Recovering from Sandy Homeowner Sued by Contractor for Million

Recovering from Hurricane Sandy was a difficult task for everyone. Weeding out the good guys from the vultures, in the pursuit of recovery, was equally difficult. Some contractors’ beleived it was their right to gouge and take advantage of victims and others sincerely wanted to help families recover. One homeowner didn’t do a good job weeding the good from the bad. This homeowner's recover may last for years to come with a lawsuit against her. A contractor filed a

Recovering from Hurricane Sandy was a difficult task for everyone. Weeding out the good guys from the vultures, in the pursuit of recovery, was equally difficult. Some contractors’ believed it was their right to gouge and take advantage of victims and others sincerely wanted to help families recover. One homeowner didn’t do a good job weeding the good from the bad. This homeowner's recover may last for years to come with a lawsuit against her. A contractor filed a million dollar lawsuit for breach of contract and defamation. The contractor took homeowners money, never completed the work and left the home in need of repair with hazardous conditions present. NY Rising Contractor Fraud Investigators found for homeowner that there was contractor fraud, the work performed is substandard and need of repair and hazardous conditions are present.

Contractor is suing for breach of contract on a contract the firm was not licensed to perform in Nassau County and defamation. The defamation action is being brought forward because a complaint was filed with Nassau County Consumer Affairs which NY Rising instructed the homeowner to do. Nassau County Consumer Affairs representatives informed the homeowner that the contractor was not licensed to perform the scope of work contracted for or completed by the contractor. The contract was fraudulent and the work was illegally performed yet the contractor files a million dollar suit. Greenblatt & Agulnick have filed the suit in Nassau County Supreme Court on behalf of Lainez Home Improvement Corp.

Homeowners beware, even when a contractor has a license it may not be for the work you require. Before hiring a contractor request the Insurance ACCORD they have filed with Nassau County Consumer Affairs. On the bottom there is a list of the work they are insured to perform. This contractor had men on the homeowner’s roof without safety equipment and no insurance if they fell or got hurt. Homeowners, it's difficult to find the honest contractors but they are out there and will be forth coming with all the proper documentation upon request. Don't find yourself being taken advantage of and then perpetuated by harassment.

The deck pictured above one of the many hazards identified by NY Rising Investigators. The deck is supported with plywood.