State Cracks Down on 33 Contractors

As part of their ongoing efforts to crack down on unregistered or unscrupulous contractors, the state Department of Consumer Protection and the state Attorney General have released the results of recent criminal prosecutions against contractors charged with home improvement violations.
 
Between Jan. 4 and June 6, contractors were convicted in 33 cases and placed in pretrial diversion programs in five other situation, according to a joint news release. The end result was nearly $233,000 in restitution to consumers.

Two contractors are now serving jail time. (A summary of the judgments is attached and click on the attached PDF file to access it.) 
 
“We are providing this information to remind consumers and contractors alike of our commitment to ensure that Connecticut’s home improvement marketplace is fair and accountable,” Consumer Protection Commissioner William M. Rubenstein said. “Our laws are clear and provide valuable protections for both homeowners and contractors.”

Those convicted include contractors from Ellington and Manchester.

“Connecticut consumers need to do their homework and make sure the contractor they hire is registered,” Atty. General George Jepsen said. “Many of the convictions won by my office involved complaints about work that was done by unregistered individuals and companies. While registration doesn’t guarantee a contractor’s competency, it does give consumers rights and protections that are not available if the contractor is not registered.”

Under the law, a home improvement contractor is anyone that performs improvements on residential property when the individual job exceeds $200 and when the cash price of all work performed by the contractor in one year is more than $1,000. 

All home improvement contractors - including roofers, addition and remodeling contractors, driveway pavers, painters and anyone who installs fences, siding, insulation, windows and masonry, for example - must be registered with the Department of Consumer Protection and adhere to strict consumer protection requirements.

In addition, five other contractors were placed in pretrial diversion programs and ordered to pay restitution as follows: Sean O’Connor, Willimantic, $3,400; Steven Madore, Bristol, $1,900; David Mazuraitis, Brooklyn, $500; Gregory Rainey, Bristol, $4,500; and Aaron Rosenberg, Avon, MA, $2,700.

The cases were handled by Associate Attorney General Joseph Rubin and Assistant Attorneys General Michael J. Giammatteo; Matthew B. Beizer; Matthew Fitzsimmons; Carmel Motherway; Maura Murphy-Osborne; Nicole Demers; Gregory O’Connell; and Michael Martone, executive policy advisor and counsel.