Victimized by a building contractor scam

[dreamingat30fps]

So I hired this "company" to come out and replace my old wood fence with a new PVC fence. Signed proposal back in the end of July and gave a deposit... yeah you see where this is going.

Anyways still no fence. Guy always had some excuse. At this point I'm pretty sure it's just a scam. Permit still hasn't been issued, he tries blaming covid, but I have been in contact with the permit office and basically the guy just keeps failing to provide the required info. He didn't file it for a month, then took another month to submit payment, then didn't provide survey and now wont provide insurance info. Obviously refuses to refund anything and at this point has stopped responding.

Now when you Google the company you see reviews starting to popup around the same time basically claiming exact same thing that's going on with me. When I started looking into the guy he is shady as fuck! First thing that popsup is his mug shot from when he was in prison. Even his kid has a mug shot up on Google and so does his supposed business partner. Apparently just started the company like Dec of 2019 and is pulling the same scam on a bunch of people.

And yeah I know it's my fault for not looking into the guy in more detail before, but honestly in the 10 years I've been in this house I have never had an issue with a single contractor. Sure some are better than others, but never had one be an outright crook so I guess I had my guard down.

Anyways what would you guys do? Couple lawyers I talked to said it's not worth it just go to small claim court. However is there any point in even doing that? I mean it seems pretty complicated to file the case in small claims court, you have to pay a bunch of fees and really what guarantee is there I will get any $$ back? I can get a judgement but what good is that when the scumbag just shuts down the company?

At this point I don't even care about my deposit. I would happily forfeit it if I knew the pos was getting locked up. I hate crooks.

[SCS9815]

Sorry to hear about your situation. I'm in the UK so things may be a little different, but if he comes up on google it is worth leaving a review as they can't be deleted by the company. Over here there are various sites where you can rate and recommend tradespeople (as well as warn people off). If you have anything similar it might be a quick way of checking things out before going down that road again.

[Joekerr]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

So I hired this "company" to come out and replace my old wood fence with a new PVC fence. Signed proposal back in the end of July and gave a deposit... yeah you see where this is going.

Anyways still no fence. Guy always had some excuse. At this point I'm pretty sure it's just a scam. Permit still hasn't been issued, he tries blaming covid, but I have been in contact with the permit office and basically the guy just keeps failing to provide the required info. He didn't file it for a month, then took another month to submit payment, then didn't provide survey and now wont provide insurance info. Obviously refuses to refund anything and at this point has stopped responding.

Now when you Google the company you see reviews starting to popup around the same time basically claiming exact same thing that's going on with me. When I started looking into the guy he is shady as fuck! First thing that popsup is his mug shot from when he was in prison. Even his kid has a mug shot up on Google and so does his supposed business partner. Apparently just started the company like Dec of 2019 and is pulling the same scam on a bunch of people.

And yeah I know it's my fault for not looking into the guy in more detail before, but honestly in the 10 years I've been in this house I have never had an issue with a single contractor. Sure some are better than others, but never had one be an outright crook so I guess I had my guard down.

Anyways what would you guys do? Couple lawyers I talked to said it's not worth it just go to small claim court. However is there any point in even doing that? I mean it seems pretty complicated to file the case in small claims court, you have to pay a bunch of fees and really what guarantee is there I will get any $$ back? I can get a judgement but what good is that when the scumbag just shuts down the company?

At this point I don't even care about my deposit. I would happily forfeit it if I knew the pos was getting locked up. I hate crooks.

Is he a corporation or an individual doing the company though?

If individual, you can get a lien on his house through court and then when he goes to sell, you get paid. My parents had to do that for a roofer who pulled the same stunt. Of course, different country, so results may vary...

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Joekerr

Is he a corporation or an individual doing the company though?

If individual, you can get a lien on his house through court and then when he goes to sell, you get paid. My parents had to do that for a roofer who pulled the same stunt. Of course, different country, so results may vary...

He is a "corporation" and by that I mean he paid the $150 or whatever it is to register with the state. I can pretty much guarantee you it's just him and his scammer buddy. I'm sure a lawyer could try to sue him personally, but I'm not sure that's something I can do in small claims court.

[zx10guy]

Is he licensed and bonded? If so, you can go to the licensing comission to see what remedies you can pursue.

One of the reasons I will not work with any contractor that is not licensed and bonded.

[grocerylist]

I don't know the laws for Florida but I've sued someone in small claims court in Texas and it was pretty much pointless. I won and got a judgement, filed an abstract of judgement with the county, filed a writ of garnishment... it was all for nothing. Texas protects debtors, wage garnishment is illegal, you can't put a lien on a primary residence (only a secondary). It's a pain in the ass to try to track down property to collect against or to get a sheriff to collect on.

[vreihen16]

Two words...Judge Judy. Expose his fraudulent butt on national TV, and maybe even get some or all of your money back from the show if they are still paying for their judgements.....

[Wolf 335]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

So I hired this "company" to come out and replace my old wood fence with a new PVC fence. Signed proposal back in the end of July and gave a deposit... yeah you see where this is going.

How much was the deposit?

[tcphoto]

I’d have a friend call and bait him with a big project. After arranging an appointment, you can be waiting in the house to confront him. Perhaps having a Sheriff or Police there to put an exclamation point on it.

[F30lolz]

Was this in Miami? Wouldn’t be surprised if it was. Always go with referrals for things like this to help prevent getting shafted as SoFlo is full of crooks.

[Addbuyer]

I assume he had to do a site visit to price this fence replacement? If so, find an empty rental and arrange for him to come round to price some work. You and a mate (in disguise) play baseball with his legs or better still, do a Dexter

[nyalpine90]

if all parties involve agree for closing 12/7, I will be homeowner!!
Before i move in, I need to do some work which will require professional/license company to perform abandonment of oil tank that is underground, and new install above ground.
i been researching for companies that have more then 1 locations, and reviews.


just cut your loss, and move on. he probably wont have funds to pay anyone back.
it sucks though.

[floridaorange]

Dude my neighbor, (happens to be from Long Island) is a contractor, and he got scammed out of $20k by another contractor.... So it happens, I guess, to anyone.

[zx10guy]

Per my comment about ensuring the contractor is licensed and bonded, from what I know at least for my state, you have remedies if things go south. Not only will the licensing board investigate any complaints but the bond part is there which the contractor has to pay money in to where the state can make distributions for any damages to customers.

While many times one shouldn't have any major issues with a contractor, the piece of mind paying for the higher rates for a licensed and bonded contractor vs one that is not is something I'm willing to pay.

[spazzyfry123]

Once upon a time I had a contractor do a complete remodel on a house I had to flip, and boy it was a nightmare. Fly by night deal that always seemed cracked out or drunk. Left a check with a relative to pay the guy for that week's work after completion while I was out of town, but of course she gave the check early in the week. Guy jumped town with a pocket full of cash for work he didn't complete. Half built deck with the rear French doors missing a threshold and a time schedule to list the house in a week. Check was cashed before I knew it and POOF...dude was gone to never be heard from again.

While I can't be of any assistance to OP, I'd be interested to see what not to do in these situations. I am always ultra DIY (I enjoy it, and, well, I don't trust folks as can be seen here and above), but I just don't see building a privacy fence in the cards as a solo project. zx10guy mentions ensuring the contractor is licensed and bonded which is great advice. My only experience is Mr. Workforarock, and I just cannot go through that crap again. What other advice do the people have in selecting the right team? Google reviews? Bring your top three out to bid? What else?

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Wolf 335

How much was the deposit?

$1500

Originally Posted by F30lolz

Was this in Miami? Wouldn’t be surprised if it was. Always go with referrals for things like this to help prevent getting shafted as SoFlo is full of crooks.

Boynton, but like I said in 10 years at this house never had an issue with a contractor.

Originally Posted by grocerylist

I don't know the laws for Florida but I've sued someone in small claims court in Texas and it was pretty much pointless. I won and got a judgement, filed an abstract of judgement with the county, filed a writ of garnishment... it was all for nothing. Texas protects debtors, wage garnishment is illegal, you can't put a lien on a primary residence (only a secondary). It's a pain in the ass to try to track down property to collect against or to get a sheriff to collect on.

That's my thought also, but I hate to see the fuck face get away with it.

Originally Posted by zx10guy

Per my comment about ensuring the contractor is licensed and bonded, from what I know at least for my state, you have remedies if things go south. Not only will the licensing board investigate any complaints but the bond part is there which the contractor has to pay money in to where the state can make distributions for any damages to customers.

While many times one shouldn't have any major issues with a contractor, the piece of mind paying for the higher rates for a licensed and bonded contractor vs one that is not is something I'm willing to pay.

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

Once upon a time I had a contractor do a complete remodel on a house I had to flip, and boy it was a nightmare. Fly by night deal that always seemed cracked out or drunk. Left a check with a relative to pay the guy for that week's work after completion while I was out of town, but of course she gave the check early in the week. Guy jumped town with a pocket full of cash for work he didn't complete. Half built deck with the rear French doors missing a threshold and a time schedule to list the house in a week. Check was cashed before I knew it and POOF...dude was gone to never be heard from again.

While I can't be of any assistance to OP, I'd be interested to see what not to do in these situations. I am always ultra DIY (I enjoy it, and, well, I don't trust folks as can be seen here and above), but I just don't see building a privacy fence in the cards as a solo project. zx10guy mentions ensuring the contractor is licensed and bonded which is great advice. My only experience is Mr. Workforarock, and I just cannot go through that crap again. What other advice do the people have in selecting the right team? Google reviews? Bring your top three out to bid? What else?

The issue is the guy is maybe, kinda licensed. The license he has comes back to some other company which he claimed was the main company because him and his partner did handyman work so at the time didn't think much of it. I think the biggest mistake was giving this guy a deposit. Should of given him enough to get the permit then maybe once everything is vetted and project should start give more for materials or whatever dunno.

I actually looked and got quotes for a couple of companies. He actually seemed quite professional when he came out to quote. At the time he also had decent reviews. Hindsight being 20/20 he didn't have that many and they were probably fake.

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

What other advice do the people have in selecting the right team? Google reviews? Bring your top three out to bid? What else?

Angie's List, HomeAdvisor, and other trades-referral services that both vet an offer reviews before you even contact a potential contractor.

I saw an episode of "Bar Rescue" where Jon Taffer claimed that he hired all tradespeople for his overnight renovations all over the country from Angie's List.....

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by vreihen16

Angie's List, HomeAdvisor, and other trades-referral services that both vet an offer reviews before you even contact a potential contractor.

I saw an episode of "Bar Rescue" where Jon Taffer claimed that he hired all tradespeople for his overnight renovations all over the country from Angie's List.....

Doesn't work all the time. One of the places I looked was Angies List. Guy had good reviews... at the time. Now of course you have bad reviews popping up.

Angies List even added a banner to his profile stating:

"Under certain circumstances, Angie's List requires the owner, relevant manager, and/or specific key employee(s) of a business to submit to a background check by our third-party screening company. The requested individual for this company refused to authorize an Angie's List background check, and the company will be withheld from category and keyword searches until such time as the provider authorizes and passes this background check."

This would have been an obvious red flag but the notice is dated 10/1/2020 which is way after I hired him.

Apparently you can pay $160 to start a corporation here in FL. Get a few fake reviews on Google or what not, start taking peoples money, once they figure it out shut it down go to Bahamas to celebrate your pay day. Once you blow through that start a new company, rinse and repeat. No one can apparently do anything about it.

[CTinline-six]

The solution seems pretty obvious to me...






That sucks though.

[MKSixer]

Sorry to hear this.

I never let anyone get ahead of me on payments. If a contractor/contracting corporation or whatever the entity may be, doesn't have the financial wherewithal to start a job and get through phase one of whatever, I don't do business with them. Period. End of Story..

Good luck in recovering your funds and getting your job done!!

[Darth One]

Did you pay the deposit with a credit card? If so you should file a dispute

[Kelse92]

Someone asked how to Avoid these types of situations.
Here's my tips from a couple of years in the house flipping biz:
Always avoid deposits when possible. If the deposit is for materials, buy your own materials.
Always buy your own materials (can't stress this enough)
Only accept people who will provide you licensing information (if applicable) and insurance up front.
If your gut tells you they're shady they probably are.
Check for local references. My favorite are in local real estate investment Facebook groups. They usually know the best people. (and the worst, in my area there an FB group just for posting the bad ones)
Make them sign a contract for services and a lien waiver if it's a longer-term more extensive project.
Deposit if it has do be done by CC is also a great protection.