ALJDEC decisions subject to certification as final

2016A-1335-ROC · Registrar of Contractors · 2016-08-09

IN THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS

HEARING: July 26, 2016 APPEARANCES: Linda Dionisio, Complainant; John Dionisio, Complainant’s witness; Jim Dimond, Registrar of Contractors Investigator ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE: Dorinda M. Lang _____________________________________________________________________ After hiring Respondent to reroof her home, Complainant paid a deposit in the amount of $7,961.00 to Respondent. Respondent failed to perform as promised and refused to return Complainant’s deposit. Therefore, Respondent abandoned the contract and its licenses should be revoked. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. On or about December 17, 2015, Complainant hired Respondent to reroof her home. She paid Respondent a deposit of $7,961.00 as a down payment on or about April 21, 2016. Pursuant to Respondent’s request, she wired it to Respondent’s owner’s personal account. 2. Respondent’s owner told Complainant he would begin the work after January 1, 2016. After that he postponed the work repeatedly, but never began the project. Respondent has refused to refund the money. 3. Complainant filed a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors. A hearing was set to consider the matter at the Arizona Office of Administrative Hearings. Respondent requested to appear at the hearing by telephone. However, when Respondent was contacted by telephone to appear at the hearing, there was no answer. The start of the hearing was delayed in order to give Respondent an opportunity to call the Arizona Office of Administrative Hearings in case Respondent’s telephone was not working. However, the Arizona Office of Administrative Hearings did not receive any telephone calls from Respondent until after 4:00 p.m. The hearing was at 3:00 p.m. 4. At the hearing, Complainant testified as to the above facts. The Registrar of Contractors Investigator testified that according to his information, there were at that time 8 complaints against Respondent in which he took $43,031.22 from customers and reroofed only one home. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. This matter is within the jurisdiction of the Registrar of Contractors pursuant to A.R.S. §§ 32-1104(A)(4), 32-1154(B) and 32-1156. 2. The Citation issued by the Registrar of Contractors in this matter alleged potential violations of A.R.S. § 32-1154(A)(1), which provided that it is a violation to abandon a contract or refuse to perform without a legal excuse for doing so. 3. The Registrar of Contractors may consider the prior record of a contractor in any disciplinary proceeding. A.A.C. R4-9-117. As of the time of this recommendation, Respondent’s license number 196516 is suspended due to a Recovery Fund payout in an associated license and it has 9 open complaints against it. At the same time, Respondent’s license number 196515 is revoked, with no current complaints but a history of disciplinary action being taken in 4 complaint cases. 4. In this case, Complainant has established that Respondent violated A.R.S. § 32-1154(A)(1) when it took her deposit and failed to perform any work on her home and refused to return her deposit. Considering Respondent’s license history, Respondent’s licenses should be revoked. RECOMMENDED DECISION Based on the foregoing considerations, Respondent’s licenses (License No. 196515 and License No. 196516) should be revoked.

If the Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings certifies this Administrative Law Judge Decision, the effective date of the order will be forty (40) days from the date of certification.

Done this day, August 9, 2016.

/s/ Dorinda M. Lang Administrative Law Judge

Transmitted electronically to:

Jeffrey Fleetham, Director Registrar of Contractors -----------------------

Office of Administrative Hearings 1400 West Washington, Suite 101 Phoenix, Arizona 85007 (602) 542-9826