Attorney General Michelle Henry announced that a Luzerne County Judge’s ruling on a lawsuit against a local contractor will ban the contractor from working in home improvement Pennsylvania and will result in $79,000 in restitution payments to consumers who were harmed.
Vincent Vince, owner of Independent Construction Builders, LLC, was also ordered to pay $12,000 in civil penalties to the Commonwealth for violations of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.
The court’s ruling follows a three-day trial regarding the lawsuit that alleged Independent Construction Builders violated the Pennsylvania Consumer Protection Law and the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act by failing to complete contracted work, performing unprofessional work, and failing to provide refunds.
“Vincent Vince and his company were required to play by the same rules as all other home improvement contractors in Pennsylvania, but he betrayed consumers who paid substantial amounts of money for jobs, then turned his back when they asked for refunds,” Attorney General Henry said. “This ruling provides a repayment order to harmed consumers and ensures that Mr. Vince will no longer have the opportunity to deceive consumers in Pennsylvania.”
Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas Judge Tina Polachek Gartley issued the ruling. Judge Gartley found in favor of the Commonwealth and against Independent Construction Builders on all four counts in the lawsuit. Seven consumers testified during the trial.
According to Judge Gartley’s decision, “the court finds that Defendants acted deceptively and fraudulently in the representations of the work they promised to perform, the materials they promised to use, and in their course of business.”
This case was litigated by Deputy Attorney General Matthias Conaty and Senior Deputy Attorney General James Wise.
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