Better Business Bureau says local contractor is not a member

The Better Business Bureau says a Bismarck-Mandan contractor using the BBB logo is not a member of the organization and has received a failing rating from the business information organization.

JK Customs has a BBB logo on a trailer and on its website but is not actually a BBB member, a news release said..

The companys misuse of our logo is compounded by the fact they have the lowest rating we assign, Dana Badgerow, president and CEO of the BBB, said in a release. Our hope is they will correct the misleading advertising issue and work with us to resolve the concerns of their customers.

The BBB also has given JK Customs, owned by Jason Kust, a failing grade due to consumer complaints. According to the release, JK Customs had been accredited by the BBB from 2009 to November 2011, when their accreditation was revoked due to an unanswered complaint. Two complaints have been lodged with the BBB about JK Customs without an answer from the company.

The voicemail for the telephone number for JK Customs was full and could not accept new messages, and no one answered at a phone number listed in court documents for Kust. No one answered at the door of the address listed with the North Dakota Secretary of States Office for JK Customs on Thursday afternoon.

The unanswered customer complaints filed with the BBB involve situations where down payments were made and work did not proceed as planned. The information in the BBB complaints mirrors cases in which customers brought Kust to small claims court and won.

In one case, a man was awarded $2,635 after Kust did not return a down payment on a basement remodeling project when the man decided to cancel the project. In another case, a couple was awarded $3,050 after putting a down payment to have Kust build a staircase and he never showed up to do the job.

In another case still pending in small claims court, Kust is accused of never starting a bathroom remodeling job that a man put $2,000 down on. The plaintiff in that case wrote that Kust did return $500.

In February, the BBBs Advertising Review department challenged JK Customs use of the BBB logo, which misleads consumers into believing the company is accredited by the Better Business Bureau, the release from the organization said. The company failed to respond within the six-week timeframe provided and the violation was closed as Major, further lowering the companys rating. The matter has now been turned over to the Council of Better Business Bureaus, where further action may be taken to ensure the company discontinues use of the BBB trademark, a release from the organization said.

Dan Hendrickson, a spokesman for the BBB of Minnesota and North Dakota, said the Council of Better Business Bureaus could take legal action against JK Customs for the misuse of the logo.

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Better Business Bureau says local contractor is not a member