Florida Homeowner Stiffed By Unlicensed Contractor

A recent reader of The Miami Herald Action Line asks:

• My wife and I live in New York and have a house in Palm Beach. On April 30, we gave North Star VP Shutters $6,474 -- a 50 percent deposit -- to purchase hurricane shutters. The company never delivered, and, according to the building department, never applied for a permit. The last we heard, in August, they were ''walking through'' the permit, whatever that means. [...] Can Action Line help us get our money back?

Action Line responds:

• Unfortunately, there's a lot more wrong with this picture than you think. As you found out, North Star VP Shutters hasn't applied for a permit for your house, and with good reason; it's not licensed to do such work. It had you sign an application for an owner/builder permit (a major red flag of unlicensed contracting), which has gone nowhere.

Among other questionable paperwork the homeowner received from the company was a ''contract'' with no license number on it (illegal); a copy of another company's state license; a copy of a liability insurance certificate, which, according to state records, was canceled.

Action Line further informs:

• Unlicensed contracting [In Florida] is a felony unto itself; accepting deposits without a license for jobs that require one constitutes grand theft. [...] In addition to all this, North Star VP filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Oct. 22. However, this doesn't protect its principals from any potential criminal prosecution.

For more, see North Star VP shutter company files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. (if link expires, try here).