Contractors walking away with money

[Ruchi Patel]

I hired a handyman who probably called himself a contractor running a business under Bentleys LLC in jersey city,Nj. Basically we paid him upfront of 50% of the amount agreed upon to buy materials (kitchen cabinets/bathroom vanity/ faucets/ tiles/paint.ec)

He basically bought in tiles/backsplash and 3 bottom cabinets/paint and then most likely he used up the money on personal expenses and stopped showing up to the site. He was basically very irresponsible and unprofessional did not even have courtesy to call and let us know he won’t be working due to xyz reason. Everyday he would say he would come tomorrow but that tomorrow never came. He has all his tools laying around all over the house. I texted him to send me proof of all the receipt since he claimed materials were pre ordered but he was just fooling us and thinking we were dumb enough not to catch his lies everyday. What cabinets take 3 weeks to bring from nearest Home Depot or Lowe’s.

His name is Al Remillard and I would appreciate advice on want can be done to show him his right place and to ensure his reputation is hurt if he has any to begin with. It’s absolutely disgusting to see such people calling themselves professionals who have zero ethics or integrity. Something needs to be done to help others who actually work hard for every penny and are honest. It was an absolute nightmare dealing with such people who think they can really be big business professionals who have zero to none experience and act worse than school kids.

[Frank Geiger]

You can butcher him on any review site, take him to court, file a complaint with the BBB, etc.

I bet you already know this now. But the more money you give upfront, the more risk exposure you have. That's why investors pay in phases or pay for a portion of materials. A lot and I mean a lot of people have had this problem. You aren't alone. I had one steal $4,000 from me. I chalked it up as a win for not giving him more money to start with.