Brand new Toto fby1525 damaged during tile work

My tile guy placed a ladder in my brand new bathtub (which was fully covered with plastic and layers of cardboard), without checking for debris inside the tub...and put two dime sized holes/cracks (but not all the way thru) in the tub.

Obviously, I'm distraught. I warned the guy at least 20 times to be extremely careful. He is the local handyman and is trying to convince me that it can be refinished. (I'm sure he does not want to pay for another tub at $750...and he probably doesn't even have the money to do it).

I called Toto and they said it would be almost impossible to match the etched pattern (non slip) and that refinishing would probably result in problems down the road.

It was a tremendous hassle pulling out the old cast iron tub and replacing it with a new one. Do I really need to replace the brand new, but damaged tub with another new one?

I plan on living in my house for years to come and I don't want to go forward with my bathroom remodel until I rectify the problem. I AM SOOOO BUMMED!

Any and all opinions/advice will be greatly appreciated!!!

repair

A professional fixture refinisher may be able to repair it. The one I use in this area has always come through with a perfect match and the repairs have never failed as far as I know.

Had it repaired by a pro....just doesn't cut it though...and Toto will not replace b/c I told them my guy put a ladder in the tub.

Out $800 for the tub, $300 for all install work! That sucks!

Thinking about getting a Kohler K-506 instead...any product reviews here in this forum? I no longer have any confidence in any Toto products...the bathtub was made in China.

Your first mistake was hiring a "handyman" who was neither licensed nor insured. Now you want to blame Toto for an inferior product because this hack damaged it! This issue of country of manufacture comes up frequently with toilets. It is true Toto has manufacturing plants in many countries, including the United States, but what is somewhat unusual is the fact the regardless of country of manufacture, Toto quality control is such that a toilet tank made in Viet Nam will fit a bowl make in Georgia. The return rate is less the 1% on their products. Kohler on the other hand, has frequent quality issues to the point that many professional plumber will not install Kohler. Now, if you really prefer the Kohler over the Toto, that's fine, but don't blame Toto for your poor judgment in hiring a hack.

During construction, we use a tub line with a foam backing for the inside of the tub.

But you still need common sense.
Before you step in the tub liner, you pull it out, and clean it up before putting weight on anything.

What is these guys contractor number?
And he has insurance and a bond, right?

Was this not a cast iron tub?
How could your guy push a hole into a cast iron tub?
Two holes in a cast iron tub.
Are you sure he didn't take a hammer to it.
And then tell you that he's not paying?
I've never heard of that one.

I could see fiberglass punching through like that.
How about a picture?

By the way, nothing wrong with a Kohler cast iron tub.
You can break those with a hammer too.
I wouldn't let that same handyman do the work though.

No insurance for the handyman...and I wasn't there when it actually happened...so I don't know if he is lying about how it happened. Bottom line, I need to replace it and will take a lot of work!