When Sandy Klein received an email from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) in September 2021 advertising a program for home renovations through a bank subsidiary that could directly connect her with “trusted” contractors, she thought she was in luck.
Klein and her husband, Steven Klein, were initially looking to fix up a bathroom in their Thornhill, Ont., home for their son who was moving back in. But a year and a half — and several incorrect and incomplete renovations — later, Sandy Klein says she wishes she never received the email about RBC’s Smart Reno platform.
“I trusted my bank,” she said.
“The referral came
