Attorney General Josh Shaprio’s Office has filed a lawsuit against father and son plumbers Howard and Nolan Stahl and one of the victims is an Erie couple.
They do business in Erie as the Roto-Rooter Man, and the suit comes after one local man found out they have been the victims of an alleged scam.
Craig Cook tells us, “it started out very simple…we have a clogged laundry room drain.” That’s when Nolan Stahl made a visit to the Cook’s house. After inspecting, Stahl said that there wasn’t a clog, but rather collapsed pipes and quoted them.
“Eighty-six hundred and fifty-six dollars… and that was a little overwhelming… I’m not a plumber, so I said, ‘if that’s what we have to do; that’s what we have to do.”
The quote leaving the Cooks even more surprised when Stahl demanded they pay in full, up front. That is when the Cooks decided that they would pay a deposit of $1,000.
“They started the next morning and started tearing up our family room, laundry room, and my workshop area.”
This left a massive hole in the basement with water coming in.
Cook calls his homeowners insurance who told him he was being scammed. “She said, ‘I’ve seen it all over Erie County. You’re being scammed. They’ve scammed hundreds of people.”
Stahl told Cook there was more plumbing work to be done, but the Cooks had a second opinion and learned they did not need more plumbing.
“I called Howard and said, ‘don’t come back. I’m gonna throw your stuff out in my driveway. You send someone in the morning to pick it up. I don’t want any of your workers back on our property.’”
If you take a look at the video, you can see the scars that are left on the basement floor, now 18 months later. And, the Cooks have finally restored their basement back to what it was, but they are still out over roughly $6,000.
The Cooks have been working with the attorney general’s office.
“They should be out of business. They should not be allowed to take advantage of anyone else. “
Mr. Cook says he requested a ‘Right to Know’ of Erie County’s plumbing permits for the past two years. He found out that the Roto-Rooter franchise that the Stahl men have been associated with have pulled over 125 permits.
As of right now, the court date for the Stahl men is slated for January 9th, 2019.
For Attorney General Shapiro’s full statement on the matter, click here.
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