Ohio AG seeking relief for scammed Ironton residents

Oct. 18, 2013 @ 12:00 AM

IRONTON -- The Ohio Attorney General's office wants to help 35 Ironton residents it claims were scammed to the tune of more than $171,000 by a contractor between December 2012 and April 2013.

But finding the owners and operators of All Seasons Contracting, which reportedly operated out of Grayson, Ky., while doing work in Lawrence County, Ohio, hasn't been easy.

Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a civil suit against the company and its owners, Patrick and Carol Richard, on Sept. 30, alleging the company solicited business in Lawrence County for housing repairs, took the money and never completed the work. Most of the jobs included roofing and siding repairs or replacement, according to the complaint.

The suit claims most work was never completed, and what was done was "substandard/shoddy."

Though the business had residents sign a contract, it did not inform customers of their right to cancel or provide a cancellation form, nor did the business have a license to operate in Ohio, according to the lawsuit.

Phone calls to the Kentucky numbers listed on the company's contract forms were not answered Wednesday.

According to the suit, All Seasons Contracting is registered out of Frankfort, Ill., and Patrick and Carol Richard reside in Manhattan, Ill., a town of less than 10,000 residents about 50 miles southwest of Chicago.

DeWine's suit seeks to stop the company from ever doing business in Ohio again, that all parties victimized by the company get refunds, and that the company be fined $25,000 for each violation of the Consumer Sales Protection Act. There are three violations alleged in the suit.

A glance at the case history in the Lawrence County Common Pleas Court shows a copy of the lawsuit and a court summons sent to the corporate address in Frankfort, Ill., were returned marked "unable to forward" on Oct. 10.

Originally posted here:
Ohio AG seeking relief for scammed Ironton residents