I was a sub-contractor for several years. Very small company, just myself and different crews to do just part of a job for larger contractors. You'd be amazed at how many contractors would tell the customer it was my company that increased the price or did the work in question. I always made a point of talking directly to the customer so they could contact me if there was a problem. Doing so shed a few larger contractors that liked to blame someone else for a price or crappy work they did, but life was easier in the long run. The number of liars there doing business is simply astounding.
@@rongibson8501 All the court cases before could/should have settled that.Probably a little corruption within the system if you know what I mean.Just don't like it when another avenue opens up for forfeitures.And yes,the Feds are getting their cut.
10 years for government to think abou it 10 years for them to file papers 10 years to do something ie they wqere getting taxes from him so sweep under the rug ohhh pthers know so lets do something thats y
30-40 years ago, builder's contracts used to favor the homeowners,one reason being an abundance of qualified contractors.Homeowners could fine the builders for everyday the construction wasn't completed by completion date.That holds contractors feet to the fire.Nowadays,the builder's contracts have shifted to favor the contractors.One reason being, homeowners doesn't have a large selection of contractors to choose from like before,so,that puts the homeowners at a disadvantage and almost at the mercy of the contractors.
Because the State of Ohio's Justice is THAT f@)_(&ked and 'Murica's consumer protection laws favor corporations cuz 'Murica is literally (big H with a tiny 'stache) owned and run by corporations & banks (and not the people), abd the general stupidity and fiscal ignorance of your average 'Murican is why you get shit like this in the Land of the Sheep and Home of the Debt Slave. For those of you in EUrope. Be thankful that at least you have laws that regulating this crap hard. Its bad enough that Murica's healthcare system is akin to usery, and the sheeple to ig'nant and divided to see that both sides of the political spectrum screws them completely.
Unfortunately I can bet this guy will be back in business next week. And as for the assets? Ooooh we had a fire at the garage sorry everything is gone… by the time the law catches up this guy will be gone
So apropos for us.....we already had a relationship with the company that deceived us because they were subcontracted by the main contractor, who would be paying them. When "damage" was more extensive than anticipated, the main contractor had us negotiate directly with the subcontractor. That's when they took 1/2 down payment, kept stalling us with a custom door on order, and just kept putting us off ....meanwhile, our gutters were on the ground through the rainy winter months. We finally got another company out here to do the work. It is finally finished....finally....and we consulted a lawyer, who also asked for payment up front for a Demand letter that was supposed to be ready "tomorrow." This was over 3 weeks ago. It just goes on and on....
@Sal Spencer you want something done right ; do it yourself !! Of course doing the work yourself could turn out better Or worse than the lousy contractor ! Just depends on you skill and knowledge of that type of work you need done !
@Sal Spencer that would be IDEAL if we weren't both elderly with health issues ......replacing an entire roof is a little above our pay grade ....smh.....
So this guy cheats and loses his company, as he should, yet the company that rotates your tires and leaves the lug nuts loose is in the clear! Who chooses these justices who lack intelligence and common sense? The harm done to the legal system is immense!
Different state. It's amazing how states can interpret such simple laws. One state says hey you can;t cheat people , other says you shouldn't cheat people but if you want to here is how to do it legally
When someone or some company repeatedly violates administrative laws and regulations, it really should have some conversion to criminal activity instead of remaining administrative that doesn't require the action of a judge or AG. They've shown the habit of flouting the authority of the jurisdiction that makes it safe for them to operate there - they shouldn't be allowed to continue to hire a 'mouthpiece' and have business as usual. It makes it look like that local or regional government approves of the actions and is part of the continued activity.
Contractors in my area have switched back to magnetic signs on their trucks. They are removed when on job sites. Ladders have been changed to foldable ladders for concealing. I report them constantly.
Weird, around here nobody will work without a sign because...people will report them. We had someone call an inspector on us because our hvac install van had no markings other than the required license number and the person making the complaint didn't see it but they saw us pulling a furnace out of a house.. I don't do HVAC any more thankfully.
In my state, a business needs commercial plates. And I the vehicle has commercial plates, it needs to have a sign, and the sign needs to be permanently attached.
As an investor who often purchases properties, performs remodels or repairs, and then often sells the property, it is insane how much shoddy and even downright dangerous work I’ve seen the past 5 years. Make sure you have a good inspector who knows how to test your plumbing and electrical before buying a house unless your willing to correctly redo the work yourself. These yahoos often attempt to cover up problems that they do not know how to handle.
Right its like whoever is doing these things doesnt know they can be held liable if anything bad happens to the house resulting jn bodily injury or death possibly charging them with murder or manslaughter if the error/coverup was bad enough
If you weren't racing against the big house buying corporations and the panic buyers offering well above list to beat those same corporations to get a house, you could also take the time to get a historical record of work permits pulled for a property.
I have been in this business for thirty years. In my area the business has changed from multigenerational builders to wealthy developers types flipping and spec builds mixed in with illegal immigrant labor. Its very hard to compete unless you have a niche and do very high end work. The majority of my work has become fixing shoddy work by others and property management/ maintenance work. In the area of Eastern Long island, NY i live developers can get a building permit to build spec homes with no building experience at all. If you have the money for insurance you can get a permit. You need a contractors licenses for additions/remodels and repairs but not to build 10,000 square foot spec home or renovation flips. Makes no sense and favors rich developers who build huge crappy homes over craftsmen. And liability insurance has gone through the roof. They want 6% of your gross receipts….even if you lost money on a job. Total nightmare currently.
Steve gets detained by a cop: Steve "I'm not saying anything without my lawyer present" Cop "you ARE a lawyer" Steve "Yeah, and I'm waiting for my present!"
Yes, he is a lawyer. So he knows to keep his mouth shut until he gets a consultation with a lawyer with a specialty in the field. He knows there's a minefield before him. He knows to call someone who knows where the mines are.
Don't thumb your nose at the Judge. Speaking about a seed(y) company, my friend in PA got into it with his seed company over damaged seeds that customers couldn't get to grow and sued them. The company didn't respond to his lawsuit, he filed for and got summary judgment, and collected on everything.
One thing people should keep in mind is that building inspectors only inspect for code compliance NOT quality or integrity of work. Some good inspectors may point out quality shortcomings, & some bad inspectors will overstep their authority & say things like, "I'd like to see x, y or z". As far as choosing a good contractor, get recommendations from people you know & trust or ask the contractor to show you completed jobs & talk to the customers. I offer this regularly to potential customers & most clients jump at the chance to show off their new kitchen, bathroom, etc.
Steve some areas do NOT require permits such as most of Alaska. some areas take advantage of permits as a money grab, $500 for permit to change front door... permit cost more than the front door.
That contractor sounds so shady I wouldn't be surprised if everything in the company was in somebody else's name (like his family). Somebody that crooked plans ahead.
Trying to find a home improvement contractor is as hard to find as a good independent car repair mechanic. Most home improvement companies don't do the work required, to do shoddy work, or not all the work at all. Most home improvement companies who get away with this is that the people don't know they can sue in the courts or the home improvement companies know they can get away with doing this work or not without getting penalized by the County or State.
@Sal Spencer Don't fix your Apple computer, buy a new one! Don't fix your One Wheel, buy a new one! Don't fix that surgical bed with a $300 motor, buy a new one for $30,000! ... This is the road being paved by greedy corporations. They don't need your help, Sal. - Repair is how you keep value, save money, reduce waste, and cut pollution.
@Sal Spencer Seriously? Do you honestly believe that? I guess the ability to care enough about what you own must have died before your generation. My grandfather was fixing his own things, with his own tools, well into his 80's. He lived through the Great Depression, and understood the value of money. He understood that owning quality and keeping those things in good condition was far more valuable than being able to throw stuff away and replace with another item with a 2-3 year life expectancy. - Repair is something everyone should be involved in, even if they can't do it themselves. The knowledge is key. Knowing what needs to be done will protect you from grifters and scum bags. - Or, you can just keep throwing things away and giving your money to corporations so the moneyed few can build rockets and airlines and yachts for their yachts...
@Sal Spencer Your line of argument only holds up when the new asset will actually have the same cost/benefit arc over time that the existing similarly-named asset would have. A new car in-warranty has no added capital value when the warranty 1. Does not guarantee parts availability vs time vs opportunity costs 2. Does not have an evidence-based total cost of ownership projected past anticipated retirement duration 3. Use of that warranty puts your new capital asset under the control of the very group who is currently economically incentivized to leverage such persons, as the loan requires repairs be made else the insurance will not pay out the expected value, and so on, which breaks the big picture math. Your logic is only sound advice in a microeconomic environment where those prerequisites are true. That is in turn structurally not possible in the ways your logic depends upon in the majority of cases due to macroeconomic shifts while the advice stays stagnant. Put in other words, knowledge of the important variables relative to time is the difference between basic blackjack strategy vs card counting return rates. That general way of looking to optimize life for one’s own specific circumstances and not for an A/B “wine is good / wine is bad” type slogan has fallen away from the cultural mainstream, and so the institutional knowledge erodes, and so on.
Seed company...when I was young, in the '70s, I was into that! I don't remember the details, exactly, but I'd go door-to-door getting orders (I think), and then send in my total order, get the seeds, distribute them to the customers. At the time, it seemed like a decent way for a kid to make some money, along with mowing a neighbor's grass, other small jobs. Steve, if you could say the name of the company you knew about, that may be enough for me to remember if it's the one I dealt with. Or maybe not. I still remember the street address I had in the '70s, and the (7-digit) phone number there, but there are a lot of things I don't remember anymore. I'm glad we weren't ripped off by contractors. I can only think of three we dealt with. One, we got a reference from someone who worked with my wife, and this guy did work for them. He was also married to another of her coworkers, or something like that. Anyway, he was a solid worker, did what he said he would, charged what he said he would, and appreciated what help I provided. I've recommended him to many others in the area. A second, I can't recall how we got his name, but probably also word-of-mouth. He wasn't quite so good, but at least was honest. Some of his work was a bit shoddy, where it didn't show. A third, who replaced our roof, we got the contact info from our insurance company. A big hail storm had gone through, and there were more than enough "roofing contractors" going door to door to drum up business, but we ignored them all and went with the one the insurance company dealt with. That went very well.
Based on many stories of bad contractors, this guy's biggest sin was either idiocy or arrogance. Or both. Many contractors who are slime balls will rip off a slew of people for a few years, abandon their company name, re-organize under a different name with their spouse or an adult child on the paperwork. Then rinse and repeat until they need to move to another state and start over.
so far that protecting the public is needed and required or it kills people. On July 17, 1981, the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, suffered the structural collapse of two overhead walkways. Loaded with partygoers, the concrete and glass platforms cascaded down, crashing onto a tea dance in the lobby, killing 114 and injuring 216. having plans approved is a good idea, having work inspected is a good idea G.C.E. was found responsible for the change from a one-rod to a two-rod system. Further, it was found that even if Havens failed to review the shop drawings or to specifically note the box beam hanger rod connections, the engineers were still responsible for the final check while this was a commercial building, a residential building can have work done that can result in injury or death as well. So when a contractor is doing shoddy work, it is time to shut them down
Not getting permits and license is the only reason the judge went so hard on him....by not getting permits he cut out the fees and costs he'd pay to the municipality, therefore the municipality came after him. If the story was the same minus lacking government documentation nothing would have ever happened to him
Permits are the customers assurance that the job will be up to code. They may be some money saved, but an unscrupulous contractor will avoid permits so they can do things that the customer will not realize are not safe or correct. If a contractor won’t get permits I recommend you go to a different contractor.
@@SeanPat1001 i agree, I think they should get permits and I think consumers should do what they can to verify contractors are properly permitted. Im just saying each permit comes at a fee to the municipality and the municipality doesn't care the consumers were screwed over....the municipality is mad they didn't get their fees
@@ethanhoward389 that hasn’t been my experience. The inspectors that I have met I’ve been very careful to assure that the job was completed according to the code. More than once they have identified an attempted shortcut that the contractor had to fix and would’ve led to difficulties for me down the line.
@@SeanPat1001 Sure thing, the inspectors have to do their job, and most of the people employed in the process want work done safely, to code, to the benefit of the customer. What I am saying is, if this contractor hasn't had a single permit in 40 years, the municipality has likely missed out on hundreds of thousands of dollars. If the inspectors didn't force contractors to get permits, or force the contractors to complete work up to code, as outlined by the permit, the inspector wouldn't have a job. He is paid by the money generated by permits. What I'm saying is, the municipality is pissed they didn't get paid, the well being of consumers is a side effect of them getting paid (which they all want consumers to be taken care of....because thats what keeps them paid)
@@ethanhoward389 True, but it also means all those customers didn’t have the protection offered by permit. For example, not that long ago I saw a story on a house that was built in the wrong place, as a result part of the property was built across the property line and the entire building had to be torn down. I bet the lawyers got plenty of revenue out of that one. Having permits prevents this kind of disaster. In a recent case for me, the contractors incorrectly installed a compressor on my roof. The inspector pointed out what was wrong and why it was wrong and then in his report directed the contractors to fix it. These guys have installed a lot of compressors, so they know the right way to do it. They were just trying to save some time and money and seeing if they could sneak a half done job by me and the inspector. I would not have noticed the problem.
Kiss everything you have goodbye. Business goods, money, house, car. This guy could literally be broke and homeless by the end. We can only hope. My whole family worked in construction for over 50 yrs. Do's and Do Not's I'm your girl.
Since when does a private individual need permission from the State to sue a company or contractor that has wronged them? Those statutes are there to give the AG permission and authority to sue them for deceptive business practices. Any private individual can sue anyone who has caused them harm, damages or wronged them.
Yea for the most part you can't get any help unless you get media attention or have high power friends in Michigan, I once was a target of a scam when I was trying to sell a car, the buyer never came and saw it , sent a check and said the over paid check was for me to arrange for me to ship it, but funny they never told me to ship it anywhere, I took the what I thought was a stolen company check to the police, with the text messages and the police would not even look at what I had, said it happens all the time and they can't/won't do anything about it.
Was that seed company The Michigan Seed Company or Michigan Bulb Company? I bought some fruit bushes that were supposed to be a mix of various fruits like cherry, plum, apricot, and a forth fruit. They all turned out to be cherry. Ten cherry bushes, which didn't live too long slowly died off due to being about 20 feet from a black walnut tree. I never bought anything from them after that. Will google to see if they still are in business.
Dear Steve I recently came into a situation where a a construction site was doing work they hit my property damaged my garage and now he's telling me to call on the guy that did the damage because he doesn't work for him and it wasn't on his worksite what should I do?
Wow my grand parents back in the day got taken for lots of money and shoddy work. Buy the time the they sued in civil court he filed bankruptcy and oped under a different name in MN. So now that'll didn't exist anymore he avoided the suite 🤔 🙄
It would make sense to me to not go after the company but rather go after the person running the company on criminal fraud charges. Forget the seed company go after the owners.
If we live in Michigan and we have been ripped off by a shady contractor, what is the first step in recourse? Also, do non disparagement clauses on contacts enforceable in Michigan. I got screwed over Big time by a CONtractor that lied about everything, damaged my home in more ways than one, did Horrible work and even threatened me with violence and basically “dared” me to take him to court stating “you don’t have any money” my job was left in complete and the contractor also stated that he was colluding with the inspector so that his shitty work passed. He got his money, I got Ripped Off and he drove away laughing.... how can I go about getting that guy? I know that he has done the exact same thing to others as well. Thanks Steve.
Businesses get away with stuff like this all the time. There's a car parts business that used to do it by paper catalog and is now still open and doing it on the internet. Back in the day you might get your order, you might not. While they were undergoing the bankruptcy Chapter for reorganization they were still taking Parts orders but not sending them out. Not realizing they were in financial trouble I ordered about $100 worth of parts and never saw them or my money again. Yet this company is still in business even after I filed a complaint. Although I will tell anybody who I am talking to privately their name I will not say it on this comment because they might have a cause for legal action if I do. It is a truly naive belief that our government is here to protect us. There are just too many examples of the exact opposite. This one case about this sleazy contractor is the exception not the rule. But I am glad this exception has occurred!
well i suppose it could be worse, not sure if Texas has any sort of consumer protection, and if they do, they probably wont enforce that. for example, if you have a complaint about insurance, there is a dept that is responsible for that they just arent funded to be able to do so. and short of a big contributor to say the governor, they will take the complaint, and see if they can do much about it. Texas claim to be business friendly, and in their case, consumer unfriendly
I never got any contractors license but did get permits for a remodle job i just finished with that totalled 12 grand worth of work.. crazy thing was i did the work for a little old lady and did the work because of a toilet that leaked and ruined the floor and molded. But she needed an accessible shower and all so i did the wotk. Come to find out as im finishing up everything she filed for insurance to pay for everything. But she turned in files saying total charged was 35k.. just told me to go along with it because that is what she got estimates said.. so since i had no license i thought why not. Well everything went through and all sauid and done for a 12k job i planned on going home with i got 22k total.. lady. Said because i was honest and caring as well as helpful she said i deserved it.. said she been paying insurance her whole 92 years and never used it once so she wanted to help while getting her moneys worth from the insurance people.. lol.. pays to be honest and a hard worker sometimes.. sometimes...
I will never allow another contractor into my house again. NEVER!!! NEVER!!! NEVER!!! I still have an open permit since 2017 for fire damage to my garage. "Servpro of South Shasta County" took my money and never completed the work. They tried to leave the siding off my house for winter. I live in snow country. They DA just ignore me. Like Steve said, action only happens if there are many complaints. Serpro is just a franchise. Talking to corporate is a joke too. All they say is "work it out with the contractor." I don't have the money to get legal help on my own. So they get away with it. The only reason I still have a house that is standing is because I have skills taught to me by my grandfather. He taught me to builds houses on the job site with him 40 years ago. So I'm lucky to still have many of those skills. I'm also a power plant operator, which make me an electrician too. I ended up replacing the siding by myself on the entire exterior and completely rewired my house and garage. The only compliments I get on all of the work done is "Nice job on the siding." Even the building inspector commented on it. Wish they could see the wiring too. I will not ever forget what the one of his employees said to me. "A little paint and caulk will cover up what a carpenter is not." He said that on several occasions while working. If anyone would like to see his work. Let me know, I'll be glad to show you so you don't have to go through what I have. My house is still not finished because this jerk that left me hanging thinking I would crumble and just pay him more. Nope... not goin to happen at all. Unfortunately my life has been quite tragic with multiple deaths in the family and funeral costs over this time period that I'm still trying to pay and recover from. This has prevented me from getting legal help. DA will not help at all, and I don't have the money to hire an attorney now. I wish I had just done ALL the work myself now. PS: I'm not afraid of slander or anything else posting here. I still have my house and all the documentation as proof of what I say is true. I would love to go to court on this. Wish I could someday.
The Werefrog like a local law where The Werefrog live. If a contractor provides the bid, and you have contract for work. The contractor can't require more money, and if the contractor stops working, you can hire a new contractor to finish. The total you have to pay is still less than or equal to what the original contractor said. If new one charges more, you can get the difference through courts from original contractor.
This sounds like a one man operation that we have here in upstate NY. Takes money for roofing materials, buys and delivers the materials and never completes the job.
About the CPA, if the Supreme court says the law doesn't mean what the lawmakers wanted it be why don't you amend the law or make a new one that fixes the problems highlighted by the supreme court? Or do the politicians just don't care?
You probably do not know that TECHNICALLY, you should pull a permit to change a faucet. Depending on which area of the country you are in, some people expressly do not want permits unless you are performing an addition. I believe this is partially due to the automatic tax increases that will happen. In So. Cal. they come out and look at the job (NOT..the municipality, mind you..but the tax people)..and then issue you a SUPPLEMENTAL tax bill depending on how far along they think you are. They have even started doing that in park city, utah (ya,..that was a bit of a surprise when a tax muckymuck wanted to get into one of my addition/remodel jobs,......I told her "Sorry, I can't let you in,.The inspector has the right to come it,....you do not.)., Ok, Beautiful day.
Guys like that give guys like me a bad name. I've been in business for over 30 years and to this day I don't know if I complaint. In fact I have more repeat customers than what I have new ones.
Easy: Doing business requires a license (for tax purposes naturally). Contracting work requires further license, bonding, and insurance (because if you f**k up, it can easily cost more than you're worth to fix it…) When you're not doing those things properly and legally, the court can declare someone else to be in charge of making sure that you do. If that happens, and it only happens if you REALLY make it happen, hope and pray they have some competency in the field you're in, because they literally control your ability to make money. You basically can't take a crap on the clock without this person's approval. Company does well? Company goes under? Well, them's the breaks. Oh, and don't waste this person's time trying to tie them up with BS. You're paying them for their time, after all. Don't like it? Don't run a scam operation-this stuff only happens when you've managed to break a bunch of laws and have demonstrated that you cannot operate your company properly, but your company can't be just shut down because you've got legal obligations. Yeah, this brilliant individual was there and decided he didn't have to do squat. And now he doesn't have a company anymore and he's probably going to jail if they're serious about stopping him.
I was a sub-contractor for several years. Very small company, just myself and different crews to do just part of a job for larger contractors. You'd be amazed at how many contractors would tell the customer it was my company that increased the price or did the work in question. I always made a point of talking directly to the customer so they could contact me if there was a problem. Doing so shed a few larger contractors that liked to blame someone else for a price or crappy work they did, but life was easier in the long run. The number of liars there doing business is simply astounding.
Pro tip: Two people you don't ever want to piss off: 1) The person who handles your food. 2) The judge who's hearing your case.
There's no way this guy just says, "oh, okay!" and shuts down his business. He thinks he's untouchable. For 45 years, he has been.
Thanks for informing us all on current events. Civil Asset Forfeiture.A legalized mafia if there ever was one.
Agreed 👍
Exactly 💯 💯
His assets were seized to repay victims of his crime
@@rongibson8501 All the court cases before could/should have settled that.Probably a little corruption within the system if you know what I mean.Just don't like it when another avenue opens up for forfeitures.And yes,the Feds are getting their cut.
"crazy"......you've definitely correctly described yourself.....
How did this guy get away with it for so long? 45 years in business? Wow. I imagine more people will probably come forward now with more complaints.
10 years for government to think abou it 10 years for them to file papers 10 years to do something ie they wqere getting taxes from him so sweep under the rug ohhh pthers know so lets do something thats y
30-40 years ago, builder's contracts used to favor the homeowners,one reason being an abundance of qualified contractors.Homeowners could fine the builders for everyday the construction wasn't completed by completion date.That holds contractors feet to the fire.Nowadays,the builder's contracts have shifted to favor the contractors.One reason being, homeowners doesn't have a large selection of contractors to choose from like before,so,that puts the homeowners at a disadvantage and almost at the mercy of the contractors.
@@jerrypatterson55 maybe they didnt always do ....stupid things?...or not enough folks complained
Because the State of Ohio's Justice is THAT f@)_(&ked and 'Murica's consumer protection laws favor corporations cuz 'Murica is literally (big H with a tiny 'stache) owned and run by corporations & banks (and not the people), abd the general stupidity and fiscal ignorance of your average 'Murican is why you get shit like this in the Land of the Sheep and Home of the Debt Slave.
For those of you in EUrope. Be thankful that at least you have laws that regulating this crap hard. Its bad enough that Murica's healthcare system is akin to usery, and the sheeple to ig'nant and divided to see that both sides of the political spectrum screws them completely.
Remember that Ohio is considered the Alabama of the midwest.
Oh, and I just noticed Steve hit 300k subs! Congratulations Steve!
Unfortunately I can bet this guy will be back in business next week. And as for the assets? Ooooh we had a fire at the garage sorry everything is gone… by the time the law catches up this guy will be gone
Ben - Get off the top of my Turbine !!
So apropos for us.....we already had a relationship with the company that deceived us because they were subcontracted by the main contractor, who would be paying them. When "damage" was more extensive than anticipated, the main contractor had us negotiate directly with the subcontractor. That's when they took 1/2 down payment, kept stalling us with a custom door on order, and just kept putting us off ....meanwhile, our gutters were on the ground through the rainy winter months. We finally got another company out here to do the work. It is finally finished....finally....and we consulted a lawyer, who also asked for payment up front for a Demand letter that was supposed to be ready "tomorrow." This was over 3 weeks ago. It just goes on and on....
@Sal Spencer you want something done right ; do it yourself !! Of course doing the work yourself could turn out better Or worse than the lousy contractor ! Just depends on you skill and knowledge of that type of work you need done !
@Sal Spencer that would be IDEAL if we weren't both elderly with health issues ......replacing an entire roof is a little above our pay grade ....smh.....
@Sal Spencer A man who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client.
Since I can't find a way to block the know-it-all Sal Spencer.....with absolutely zero empathy....I will be deleting this post.....such a troll!!!
Just seems to me that if contractors are scamming people it would be better to just put them in prison.
Except some states don't even put violent criminals in prison!
Why not both?
So this guy cheats and loses his company, as he should, yet the company that rotates your tires and leaves the lug nuts loose is in the clear! Who chooses these justices who lack intelligence and common sense? The harm done to the legal system is immense!
Different state. It's amazing how states can interpret such simple laws. One state says hey you can;t cheat people , other says you shouldn't cheat people but if you want to here is how to do it legally
Crossed Swords tee-shirt, nice. In my younger days I served in the Cavalry.
2/107th Cavalry!
Hello sir... Thanks for being you
When someone or some company repeatedly violates administrative laws and regulations, it really should have some conversion to criminal activity instead of remaining administrative that doesn't require the action of a judge or AG. They've shown the habit of flouting the authority of the jurisdiction that makes it safe for them to operate there - they shouldn't be allowed to continue to hire a 'mouthpiece' and have business as usual. It makes it look like that local or regional government approves of the actions and is part of the continued activity.
agreed
Contractors in my area have switched back to magnetic signs on their trucks. They are removed when on job sites. Ladders have been changed to foldable ladders for concealing. I report them constantly.
Weird, around here nobody will work without a sign because...people will report them. We had someone call an inspector on us because our hvac install van had no markings other than the required license number and the person making the complaint didn't see it but they saw us pulling a furnace out of a house.. I don't do HVAC any more thankfully.
Foldable ladders are used because a typical 40' extension ladder fits absolutely nowhere.
@@ehrichweiss I have moved to the ghetto for cheap rent so of course low life’s are more prevalent here where I am currently living.
In my state, a business needs commercial plates.
And I the vehicle has commercial plates, it needs to have a sign, and the sign needs to be permanently attached.
this is needed everywhere.
I'm super curious about that seed fraud case and why it was hard to go after them.
I’d also love to hear more about that story, sounds super interesting
Same, I wanna know how many complaints they have.
As an investor who often purchases properties, performs remodels or repairs, and then often sells the property, it is insane how much shoddy and even downright dangerous work I’ve seen the past 5 years. Make sure you have a good inspector who knows how to test your plumbing and electrical before buying a house unless your willing to correctly redo the work yourself. These yahoos often attempt to cover up problems that they do not know how to handle.
Right its like whoever is doing these things doesnt know they can be held liable if anything bad happens to the house resulting jn bodily injury or death possibly charging them with murder or manslaughter if the error/coverup was bad enough
If you weren't racing against the big house buying corporations and the panic buyers offering well above list to beat those same corporations to get a house, you could also take the time to get a historical record of work permits pulled for a property.
@@MonkeyJedi99 I agree.
I have been in this business for thirty years. In my area the business has changed from multigenerational builders to wealthy developers types flipping and spec builds mixed in with illegal immigrant labor. Its very hard to compete unless you have a niche and do very high end work. The majority of my work has become fixing shoddy work by others and property management/ maintenance work. In the area of Eastern Long island, NY i live developers can get a building permit to build spec homes with no building experience at all. If you have the money for insurance you can get a permit. You need a contractors licenses for additions/remodels and repairs but not to build 10,000 square foot spec home or renovation flips. Makes no sense and favors rich developers who build huge crappy homes over craftsmen. And liability insurance has gone through the roof. They want 6% of your gross receipts….even if you lost money on a job. Total nightmare currently.
That's standard for an empire in decline, why even work?
Steve gets detained by a cop:
Steve "I'm not saying anything without my lawyer present"
Cop "you ARE a lawyer"
Steve "Yeah, and I'm waiting for my present!"
🤣
🤣
The present is a dog. A lawyer dog.
Yes, he is a lawyer. So he knows to keep his mouth shut until he gets a consultation with a lawyer with a specialty in the field. He knows there's a minefield before him. He knows to call someone who knows where the mines are.
@@knghtbrd also a lawyer with freedom of movement...
Don't thumb your nose at the Judge.
Speaking about a seed(y) company, my friend in PA got into it with his seed company over damaged seeds that customers couldn't get to grow and sued them. The company didn't respond to his lawsuit, he filed for and got summary judgment, and collected on everything.
I bet this guy has some disgruntled former employees that would like a piece of the pie.
One thing people should keep in mind is that building inspectors only inspect for code compliance NOT quality or integrity of work. Some good inspectors may point out quality shortcomings, & some bad inspectors will overstep their authority & say things like, "I'd like to see x, y or z". As far as choosing a good contractor, get recommendations from people you know & trust or ask the contractor to show you completed jobs & talk to the customers. I offer this regularly to potential customers & most clients jump at the chance to show off their new kitchen, bathroom, etc.
Steve some areas do NOT require permits such as most of Alaska.
some areas take advantage of permits as a money grab, $500 for permit to change front door... permit cost more than the front door.
That contractor sounds so shady I wouldn't be surprised if everything in the company was in somebody else's name (like his family). Somebody that crooked plans ahead.
I'm betting that was Michigan Bulb Company!
Trying to find a home improvement contractor is as hard to find as a good independent car repair mechanic. Most home improvement companies don't do the work required, to do shoddy work, or not all the work at all. Most home improvement companies who get away with this is that the people don't know they can sue in the courts or the home improvement companies know they can get away with doing this work or not without getting penalized by the County or State.
I think most of them have been to Vito Corleone's "school" of home improvement.....
I am bonded so fuck doing shit work
@Sal Spencer Don't fix your Apple computer, buy a new one!
Don't fix your One Wheel, buy a new one!
Don't fix that surgical bed with a $300 motor, buy a new one for $30,000!
... This is the road being paved by greedy corporations. They don't need your help, Sal.
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Repair is how you keep value, save money, reduce waste, and cut pollution.
@Sal Spencer Seriously? Do you honestly believe that?
I guess the ability to care enough about what you own must have died before your generation.
My grandfather was fixing his own things, with his own tools, well into his 80's.
He lived through the Great Depression, and understood the value of money. He understood that owning quality and keeping those things in good condition was far more valuable than being able to throw stuff away and replace with another item with a 2-3 year life expectancy.
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Repair is something everyone should be involved in, even if they can't do it themselves.
The knowledge is key. Knowing what needs to be done will protect you from grifters and scum bags.
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Or, you can just keep throwing things away and giving your money to corporations so the moneyed few can build rockets and airlines and yachts for their yachts...
@Sal Spencer Your line of argument only holds up when the new asset will actually have the same cost/benefit arc over time that the existing similarly-named asset would have. A new car in-warranty has no added capital value when the warranty 1. Does not guarantee parts availability vs time vs opportunity costs 2. Does not have an evidence-based total cost of ownership projected past anticipated retirement duration 3. Use of that warranty puts your new capital asset under the control of the very group who is currently economically incentivized to leverage such persons, as the loan requires repairs be made else the insurance will not pay out the expected value, and so on, which breaks the big picture math. Your logic is only sound advice in a microeconomic environment where those prerequisites are true. That is in turn structurally not possible in the ways your logic depends upon in the majority of cases due to macroeconomic shifts while the advice stays stagnant. Put in other words, knowledge of the important variables relative to time is the difference between basic blackjack strategy vs card counting return rates. That general way of looking to optimize life for one’s own specific circumstances and not for an A/B “wine is good / wine is bad” type slogan has fallen away from the cultural mainstream, and so the institutional knowledge erodes, and so on.
Seed company...when I was young, in the '70s, I was into that! I don't remember the details, exactly, but I'd go door-to-door getting orders (I think), and then send in my total order, get the seeds, distribute them to the customers. At the time, it seemed like a decent way for a kid to make some money, along with mowing a neighbor's grass, other small jobs. Steve, if you could say the name of the company you knew about, that may be enough for me to remember if it's the one I dealt with. Or maybe not. I still remember the street address I had in the '70s, and the (7-digit) phone number there, but there are a lot of things I don't remember anymore.
I'm glad we weren't ripped off by contractors. I can only think of three we dealt with. One, we got a reference from someone who worked with my wife, and this guy did work for them. He was also married to another of her coworkers, or something like that. Anyway, he was a solid worker, did what he said he would, charged what he said he would, and appreciated what help I provided. I've recommended him to many others in the area. A second, I can't recall how we got his name, but probably also word-of-mouth. He wasn't quite so good, but at least was honest. Some of his work was a bit shoddy, where it didn't show. A third, who replaced our roof, we got the contact info from our insurance company. A big hail storm had gone through, and there were more than enough "roofing contractors" going door to door to drum up business, but we ignored them all and went with the one the insurance company dealt with. That went very well.
That dirtbag contractor will never reimburse anyone for his thievery. He'll sit in jail for months if necessary.
He's like a gopher. He'll show up in another state pretty soon since they didn't jail him.
Like your shirt. Missing the tank on those sabers though.
I have watched and listened to so so many of these videos, and all I can ever see is the sign in the background that says "pee"
Based on many stories of bad contractors, this guy's biggest sin was either idiocy or arrogance. Or both.
Many contractors who are slime balls will rip off a slew of people for a few years, abandon their company name, re-organize under a different name with their spouse or an adult child on the paperwork. Then rinse and repeat until they need to move to another state and start over.
Sounds like a rob wolchek hall of shame story !!
Frankly, the guy sounds like a sovereign citizen type. He's probably going to go all the way to criminal prosecution.
What can you do? Well, pass a bill to remove all the exceptions.
So you have to do what the judge and attorney general tell you to do. Why...the nerve of these people!
Love hear that people get shut down scammers ect
WKBN ch 27 is in Youngstown, Ohio. I think you said Columbus.
Wait wha.. what..? Sue..? Why not just call Shenanigans! 😂 (Southpark)
Sounds like a Detroit TV station's Hall of Shame.
“Court orders aren’t something you can ignore…..”
Yeah sure….. have you been paying attention?
Like that dude was gonna quit doing @$$hole stuff . He knew that he was gonna dump and run
... And the seed company became Monsanto.... Regards.
How do we fall so far as a society that we must ask permission from the government to build something on our own land.
so far that protecting the public is needed and required or it kills people.
On July 17, 1981, the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, suffered the structural collapse of two overhead walkways. Loaded with partygoers, the concrete and glass platforms cascaded down, crashing onto a tea dance in the lobby, killing 114 and injuring 216.
having plans approved is a good idea, having work inspected is a good idea
G.C.E. was found responsible for the change from a one-rod to a two-rod system. Further, it was found that even if Havens failed to review the shop drawings or to specifically note the box beam hanger rod connections, the engineers were still responsible for the final check
while this was a commercial building, a residential building can have work done that can result in injury or death as well. So when a contractor is doing shoddy work, it is time to shut them down
Makes no difference. Building approved for 100 people. 300 people crowd in. Boom
Just going out on a limb...I suspect they will discover fraudulent transfers of money and other assets after he fails to return any money.
Not getting permits and license is the only reason the judge went so hard on him....by not getting permits he cut out the fees and costs he'd pay to the municipality, therefore the municipality came after him. If the story was the same minus lacking government documentation nothing would have ever happened to him
Permits are the customers assurance that the job will be up to code. They may be some money saved, but an unscrupulous contractor will avoid permits so they can do things that the customer will not realize are not safe or correct. If a contractor won’t get permits I recommend you go to a different contractor.
@@SeanPat1001 i agree, I think they should get permits and I think consumers should do what they can to verify contractors are properly permitted. Im just saying each permit comes at a fee to the municipality and the municipality doesn't care the consumers were screwed over....the municipality is mad they didn't get their fees
@@ethanhoward389 that hasn’t been my experience. The inspectors that I have met I’ve been very careful to assure that the job was completed according to the code. More than once they have identified an attempted shortcut that the contractor had to fix and would’ve led to difficulties for me down the line.
@@SeanPat1001 Sure thing, the inspectors have to do their job, and most of the people employed in the process want work done safely, to code, to the benefit of the customer. What I am saying is, if this contractor hasn't had a single permit in 40 years, the municipality has likely missed out on hundreds of thousands of dollars. If the inspectors didn't force contractors to get permits, or force the contractors to complete work up to code, as outlined by the permit, the inspector wouldn't have a job. He is paid by the money generated by permits. What I'm saying is, the municipality is pissed they didn't get paid, the well being of consumers is a side effect of them getting paid (which they all want consumers to be taken care of....because thats what keeps them paid)
@@ethanhoward389 True, but it also means all those customers didn’t have the protection offered by permit. For example, not that long ago I saw a story on a house that was built in the wrong place, as a result part of the property was built across the property line and the entire building had to be torn down. I bet the lawyers got plenty of revenue out of that one. Having permits prevents this kind of disaster.
In a recent case for me, the contractors incorrectly installed a compressor on my roof. The inspector pointed out what was wrong and why it was wrong and then in his report directed the contractors to fix it. These guys have installed a lot of compressors, so they know the right way to do it. They were just trying to save some time and money and seeing if they could sneak a half done job by me and the inspector. I would not have noticed the problem.
I'm going to predict there aren't much in the way of assets.
WKBN 27 is in Youngstown, OH, not Columbus. Please post link to article so I can research it. Thanks.
Kiss everything you have goodbye. Business goods, money, house, car. This guy could literally be broke and homeless by the end. We can only hope. My whole family worked in construction for over 50 yrs. Do's and Do Not's I'm your girl.
He’s gunna run.
wkbn 27 is from youngstown
hey Steve we need story time for one the cases your friend had that was wild in the consumer protection law.
Since when does a private individual need permission from the State to sue a company or contractor that has wronged them? Those statutes are there to give the AG permission and authority to sue them for deceptive business practices. Any private individual can sue anyone who has caused them harm, damages or wronged them.
might also make it so that many that see this, think, well these 'rule' are at best suggestions
That floppy piece of plywood we call Ben is not gonna last long on top of the Turbine car on the freeway, Steve's LHS
Yea for the most part you can't get any help unless you get media attention or have high power friends in Michigan, I once was a target of a scam when I was trying to sell a car, the buyer never came and saw it , sent a check and said the over paid check was for me to arrange for me to ship it, but funny they never told me to ship it anywhere, I took the what I thought was a stolen company check to the police, with the text messages and the police would not even look at what I had, said it happens all the time and they can't/won't do anything about it.
Love the show.
Love the cavalry shirts
Dodgson! Dodgson! We got Dodgson here!
I’m a retired carpenter, I tell people if getting quotes on a job. If they tell you we don’t need a permit don’t hire them!!!!!!
Was that seed company The Michigan Seed Company or Michigan Bulb Company? I bought some fruit bushes that were supposed
to be a mix of various fruits like cherry, plum, apricot, and a forth fruit. They all turned out to be cherry. Ten cherry bushes, which didn't live too
long slowly died off due to being about 20 feet from a black walnut tree. I never bought anything from them after that. Will google to see if they
still are in business.
Dear Steve I recently came into a situation where a a construction site was doing work they hit my property damaged my garage and now he's telling me to call on the guy that did the damage because he doesn't work for him and it wasn't on his worksite what should I do?
Not sure if you are aware, but the contractor is from the same town as the ice shanty prostitution story!
Sounds like a good use of "civil asset forfeiture"...
He is the reason to own a 12 or 16 Oz ball peen hammer the best friend a knee cap has ever had .
I'd love to see a video on the Michigan seed company.
Ahhhhh crap. I ordered seeds last week.
The guy will take everything he has in banks , sell what he has and head to another state and open up shop.
Hum one thing that happens in my state is the state contractor board get s involved first, then the Attorney General gets involved.
Ben on top of the Turbine Car
Wow my grand parents back in the day got taken for lots of money and shoddy work. Buy the time the they sued in civil court he filed bankruptcy and oped under a different name in MN. So now that'll didn't exist anymore he avoided the suite 🤔 🙄
It would make sense to me to not go after the company but rather go after the person running the company on criminal fraud charges. Forget the seed company go after the owners.
What company is the seed company
If we live in Michigan and we have been ripped off by a shady contractor, what is the first step in recourse? Also, do non disparagement clauses on contacts enforceable in Michigan. I got screwed over Big time by a CONtractor that lied about everything, damaged my home in more ways than one, did Horrible work and even threatened me with violence and basically “dared” me to take him to court stating “you don’t have any money” my job was left in complete and the contractor also stated that he was colluding with the inspector so that his shitty work passed. He got his money, I got Ripped Off and he drove away laughing.... how can I go about getting that guy? I know that he has done the exact same thing to others as well. Thanks Steve.
Declared bankruptcy as a business last month. Opened under another name in 12 hours.
Businesses get away with stuff like this all the time. There's a car parts business that used to do it by paper catalog and is now still open and doing it on the internet. Back in the day you might get your order, you might not. While they were undergoing the bankruptcy Chapter for reorganization they were still taking Parts orders but not sending them out. Not realizing they were in financial trouble I ordered about $100 worth of parts and never saw them or my money again. Yet this company is still in business even after I filed a complaint. Although I will tell anybody who I am talking to privately their name I will not say it on this comment because they might have a cause for legal action if I do. It is a truly naive belief that our government is here to protect us. There are just too many examples of the exact opposite. This one case about this sleazy contractor is the exception not the rule. But I am glad this exception has occurred!
I'd love to see am episode about that seed company Steve mentioned.
Neil Wolfe and his Hudson-based Neil Construction Company Inc.
On top of the model on the right side of the top shelf (is that a T-Bird?)
well i suppose it could be worse, not sure if Texas has any sort of consumer protection, and if they do, they probably wont enforce that. for example, if you have a complaint about insurance, there is a dept that is responsible for that they just arent funded to be able to do so. and short of a big contributor to say the governor, they will take the complaint, and see if they can do much about it. Texas claim to be business friendly, and in their case, consumer unfriendly
I never got any contractors license but did get permits for a remodle job i just finished with that totalled 12 grand worth of work.. crazy thing was i did the work for a little old lady and did the work because of a toilet that leaked and ruined the floor and molded. But she needed an accessible shower and all so i did the wotk. Come to find out as im finishing up everything she filed for insurance to pay for everything. But she turned in files saying total charged was 35k.. just told me to go along with it because that is what she got estimates said.. so since i had no license i thought why not. Well everything went through and all sauid and done for a 12k job i planned on going home with i got 22k total.. lady. Said because i was honest and caring as well as helpful she said i deserved it.. said she been paying insurance her whole 92 years and never used it once so she wanted to help while getting her moneys worth from the insurance people.. lol.. pays to be honest and a hard worker sometimes.. sometimes...
Hundo, unfolded, across the top of the turbine car, not in the box, on the right side of the top of the main cabinet. 1.5k+.
I thought of Eugene and Louis Rossmann.
I will never allow another contractor into my house again. NEVER!!! NEVER!!! NEVER!!! I still have an open permit since 2017 for fire damage to my garage. "Servpro of South Shasta County" took my money and never completed the work. They tried to leave the siding off my house for winter. I live in snow country. They DA just ignore me. Like Steve said, action only happens if there are many complaints. Serpro is just a franchise. Talking to corporate is a joke too. All they say is "work it out with the contractor." I don't have the money to get legal help on my own. So they get away with it. The only reason I still have a house that is standing is because I have skills taught to me by my grandfather. He taught me to builds houses on the job site with him 40 years ago. So I'm lucky to still have many of those skills. I'm also a power plant operator, which make me an electrician too. I ended up replacing the siding by myself on the entire exterior and completely rewired my house and garage. The only compliments I get on all of the work done is "Nice job on the siding." Even the building inspector commented on it. Wish they could see the wiring too.
I will not ever forget what the one of his employees said to me. "A little paint and caulk will cover up what a carpenter is not." He said that on several occasions while working.
If anyone would like to see his work. Let me know, I'll be glad to show you so you don't have to go through what I have.
My house is still not finished because this jerk that left me hanging thinking I would crumble and just pay him more. Nope... not goin to happen at all.
Unfortunately my life has been quite tragic with multiple deaths in the family and funeral costs over this time period that I'm still trying to pay and recover from. This has prevented me from getting legal help. DA will not help at all, and I don't have the money to hire an attorney now. I wish I had just done ALL the work myself now.
PS: I'm not afraid of slander or anything else posting here. I still have my house and all the documentation as proof of what I say is true. I would love to go to court on this. Wish I could someday.
The Werefrog like a local law where The Werefrog live. If a contractor provides the bid, and you have contract for work. The contractor can't require more money, and if the contractor stops working, you can hire a new contractor to finish. The total you have to pay is still less than or equal to what the original contractor said. If new one charges more, you can get the difference through courts from original contractor.
@@werefrogofassyria6609 I would love to go to court. But that takes money I don't have.
We call these guys “cowboys” here in the UK
This sounds like a one man operation that we have here in upstate NY. Takes money for roofing materials, buys and delivers the materials and never completes the job.
Eugene must've moved to Ohio!
here is illinois that company here is called Tiger Plumbing in collinsville ill. BBB has a warning across their page
About the CPA, if the Supreme court says the law doesn't mean what the lawmakers wanted it be why don't you amend the law or make a new one that fixes the problems highlighted by the supreme court? Or do the politicians just don't care?
I tell ya.. Capt James T Kirk had Trouble with Tribbles...
Ben Franklin sitting on top of the burnt orange car. Corvair I think.
Cool cross sabers shirt.
Nice cavalry shirt
It don't matter, hard crime, petty crime, the penalty is not large enough to deter.
Lather, rinse and repeat.
You probably do not know that TECHNICALLY, you should pull a permit to change a faucet. Depending on which area of the country you are in, some people expressly do not want permits unless you are performing an addition. I believe this is partially due to the automatic tax increases that will happen. In So. Cal. they come out and look at the job (NOT..the municipality, mind you..but the tax people)..and then issue you a SUPPLEMENTAL tax bill depending on how far along they think you are. They have even started doing that in park city, utah (ya,..that was a bit of a surprise when a tax muckymuck wanted to get into one of my addition/remodel jobs,......I told her "Sorry, I can't let you in,.The inspector has the right to come it,....you do not.)., Ok, Beautiful day.
Sounds like this guy is an over-achiever in his own misguided way :-)
Guys like that give guys like me a bad name. I've been in business for over 30 years and to this day I don't know if I complaint. In fact I have more repeat customers than what I have new ones.
If he's been doing this for 45 years I have to wonder how old he is, and what the chances are of something like dementia...
Question! How can a judge give an order stating you have to work for x guy?
Easy: Doing business requires a license (for tax purposes naturally). Contracting work requires further license, bonding, and insurance (because if you f**k up, it can easily cost more than you're worth to fix it…) When you're not doing those things properly and legally, the court can declare someone else to be in charge of making sure that you do.
If that happens, and it only happens if you REALLY make it happen, hope and pray they have some competency in the field you're in, because they literally control your ability to make money. You basically can't take a crap on the clock without this person's approval. Company does well? Company goes under? Well, them's the breaks.
Oh, and don't waste this person's time trying to tie them up with BS. You're paying them for their time, after all. Don't like it? Don't run a scam operation-this stuff only happens when you've managed to break a bunch of laws and have demonstrated that you cannot operate your company properly, but your company can't be just shut down because you've got legal obligations.
Yeah, this brilliant individual was there and decided he didn't have to do squat. And now he doesn't have a company anymore and he's probably going to jail if they're serious about stopping him.
Cool shirt.