CARO Analytical Services - Kelowna Office

Ran a bacteriological with Caro for my well water (my drinking water source at my very rural property). Based on the direction provided by Caro, I drove 4 hours to the nearest courier drop off station so that they could receive the sample within the 30 hour limit. Unfortunately they received the sample days later, probably mostly a fault of the courier. Wasn’t happy to hear this after all my effort but I understood that these things happen. I received a call from Caro where I was asked whether I wanted to proceed as my sample was now over the 30 hr limit. The lady mentioned that the results may not be valid but she said that the risk is mainly of getting a false or exaggerated positive. I had asked whether I could get a false negative, she confirmed that this typically isn’t the case. I proceeded with the test as based on what I was told, if I got a negative result, I could feel confident that the water was safe to drink. If I got a positive, I would have to retest, I was ok with that risk. The Caro employee confirmed my train of thought. My results came back negative, I called Caro to confirm, they confirmed the results. I started to drink my well water, my family and myself subsequently all got sick. I called Caro again, now I was being told something else, that false negatives are also possible, and I would now have to retest. I felt that I was provided with incorrect information that led me to move forward with the test and be misled to trust a negative result. If a false negative and false positive are possible, then what would be the point of me testing in the first place (despite all the effort to drop off my sample) ? I only proceeded because of the false info I was provided. I asked if they would be willing to retest at no charge due to the info I was provided. Apparently I misunderstood the employee and therefore they couldn’t help me. They offered a discount, but at this point I’ve found a lab closer to me that charges half the price and has better customer service. Never working with these guys again! You should take responsibility for providing your clients with misleading information that could potentially harm people. My family and myself got sick due to this and you weren’t even willing to cover the small cost of another test. I had restated my assumptions and what I understood to the employee over the phone multiple times, she confirmed that I was understanding perfectly. Now they absolve themselves of any responsibility, apparently I misunderstood. Shameful customer service.

Paid extra for a rush job and they changed the meaning of rush twice, until it was too late.

Update: a manager from the store contacted us and did his best to make things right, which we appreciated. Review change from 1 star to 3.

Hi, I love the CARO website. It's warm, professional but comfortable, personable, funny and helpful. I feel like it must have great workplace culture which matters to me. I had a thoroughly helpful exchange with a CARO rep, Rochita, that helped me pick the right test for my concerns. Haven't done the test yet but I'm confident every step will be well explained and easy to carry out. Thanks CARO, I will be back for soil tests in future. Cheers!

CARO is a great environmental lab. Their service is top shelf. I rely on them for my work. The staff are friendly & helpful. They turn my projects around in such a timely manner. I appreciate them every week.