Moving slabs so a customer can look at this is called "the cost of doing business". As for who pays for an error (at best - fraud at worst) is also him - a cost of doing business. It's more costly to do business if you are sneaky or make rookie mistakes.

My guess is that he had this priced as quartzite. Usually there's a "level" associated with a stone. You should be able to get a stone at the same "level" - which is at least one good thing where it will be harder to jerk you around and inflate the price of the replacement stone to cover his poor skills (or shady business practices).

I have ZERO sympathy for people in the business that (should) know better getting caught and having to eat the cost. ZERO. Knowing stones and properly classifying them IS HIS JOB. He failed. You called him on it. That cost is on him.

KEEP COPIED OF ALL YOUR CORRESPONDENCE, do things in writing, let calls go to voicemail, etc. I can easily see him trying to get out of doing the right thing

Did you pay for this using a credit card or a check? If credit card, I would dispute if necessarry.

Moving slabs so a customer can look at them? Someone had to calculate pricing? He said that with a straight face? Unbelievable, and he knows it. Fraud is one of those nasty words that describes selling one thing and delivering another.

You should be able to get a stone at the same "level" - which is at least one good thing where it will be harder to jerk you around and inflate the price of the replacement stone to cover his poor skills (or shady business practices). How do I know the level? This might not be possible as nothing is marked in his store, there are perhaps one or two slabs that actually have verifiable names on them, otherwise, no. I don't know how I am going to get a stone that is equal in value to what I have with this guy.

I paid by check.

I would ask for my money back and choose someone else. I know that is probably going to be impossible but maybe state it as..."I feel we have lost some trust in each other. Can we mutually agree that it is best to end this relationship with a full refund?" If it works and you get all your money back, great. If you have to make some sort of deal with a small fee for time spent then do it and chalk it up to lesson learned.

Just to correct one statement in your original post ... quartzites can definitely have filler. Here is a photo of my Taj Mahal with a filled fissure/crack. It blends in, but you usually don't notice them when the slabs are slightly dirty and standing vertical in a poorly lit warehouse!

If you've read the Geology threads by Karin_mt, you know some of the tests you can do on the slabs. Bring a glass tile and some lemon juice to test a small spot in the corner of any slabs you are considering.

Find a website that has a good description and photos of quartzite slabs and use that for reference while you are there. Bring a friend or two for backup!

A safe bet would be Taj Mahal quartzite, if it works with your design.

You sound like you did your homework when shopping stone. Did you test a sample of the product you selected? Do you still have that stone sample? I'm trying to ascertain whether you received what you selected then discovered it was dolomitic quartzite, or if you selected one stone and they installed a different stone.

Jenny, I bought the "quartzite", it was installed. Noticed all the cracks and scratches then searched for - is there a way to test for stone. Got the information and did the test on the sample I brought home. They have conceded that I did not get quartzite. The quandry I am in now is getting what I paid for and not the least expensive stone they will make available to me. I just don't trust the owner now at all.

If he's hidden the names and it's a showroom vs a warehouse where the levels or colors are marked and given a relative cost (green $, blue $$, Red $$$, etc or Levels 1-10) then this is a bit more of a challenge.

I'd suggest doing the tests for quartzite to ensure you are, in fact, getting quartzite (as you were clearly CHARGED for quartzite before). Bring glass, and a lemon and advise that you will need to test any stone to determine it's geoology and will expect that quartzite will be $0 for the replacement.

I like how someone said you should be receiving a discount based on your inconvience. Take your husband with you. That way, when you refuse to pay him for moving a slab, he feels like he got a deal because he won't likely do that.

Telling you BS about moving a slab and calculating a bill are garbage. In the legal world, those are called OVERHEAD, and an attorney would be in trouble if they tried to bill crap like that to a client.

If things get ugly, there is small claims court (depends on how much you spent). You do not need an attorney for small claims court.

Update. I chose the new quartzite on Friday. The owner was not present and his daughter walked with me and guided me to a replacement that was Dolomite. She told me it was quartzite. There was a very small label on it that read Chapa Marmore Cinza, translation, Gray Marble Sheet. I sent the owner an email that I was disappointed I could find nothing close to what is installed but that I would accept Fantasy Lux as long as there were no additional charges to me. I attached photos of the Fantasy Lux taken at his warehouse. I also let him know that his daughter directed me to a marble/dolomite and I could only accept the new top after proper testing. I received a response today. " Please see attached document from supplier for quartzite shown on previous email. We are waving the difference of the charge for this stone.

Best regards," I have a sample I picked up while there as well and it is definitely quartzite. Thank you to everyone who weighed in on this. So far, this is a very good outcome.

Glad the dealers is doing the right thing.

It will be a good and expensive lesson for the fabricator. Hopefully he won't mislead future buyers.