Attorney General's News Release

August 19, 2008

Nixon files lawsuit against St. Louis home remodeler who was paid thousands of dollars for uncompleted or substandard work

St. Louis, Mo. - Attorney General Jay Nixon is seeking full restitution and civil penalties in a lawsuit filed today against the owner of a St. Louis home remodeling business who was paid substantially up front by consumers but then failed to either begin or complete the jobs or engaged in shoddy workmanship. The Attorney General filed the petition today in St. Louis City Circuit Court against Darrell Anthony Helms, who does business as H&B Remodeling and Helms Construction, and is also seeking a permanent injunction to prevent the defendant from continuing to violate state consumer protections laws.

According to Nixon, Helms has offered construction, remodeling and roofing services to Missouri consumers in the St. Louis area since at least 1999. Between 2005 and 2007, the Attorney General's Office received 11 consumer complaints about the defendant while the St. Louis Better Business Bureau received another nine. The complaints alleged multiple acts of consumer fraud by Helms in soliciting home repair work (including roofing, tuck pointing, gutters, porches, sidewalks, etc.) in which the defendant was paid hundreds or thousands of dollars up front as a deposit but then failed to start or complete the work in most cases and also failed to provide refunds.

In the instances where Helms did complete the projects he was paid for, Nixon said, the work was substandard. In one case, Helms contracted with a consumer to remove an existing roof and replace it with a new rubber roof for $2,800. The defendant improperly laid the rubber on the roof, and within a week after he had vacated the job site, the consumer had to purchase a tarp to stop the roof from leaking. The consumer ultimately had to hire a licensed roofer for an additional $800 to finish the job.

On another occasion, Helms installed a new furnace for $2,100 that did not work, and in another instance installed guttering for $1,600 that fell off the consumer's home during a storm. In some cases, the defendant left debris on the consumer's property that he never cleaned up, or left holes in ceilings and roofs only partially completed that caused water damage to consumers' homes. Helms promised some consumers who were able to contact him that he would return to complete unfinished jobs or provide refunds, but failed to do so in all cases.

The Attorney General is requesting that the court issue a permanent injunction against Helms to stop his violation of state consumer protection laws. Nixon's lawsuit is also asking that the court order the defendant to pay full restitution to consumers harmed by his unlawful conduct, appropriate penalties and all courts costs in the case.

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Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818