Ohio AG Files Consumer Fraud Lawsuit Against Area Home Improvement Companies

Ohio Attorney General David Yost has announced six lawsuits against Ohio home improvement companies that he says ripped off customers. All six of the lawsuits allege that the businesses violated provisions of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (CSPA). The CSPA protects Ohio consumers from unlawful business practices. This legislation ensures that businesses perform work as advertised and do not cheat customers who have traded with them in good faith. The AG’s lawsuits are demanding that the businesses reimburse customers for violations of the CSPA. They will also be required to pay court fees and fines.

One of the lawsuits was filed against an Indiana business going by the name of “All Around Concrete.” Yost alleges that customers paid the business more than $20,000 for work that it never performed. The suit also alleges that the owner of the business attempted to recruit customers by claiming the business was affiliated with another business located in Cincinnati.

Yost recommended that Ohioans doing business with home improvement companies take several measures before agreeing to pay them money. These include:

• Asking for licensing, certification, and proof of insurance
• Going online and checking the company’s reputation with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and the Better Business Bureau
• Understanding payment options and refusing to make a large down payment. Instead, the AG recommends paying in increments a third at a time
• Avoiding paying in cash because it leaves you with a limited paper trail if something goes wrong

Understanding the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act 

The Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act is a piece of state legislation that prohibits unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable business practices by a supplier that occur during a consumer transaction. Under the law, a consumer transaction constitutes a sale, lease, assignment, award by chance, or other transfer of an item of goods, a service, a franchise, or an intangible to an individual for purposes that are primarily personal, family, household, or solicitation to supply any of these things. A supplier refers to a seller, lessor, assignor, franchisor, or other person engaged in the business of affecting or soliciting consumer transactions.

When a business is in violation of the act, the attorney general can file a lawsuit on behalf of aggrieved customers. In addition, the consumer may be able to file suit directly against the business. Depending on the specific violation, a consumer is entitled to recover economic damages for any losses they suffered plus up to $5,000 in noneconomic damages.

In the suits mentioned above, several home improvement companies are accused of failing to provide services they agreed to provide after accepting money from customers. In these cases, the AG has filed suits directly against the companies and will attempt to recover damages on behalf of consumers.

If you’ve recently done business with an unscrupulous company, you can hire an attorney to file a lawsuit on your behalf.

Talk to a Columbus, OH Consumer Fraud Attorney Today 

Kohl & Cook Law Firm, LLC represents the interests of consumers who have been cheated by an Ohio business. Call our Columbus consumer lawyers today to schedule a free consultation, and we can begin discussing your case right away.

Source:

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