Bay State AG Tags Contractor In Civil Suit For Allegedly Using Bogus Promises To Rip Off Elderly Homeowners & Violating Earlier Entered Judgment, Permanent Injunction

From the Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General:

• The Commonwealth has filed a lawsuit against a contractor from Hanover, alleging that he violated a prior court order by soliciting and entering into a home improvement contract with elderly consumers, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced [].
  
  In a contempt action filed Monday in Suffolk Superior Court, the AG’s Office alleges that Richard Myers – operating under the name of Atlantic Restoration Company – violated a final judgment and permanent injunction entered in February 2011 that prohibited him from soliciting or engaging in any home improvement contracting work.
  
  According to the AG’s Office, from at least December 2011 to January 2012, Myers violated the terms of the permanent injunction by soliciting and entering into a home improvement contract with two elderly consumers who paid him $3,000 for mold remediation and the replacement of flooring within their home. Myers failed to complete the job and refused to provide the consumers with the materials he purchased on their behalf.
  
  “We allege that this contractor continues to steal thousands of dollars from consumers for renovations he failed to complete, putting the safety and well-being of residents at risk,” AG Coakley said.
  
  The complaint is seeking consumer restitution and civil penalties in the amount of $10,000 per violation to be paid by Myers, as well as disclosure by Myers of the identities of any additional victims of his conduct.
  
  In November 2006, the AG’s Office sued Myers, alleging he violated the Home Improvement Contractor Act by illegally engaging in home improvement work on a suspended license, failing to perform agreed-upon work or apply for required building permits, requesting excessive cash advances, and failing and refusing to refund homeowners’ payments for work not performed.
  
  In February 2011, a final judgment was entered against Myers, requiring him to pay more than $291,000 in consumer restitution, $300,000 in civil penalties and more than $125,000 in fees, and permanently enjoining him from soliciting or engaging in home improvement contracting work in the Commonwealth. Myers has not paid any portion of the judgment.

For the Massachusetts AG press release, see AG Coakley Sues Hanover Contractor for Soliciting Elderly Homeowners with Illegal Home Improvement Contract (Defendant in Violation of Prior Court Order; AG’s Office Seeks Consumer Restitution).