than normal in coastal areas.

Worthwhile investment

“When they put it in, it looked beautiful and we had certainly increased privacy and we do sit outside more often because of it,” Martin said.

But, living so close to the ocean can be brutal on building materials. Martin said he understood that when he purchased the fence.

“I’m not naive to life near the ocean and the challenges of weather and saltwater and oxidation. I understand that,” he said.

Still, Martin said the condition of the relatively new fence concerned him.

“We just thought that the materials were degrading at a rate that was faster than we thought was reasonable given how new the fence was,” he said.

Coastal climate can be brutal

Martin showed us pictures of the damage he sent to Mulholland Brand in April. He said company experts quickly came to his home to inspect the fence.

Rich Martin sent these pictures to Mulholland Brand about a year after the fence was installed.

“They were responsive, we walked around the perimeter of the fence,” he said. “And took photos, et cetera, and said, there’ll be some repair and replacement things we can do here, and then left,” said Martin.

Martin said the company did not return after that visit despite repeated follow-up emails from his partner, Renee Carlson, asking the company to come back as soon as possible.

Communication breakdown

In late June, Mulholland Brand sent them a message saying beachfront properties require regular cleaning and maintenance and that ocean air can damage almost any material over time without it. The company said it still wanted to help and would send technicians to perform touch-ups and other work.

Carlson responded that it was wrong to presume they had failed to perform regular cleaning or maintenance and said they did not accept that assumption. She said they appreciated the company’s willingness to send a technician but did not view the work as merely a courtesy touch-up.

Martin said that message went unanswered, prompting him to contact NBC 7 Responds.

With NBC 7 Responds’ involvement, Martin said the company responded within five days.

NBC 7 Responds helps set up meeting

NBC 7 Responds helped arrange a meeting between Martin and representatives of Mulholland Brand to discuss the fence and what could be done to address his concerns.

NBC 7 Responds helped set up a meeting between Rich Martin and Mulholland Brand to pick up where they left off in previous communications.

“We’re giving it some love and TLC… which we’ve offered, and that got rejected by Renee last time we offered it. But again, we can revisit it,” Mulholland Brand’s Ran Artzi said.

“The offer wasn’t rejected. If you read the email,” Martin responded.

After clearing up what appeared to be a misunderstanding, Mulholland Brand said it stands by what it promotes as the best option for coastal fencing. They viewed Martin’s experience as an opportunity to improve customer service for people living close to the ocean.

Kort Potter and Ran Artzi from Mulholland Brand explain that most building materials need regular cleaning and maintenance to extend shelf life.

Mulholland Brand’s Kort Potter said that includes, “letting our customer know that we acknowledge your concern. We’re here to listen and we’re here to learn and also come up with a reasonable solution with all of the factors considered at hand.”

The company said it also plans to have more thorough conversations with coastal customers about maintenance and expectations for aluminum fencing.

“And that doesn’t necessarily dismiss us from saying, ‘Oh, you signed, we’re off the hook.’ It just means that we’re taking a little extra step to make sure we do our best,” Potter said.

Relationship renewed

A couple of weeks after the meeting, crew members returned to Martin’s home and made several repairs and touchups. They also replaced hardware with a more coastal-resistant metal to address Martin’s concerns.

Rich Martin and Ran Artzi shake hands while Kort Potter takes out a business card.

The resolution ended with a handshake between Martin and Mulholland Brand representatives.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.