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NEWARK
– A Superior Court judge has ordered
two Bloomfield-based air duct cleaning companies
to pay more than $68,000 in consumer restitution
and more than $1.7 million in civil penalties,
for “bait and switch” tactics
and other unconscionable business practices
alleged by the Office of the Attorney General
and State Division of Consumer Affairs.
The
Division, in its investigation of United
Air Care and Indoor Air Care, identified
more than 1,200 violations of the State
Consumer Fraud Act and regulations on advertising
and home improvement contractors. The violations
affected a total of 98 consumers who filed
complaints with the Division.
Many
consumers contacted the companies after
receiving direct-mail coupons through advertising
services, such as “Super Coups”
and “Clipper Magazine,” which
advertised “Whole Duct House Cleaning”
for prices from $37.95 to $69.95. The Division
alleged that the companies often failed
to perform the services for the specified
price. In many cases, the coupons were allegedly
used to bait the buyer into purchasing higher-priced
services.
The
Division also alleged that the companies
failed to register with the State as home
improvement contractors, and in many cases
caused damage to consumers’ homes,
then failed to fix, clean, or compensate
for the damage.
“There
is no excuse for such flagrant violations
of New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act,"
Attorney General Paula T. Dow said. "We
will aggressively continue to pursue those
who target New Jersey homeowners with unconscionable
business practices, deceptive advertising,
and false promises."
The
Final Judgment by Default and Order, signed
March 31, 2011, orders the companies to
pay $68,157.36 in consumer restitution,
$1.71 million in civil penalties, $58,539
in reimbursement for the State’s attorneys’
fees, and $7,629.05 for the State’s
investigative costs.
The
Division of Consumer Affairs began investigating
United Air Care in April 2008. The company
supposedly ceased operations in approximately
mid-2008, after which Indoor Air Care commenced
operations with the same business address,
phone numbers, employees, and ownership
as United Air Care. The Division expanded
its investigation in July 2008 to include
the new company.
“It
is exactly because of abuses like these,
that we have launched a new, statewide crackdown
on unregistered home improvement contractors,”
said Thomas R. Calcagni, Acting Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs. “If
you are a contractor, you will comply with
the law or you will pay. If you are a consumer,
before signing a contract for home improvement
work you should make sure the contractor
is registered, and learn as much about the
contractor as you can.”
The
Division alleged that United Air Care and
Indoor Air Care violated the New Jersey
Consumer Fraud Act, Contractors’ Registration
Act, Contractor Registration Regulations,
Home Improvement Regulations, and Advertising
Regulations by, among other things:
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Offering specific air duct cleaning services,
where the purpose or effect of the offer
was not to sell those services, but to
bait or entice the buyer into the purchase
of other or higher priced services;
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Providing direct-mail coupons that offered
specific duct cleaning services at a specified
price, and then failing to provide the
services at that price;
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Failing to register with the Division
as a home improvement contractor and then
advertising and/or performing home improvement
work;
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Failing to include in home improvement
contracts cancellation language, the total
price and/or the date or time period within
which work was to be commenced and/or
completed;
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Requiring that consumers sign estimates
and then failing to provide consumers
with a full and accurate copy of the documents;
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Misrepresenting that a consumer would
receive a refund or reimbursement; and
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Causing damage to a consumer’s home
while performing air duct cleaning services
and then failing to fix, clean, or compensate
for the damage.
Calcagni
noted that consumers who purchase duct cleaning
or other services on the basis of a coupon
should be aware that the price may increase,
and should get the total price in writing
before the job starts.
Home
Improvement Contractors
The
State Division of Consumer Affairs’
new crackdown on unregistered home improvement
contractors began last month and will continue
through the summer. To date, 18 home improvement
contractors have been administratively charged
for operating outside the State’s
registration law, and 76 contractors have
received 30-day warnings. Those contractors
that receive warnings have 30 days to come
into compliance or face fines up to $10,000
per violation.
In
2010, complaints about dishonest home improvement
contractors were the second most common
consumer complaint filed with the Division
of Consumer Affairs. They represented 1,401
of the 13,761 consumer complaints filed
with the Division last year.
Before
hiring a home improvement contractor, New
Jersey consumers are urged to:
-
Obtain the contractor’s State registration
number, which always begins “13VH.”
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Contact the State Division of Consumer
Affairs to learn whether the contractor’s
registration is still valid. Call the
Division’s License Verification
Line at 973-273-8090,
or check the Division’s database
of all 43,000 registered home improvement
contractors at www.NJConsumerAffairs.gov/LVinfo.htm
.
-
Ask the State Division of Consumer Affairs
whether there are any consumer complaints
filed against the contractor.
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Demand a copy of the contractor’s
liability insurance policy.
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Contact the insurer to learn whether the
policy is still valid.
Consumers
who believe they have been cheated or scammed
by a business, or suspect any other form
of consumer abuse, can file a complaint
with the State Division of Consumer Affairs
by visiting its website, www.NJConsumerAffairs.gov,
or by calling 1-800-242-5846
(toll free within New Jersey) or 973-504-6200.
Deputy
Attorney General Nicholas Kant of the Consumer
Fraud Prosecution Section represented the
state in the action against United Air Care
and Indoor Air Care.
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