CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – A retired, disabled veteran living on her seven acre “piece of paradise” in Conway, says her hunt for a contractor to make repairs to Hurricane Matthew’s damage has turned into a $16,000 lesson.
Heather Elliot, who lives on a secluded plot of land off of Cates Bay Highway, started her search in the Yellow Page, and that’s where she found an advertisement for Alan Love.
The ad promised Love, based out of Conway, was licensed, bonded and insured with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. Love’s business address on Spoleto Lane and a phone number were also included, so Elliott picked up the phone.
Elliot says she hired Love because he offered discounts to veterans. Love asked for 60% of the total project cost so he could buy supplies needed to repair the roof of Elliot’s home and a storage building on her property, explains Elliot. So she wrote out the first check, worth $12,000, to begin the work. Copies of checks from Elliot’s bank account show she handed over a second check to Love just days later valued at $4,000, as he has requested the additional money to pick up more roofing material, says Elliot.
As the days passed, Elliott says she saw very little of Love and his work crew.
“In a week and a half of working with him, they were only here a total of 27 hours,” said Elliott.
Her suspicion began to grow when it became more difficult to get in touch with Love to request updates on the project, so Elliott started doing some research. The Yellow Pages ad for Love’s business says the business has an A+ rating, but the Better Business Bureau website reports a C-. The bureau attributes the score to a complaint that the business never responded to.
During her search, Elliott also came across Larry Mishoe, who says he’s had similar problems with the contractor. Mishoe hired Love to build an awning behind his house and says Love never finished the job.
“It was a nightmare,” said Mishoe.
Horry County Court records show Mishoe filed a lawsuit against Love in June 2016, and in October, a judge granted Mishoe a $7,000 judgement.
Hoping to get some clarification, Elliott requested a copy of Love’s state issued contractor’s license on Tuesday, but rather than producing the information, Love and his crew left Elliott’s home.
News13 reached out to Love, and after multiple attempts to meet him for an interview, he gave us the following comment:
“I really have no comment on the subject. I could tell you stories about this all day long that would keep you entertained because that’s what this is, for some people’s entertainment. Don’t believe everything you hear,” said Love.
News13 called the South Carolina Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation to check Love’s documentation, and we were told he is not currently licensed to work in the state of South Carolina. Online records show that Love’s home builders license expired in June 2016. Under the department’s guidelines, anyone with a lapsed license is not permitted to complete any work project valued at more than $200.
When we asked Love about that, he says he was licensed under a “parent company,” but couldn’t give the name of that company.
Elliott and Mishoe say if they could do it again, they’d do their homework before hiring anyone to work on their home. For now, Elliott’s home project remains unfinished and she plans to have other companies offer estimates.
