COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Ohio’s attorney general is suing two Columbus contractors accused of performing poor driveway resurfacing work.
Attorney General Dave Yost’s office said it filed a lawsuit against Peter Ristich and Teneilla Stults on Friday after the pair allegedly performed “shoddy” driveway resurfacing work under the business name Central One Paving. The suit accuses Ristich and Stults of violating the Consumer Sales Practices Act and the Home Solicitation Sales Act.
“Consumers need to be aware of contractors like these who change their name to hide shoddy work from the past,” Yost said. “A good contractor will provide a cost estimate, a written contract and references.”
Ristich and Stults also operated under the names Top Seal and Alliance Paving. In the suit, Yost requests that the defendants be ordered to reimburse consumers and pay civil penalties and court costs.
Yost is advising consumers to heed the following before signing a contract for home-improvement services:
- Make sure your contract includes notice of your right to cancel a door-to-door sale. Contractors generally cannot start working until the three-day “cooling-off” period ends.
- Get written estimates from several contractors before making a final decision.
- Make sure that the written contract includes any oral promises made by the contractor, the project start date and end date, and an itemized list of all significant costs, labor and services.
- Be wary if the contract requires a large down payment or requires you to write a check directly to the contractor instead of his or her company.