I-Team: "Superb" business causes a mess

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) - Lots of people are hiring contractors after the tornado but a warning tonight to do your homework before cutting a check.

A woman e-mailed the 22News I-team asking for help after she was really disappointed with the work of someone who's business name implies superb work.

It's a story people need to hear as Western Mass. is crawling with contractors looking for work after the tornado.

Pernese Smith had some extra money after refinancing her home on Wilbraham Avenue home in Springfield.

"I've been here for 11 years so I was saying, something has to be done over," Smith said.

Her sights were set on a new front porch.

She found an ad for a contractor claiming 30 years experience whose business name implied superb business, specifically "Superb Carpentry and Painting." She made a call and was sold.

"He was very professional, very professional."

Things took a turn when the work began, she says the new porch was shaping up to be anything but superb.

According to the contract, Smith agreed to pay her contractor about 7 and a half thousand dollars. He'd repair her porch under the terms they'd agreed upon as well as a few other things, some new doors, and some new gutters. So, you can imagine her disappointment when she says she thought she was getting new and the only new she was getting was a new coat of paint on part of the porch.

"I'm paying him all this money that includes the materials and the labor, so where are the materials?

I said ask him for the receipts, so that's when things really blew up," Smith said.

A week and a few thousand dollars into the job, Pernese called a building inspector and the 22News I-team for help.

We did a search on the Better Business Bureau and found less than superb results, it slapped Superb Carpentry with an F.

We also found the contractor, named Mark LaRace, doesn't have a Contractor's license with the state.

On top of it all, a Springfield building inspector put a "Stop Work Order" on the project when he realized the contractor also didn't have a building permit on the project, which is illegal.

A homeowners nightmare that's not uncommon these days.

"It's just been amplified 50 times over with the tornado because everybody is running into the devastation scene trying to sell themselves and trying to make their quick buck," said Steve Desilets, Code Enforcement Commissioner.

LaRace, told the 22News I-team over the phone that he never said or implied he was licensed and he's working with the city to resolve this situation.

As for Smith, she's out a few thousand dollars unless she files a lawsuit. As for her porch, the top porch has been deemed unsafe to walk on until support beams are replaced.

Business inspectors will warn you to ask for permits and license information up front because if it gets as far as it did in this case, the burden falls on the homeowner to take it to court and try to get it resolved.