Janeway Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 (edited) This was through Chase. We disputed the charge. We sent in all the information to prove that the charge was fraudulant and the work was not done or delivered on, what work was done was done wrong, and the guy was not even licensed. It has been 4 months. Last night, the credit card calls us to tell us that they have decided to put the charge back on our card. That was $9800!!! To top it off, we are supposed to move next month. So even though we can take the guy to court, we won't live here so it will be very costly to take the guy to court if we have to fly back to do it. And no guarantee we would win. We have already started paying to fix what that guy did wrong. We have 2nd and 3rd opinions that the guy did not install the equipment agreed upon and that he installed what he did install wrong so it is not working. We live in the south but put up without central air on half the house for August and through the fall while we waited for the credit card dispute to finish. I thought once 2 months passed, we were in the clear. Now it is 4 months and we clearly are not in the clear. My husband says that we should pay off all the credit card except that one charge and then ditch the card. We already called and closed the account. I do not have a moral issue with ditching the card because this was a fraudulant charge and the credit card company knew this. But I think for such a high amount, they will pursue us. Therefore, we have no choice but to spend the money with the lawyer to go after the guy. Husband is laid off right now so this is an extremely harsh reality. We have excellent credit, both of us are in the 775 range. What do you think? Edited December 3, 2016 by Janeway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Do any lawyers around you offer a free consultation? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamaraby Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 I would absolutely have ethical issues with doing such a thing. I don't know that I would have thought filing a dispute with the credit card would have been the way to address the issue. To me that sounds more like a civil dispute requiring I take the matter to court. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted December 3, 2016 Author Share Posted December 3, 2016 Do any lawyers around you offer a free consultation? seeing the lawyer Tuesday. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Maybe there are more details that I am missing, but this sounds more like a civil suit than a credit card fraud issue. Sorry your having to deal with this. People like him suck. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 (edited) I think you'll need to take the guy to court. From my POV it doesn't sound like a fraudulent charge. It sounds like you are unhappy about the work or lack of work. Edited December 3, 2016 by SparklyUnicorn 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 I do not think this qualifies as a fraudulent charge - you had hired this contractor and agreed to pay him, so I don't think the onus is on the credit card company to handle this. You need to go after the contractor for his inadequate work. Get a lawyer. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Even if they let you drop the charge, if you own that house, as a contractor he can put a lien on your house for non-payment. I think you're going to have to seek relief through the court rather than Chase. It's more complicated than a fraudulent charge. Have you filed a police report against him or anything for non-work or fraud? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 I think what texasmom says is correct. File police report, report to state licensing board (I assume you have one, even if he is not licensed we can report them here) and take him to court. He may settle once he sees you are serious. Might be cheaper to pay a lawyer to represent you than to fly back and forth. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted December 3, 2016 Author Share Posted December 3, 2016 Already filed with the boards, licensing boards. One other thing, the dollar amount we agreed to pay for the work if it were done correctly was less than what he charged our card, by $2000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Already filed with the boards, licensing boards. One other thing, the dollar amount we agreed to pay for the work if it were done correctly was less than what he charged our card, by $2000. You need to file a police report. That is usually a prerequisite for this type of thing in TX to be taken to court or taken seriously. Without it and without you taking legal action he can block the sale of the house you're in now and ruin your credit. If you ditch the Chase card without paying you will ruin your credit. Both can impact your dh getting a new job if his job requires a credit report (which jobs in many sectors like mortgage, finance, etc. even if it's a non-financial role he's applying for, require) or preventing you from being able to buy or rent a new house. I know it's not what you want to hear, but going after this guy and clearing up this incident needs to be priority number 1 for you. It can cause a domino effect you aren't going to want to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 This is not a case of fraudulent charges. This is a case for a civil suit. The bank did nothing wrong here. This is why you don't pay someone until the work is done and checked 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Agreeing with the others that this is not a credit card/bank problem. It would be nice if we could take care of shoddy/not completed work that way, but it's just not how things work. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Yes, you will have to take it to court. SInce many jobs depend on good credit ratings, I would keep paying on the card at least the minimum payment. Not paying will be just such a bad thing for your credit. I don't know what the small claims limit is in your state but considering a lawyer will cost at least 1/3 of the verdict, that may very well be the better choice- particularly if you live in a state with a high small claim limit, I like to watch People's Court on TV and I see cases like yours all the time. Normally, with bad workmanship the worker does get some money but he plaintiff gets some money back. If you are doing the repair work yourself, you don't normally get any pay for that. If you can swing it for your case, it is better to at least get estimates for people on how much does it cost to make right. Without those estimates, you leave it in the judge's hand. Normally the people who got the shody workmanship done are not all that happy with the outcome. They get some portion of the money back but not all and usually they come in thinking they will get all or more. DO you have a written contract where he had the lower charge? Do you have texts or emails to support your claim of a lower charge? Those are the necessary kinds of evidence that a judge needs to see. I hope you come to a happy resolution. One thing a lawyer could maybe do for you is write a letter demanding x money back but you can't expect the worker to return all your money back with that system. Normally, if he has done anything of value, that means he gets money. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted December 3, 2016 Author Share Posted December 3, 2016 Yes, you will have to take it to court. SInce many jobs depend on good credit ratings, I would keep paying on the card at least the minimum payment. Not paying will be just such a bad thing for your credit. I don't know what the small claims limit is in your state but considering a lawyer will cost at least 1/3 of the verdict, that may very well be the better choice- particularly if you live in a state with a high small claim limit, I like to watch People's Court on TV and I see cases like yours all the time. Normally, with bad workmanship the worker does get some money but he plaintiff gets some money back. If you are doing the repair work yourself, you don't normally get any pay for that. If you can swing it for your case, it is better to at least get estimates for people on how much does it cost to make right. Without those estimates, you leave it in the judge's hand. Normally the people who got the shody workmanship done are not all that happy with the outcome. They get some portion of the money back but not all and usually they come in thinking they will get all or more. DO you have a written contract where he had the lower charge? Do you have texts or emails to support your claim of a lower charge? Those are the necessary kinds of evidence that a judge needs to see. I hope you come to a happy resolution. One thing a lawyer could maybe do for you is write a letter demanding x money back but you can't expect the worker to return all your money back with that system. Normally, if he has done anything of value, that means he gets money. Yes, I have all that. Plus paperwork from the city that he did not have proper permits. I have all my ducks in a row. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 File a police report with all printed out emails, copies of contracts, written statements about what was/was not done from licensed repair people and any other documentation today. I had to do this once. The more support you can show, the more likely he can be charged with something criminal. Maybe CC fraud if you can show the agreed upon amount and he charged more to your CC without your signature? Call your local pd and explain concisely the case and they can direct you to an officer who can take a statement. In my case I had paid with bank wire transfer, so I had no option via CC. But mine was charged with wire fraud. When we went to trial, I had a 3 ring binder for myself, the defendant (you have to provide copy of evidence) and the judge. I had meet once with a lawyer (for a flat fee) and gone over how to present my case, what to emphasize,etc. I was precise and referred to the evidence and I won. Even when the defendant tried to appeal. Here in CA, I think your dollar amount might go over the limit for small claims, but check. And definitely continue to make minimum payments on the CC. And do not repair the work yourselves. Get a professional to do it and have them write out a statement and notarize it with what they found before they started work, what was wrong with it and what they had to do to fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 Can you make a claim on his bond? That is what I would ask the lawyer about rather than court. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted December 3, 2016 Author Share Posted December 3, 2016 File a police report with all printed out emails, copies of contracts, written statements about what was/was not done from licensed repair people and any other documentation today. I had to do this once. The more support you can show, the more likely he can be charged with something criminal. Maybe CC fraud if you can show the agreed upon amount and he charged more to your CC without your signature? Call your local pd and explain concisely the case and they can direct you to an officer who can take a statement. In my case I had paid with bank wire transfer, so I had no option via CC. But mine was charged with wire fraud. When we went to trial, I had a 3 ring binder for myself, the defendant (you have to provide copy of evidence) and the judge. I had meet once with a lawyer (for a flat fee) and gone over how to present my case, what to emphasize,etc. I was precise and referred to the evidence and I won. Even when the defendant tried to appeal. Here in CA, I think your dollar amount might go over the limit for small claims, but check. And definitely continue to make minimum payments on the CC. And do not repair the work yourselves. Get a professional to do it and have them write out a statement and notarize it with what they found before they started work, what was wrong with it and what they had to do to fix it. I wouldn't be able to fix myself. He tore out ducts and put in defective/inferior, not agreed upon products. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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