HARRISBURG PA – A state home improvement contractor registration program may have taken money out of Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township’s municipal pocket, but is giving consumers across Pennsylvania “clear information about the businesses they are dealing with,” Attorney General Tom Corbett claims.
Home improvement contractors now must register with the state.
“Complaints about home improvement projects gone bad are … one of the top reasons” for consumers to contact the AG’s office, Corbett said late last month, as he announced what he called a “wave of legal actions” against contractors accused of wrong-doing in dealings with clients.
The attorney general is responsible for enforcing the state Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act, which took effect last July (2009). It requires home improvement businesses across the state to register with his office, providing information sufficient to track down those creating problems, and to allow the public to choose from registered contractors.
Lower Pottsgrove for years successfully operated a township-wide registration system. That has been superseded, to a large extent, by the state effort. The change had an impact on its revenues; Finance Director Michele Christman told the Board of Commissioners that the township, which earned $21,000 from registrations during 2009, so far has brought in only $5,100 this year.
Corbett’s July 22 (2010) announcement said his office had filed consumer protection lawsuits against seven contractors accused of failing to start work, collecting excessive down-payments, not finishing projects, performing work in a shoddy manner, failing to pay refunds, not honoring warranties and other violations of the act. One business formerly operated from Montgomery County, two others were from Berks and Bucks counties; none were within 15 miles of Sanatoga village.
The lawsuits seek restitution for all consumers who have been harmed, along with fines and civil penalties of up to $1,000 per violation or up to $3,000 for each violation involving a senior citizen, Corbett said.
In addition, he added, the Bureau of Consumer Protection reached settlement agreements with 10 other contractors that require them to fully comply with all the terms of the act and the Consumer Protection Law, and also charges them $1,250 in civil penalties and costs for lesser infractions they avoided.
Consumers encountering problems with contractors or other businesses can file formal complaints with the bureau by calling its toll-free consumer protection hot-line, 800-441-2555.
Photo by Clipart.com
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