Unlicensed Dewey Remodeler Guilty of Contracting Without a License
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, June 26, 2020
CONTACT:
Breanna Bang, Public Information Liaison
Unlicensed Dewey Remodeler Guilty of Contracting Without a License
PHOENIX, Ariz., (June 26, 2020) — On Wednesday, June 24, 2020, Loren Earl Nelson, 65 of Dewey, Arizona, was found guilty of Contracting Without a License, a Class 1 Misdemeanor, in the Prescott Justice Court.
The charge stems from a 2019 Arizona Registrar of Contractors' (AZ ROC) investigation that found Nelson, DBA Presteck LLC, contracted to remodel an existing manufactured home in Prescott.
In February 2019, the referral website Homeadvisor.com referred Nelson to the homeowner for a bathroom flooring project. While negotiating, Nelson informed the homeowner of his company's unlicensed status, and the homeowner knowingly entered into a verbal contract with the unlicensed entity.
When Nelson went to start the flooring project, the roof had caved in from a snow storm. The homeowner; who was living in California at the time, allowed Nelson to make the roof repair. The homeowner then hired him to do more remodeling work over the next few months, with payments totaling over $95,000 for the various projects.
The homeowner requested Nelson provide a detailed list of where the payments had gone after discovering a $5,980 refund payment from a third party company for faulty heating system installation was taken by the unlicensed contractor. Nelson stopped responding and did not return to the job site, leading the homeowner to file a complaint with AZ ROC.
The Prescott Justice Court fined Nelson $1,828.
AZ ROC commonly receives complaints where an unlicensed entity's work begins as small projects and increases in price and complexity to a point where they are unable or unwilling to complete the project and the homeowner is out of luck. AZ ROC reminds home and property owners, if the entire cost of the project, including labor and materials, is over $1,000, or requires a permit by the local municipality, Arizona Revised Statute 32-1121 requires the person or business performing the work to be licensed.
AZ ROC reminds property owners to ask contractors of their license status and to check the license using the contractor search at www.roc.az.gov or giving the Agency a call at 1-877-692-9762.