Bucks County taking action against contractor alleged to have left behind trail of broken promises
LEVITTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- A local contractor is alleged to have left behind a trail of broken promises in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and he allegedly owes homeowners thousands of dollars in connection to unfinished work. Now, Bucks County officials are taking action.
This home is the headquarters of the Levittown-based company Advanced Fence Systems, but the company's owner, John Wiley never came to the door when Eyewitness News knocked Monday.
"Do yourself a favor," Leslie Rothberg of Lower Makefield said. "Don't hire this company."
Rothberg is one of several former customers who tell Eyewitness News that Wiley accepted thousands of dollars in deposits for home improvement projects but never has not started the work.
Eyewitness News first introduced you to Rothberg last month when she said she wanted to install a taller fence to keep her dogs inside her yard.
A receipt shows Rothberg paid a deposit of more than $3,500 to John Wiley's company back in March.
Rothberg says Wiley has done "nothing" since her deposit and hasn't come to her home since.
So Rothberg then tried to take Wiley to civil court, but Wiley did not appear in front of a magistrate here in Levittown for a hearing scheduled for Monday morning.
"The judge found him in default," Rothberg said. "That means he has to pay me the amount I filed for."
Rothberg isn't alone.
"We gave Advanced Fence Systems $6,600," Dorthee Rainis of Titusville said.
More of Wiley's customers contacted Eyewitness News after our story aired in August.
Rainis says Wiley had promised to start on a job at her home last December.
"No one showed," Rainis said.
Mark Zdanowicz of Levittown says he gave a $2,000 deposit to Wiley to replace his fence in April. She says Wiley was also a no-show.
"It's a shame that this is allowed to continue and there seems to be very little recourse," Zdanowicz said.
Bucks County officials have been looking into several complaints involving Wiley's company.
"It's been a tough situation," Michael Bannon, with the Bucks County Consumer Protection Department, said, "but we've had some success."
Bannon heads Bucks County's Consumer Protection Department and says his office has gotten results for five of Wiley's customers.
"Everyone's gotten fully refunded if they had a deposit or the job was completed per the contract," Bannon said.
But he also says his office is an avenue people should explore before civil litigation. So the office cannot intervene for people like Rothberg who have sued and are still out thousands of dollars.
"It's $3,528, plus the court filing fees, which was $161," Rothberg said.
Rothberg says she doesn't think she'll get her money back.
Meanwhile, Wiley did not call Eyewitness News back after we left a voicemail for him Monday. He emailed me saying, in part, "Everyone is getting resolved! We're working every day to get to every customer."
But for some who have been waiting several months like Rothberg, the wait is too long.
