Handyman to pay $250K to former clients
Portland handyman Daniel B. Tucci, who worked unlicensed in York and Cumberland counties, has been barred from operating in the state and was ordered to pay restitution to 14 customers.
Attorney General Janet Mills announced Tuesday that Tucci was found guilty of multiple violations of the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act, following a three-day Superior Court trial. As part of that ruling, the court ordered Tucci to pay over $250,000 in restitution to aggrieved customers.
The court found that, in many cases, Tucci lied to customers about having a license in various trades and he falsely advertised his services in York and Cumberland counties from 2004 to 2012. The court also found that Tucci overcharged customers, took advance payments for work that was ultimately left incomplete and attempted to intimidate customers.
In a press release, the attorney general's office cited the worst case of an $80,000 upfront payment Tucci took from an elderly couple for a basement renovation that he left incomplete. Tucci charged the couple $145,000 in total for the work; the couple had the renovation corrected and finished for $14,000 from another contractor.
Prosecutors said Tucci targeted elderly people and conducted business under six different names, including: "Dan the Handyman," "Tripol Handyman Services," "The TrixiePolly Co.," "TriDan," "Tripol Construction," and "T.P.D.F. LLC."
Tucci faces $140,000 in civil penalties if he does not make the restitution payments ordered by the court.
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments