Home Repair Frauds Keep Police, Consumer Protection Busy

When a salesman and two other men showed up in a plain red pickup truck on Woodmont Road in West Hartford last summer, they told a homeowner that some trees in his backyard needed work. The price was good -- $200. While the work was completed, the salesman went door-to-door scouting for other jobs in the  neighborhood.

The next day, two of the men – one a convicted felon, the other a suspected thief, authorities say – returned. The gutters, they told the homeowner, were old and clogged.

The homeowner wrote a $500 check for the work and materials. The men left to go to a nearby Lowe’s, they said, and never returned, the homeowner told .

“Sounds like they did the first job correctly, perhaps to build up some confidence in the homeowner, and then took the money and ran,” said Claudette Carveth of the state Department of Consumer Protection.

The case highlights the difficulties that homeowners, law enforcement and the consumer protection department can face with unregistered contractors and scam artists. In a hard economy, people want to save money. Others are ready to take it.

“Although there may be more attempts being made [to deceive], at the same time the buying public is becoming much more savvy and much more aware,” Carveth said.

The West Hartford case was hardly the first time Troy Howlett and Stephen Francoeur were accused of pulling a fast one, police departments and the Department of Consumer Protection said. The men are suspected of similar home repair deceptions in Glastonbury, East Hartford, Rocky Hill and Middletown.

Howlett, 35, of 55 Spak Road in Willington, was arrested April 4 by state police. He was charged by West Hartford police with two felonies, including second-degree larceny. He also is facing seven misdemeanor violations of the state’s Home Improvement Act.

The West Hartford incident was in August, a month after Howlett was flagged by the Department of Consumer Protection and fined $250. Yet, according to police, he continued to work illegally as a contractor.

“If someone comes to your door and they’re not registered, they are breaking the law just by offering,” Carveth said.

Of concern to police are the potentially dangerous situations homeowners invite when dealing with sketchy contractors.

Howlett served nine months of a five-year jail sentence for assaulting a public safety official in 2006. He has convictions for marijuana possession and breach of peace, according to court records.

Francoeur, 24, is wanted by Newington police on a charge of sixth-degree larceny in connection with an alleged scam last July. In a 2009 incident, he was granted accelerated rehabilitation for violating the Home Improvement Act, according to court records. He has given police several addresses, but was living at 17 Connecticut South Drive in East Granby when he was arrested by West Hartford police on a narcotics charges last year.

“We definitely discourage consumers from accepting any offers of work from someone who is going door to door … especially for bargain rates for cash,” Carveth said.

The 85-year-old victim in the West Hartford case apparently never asked for proof that Howlett or Francoeur, who was acting as the salesman, were registered with consumer protection as contractors. A third man who was unidentified in the arrest warrant for Howlett was described as a “white male in his 40s with dark hair and no teeth.”

The Department of Consumer Protection says home improvement is the No. 1 consumer complaint each year. And last year the department conducted a sting that resulted in civil fines for 54 unregistered contractors and salespersons.

“The primary goal in that enforcement effort was to get as many people registered as possible. If they’re not registered, we want them registered,” Carveth said. “The goal is not to hammer the person who’s trying to get a start in the business, perhaps, but to get those people registered.”

The undercover operation included the Bloomfield police and state Department of Transportation, the consumer protection department said. The sting – the department's ninth since 2000 – was based in a vacant, state-owned house at 26 Marguerite Ave. in Bloomfield.

The five-month operation netted $12,600 in civil penalties,  state records indicate.

It was unclear whether Howlett, who lives in a home valued at $314,540, paid his $250 fine. He  was arraigned in Hartford Superior Court April 14 on charges associated with the West Hartford case. He posted a $25,000 bond and was released, according to court records.

In a handwritten note June 23 to the Department of Consumer Protection, Howlett agreed to shut down his business, Afford a Pro Tree Service, a department investigator told West Hartford police.

“He goes on to state that he will not be registering as a home improvement contractor,” police said.

Howlett also signed a voluntary agreement with the consumer protection department “to comply with all lawful requirements of the Home Improvement Act.”

A state home improvement license costs $220. In a two-page form, applicants are asked to acknowledge any felony convictions.

“We conduct an investigation when we find an applicant has answered yes to the felony question on the application and/or renewal form,” Carveth said.

A felony conviction does not automatically disqualify a potential contractor, Carveth said. But “the investigation is a comprehensive review and includes [a] criminal history check.  Upon review of the information, we may deny registration or renewal.”

Among the unregistered businesses nabbed in the sting, five were in West Hartford. Hartford had eight. Other towns with multiple violators included Bloomfield and Enfield with four each, East Hartford with three and Manchester and Windsor with two each.

Glastonbury police have investigated Afford a Pro several times. In a case involving Francoeur, an elderly woman paid for work that was not done, police said. There were no arrests because the incident was settled as a civil matter, police said.

Francoeur received a warning for soliciting without a permit.

West Hartford police started investigating Howlett Aug. 27. He was not easy to find, police indicated, and neither apparently is Francoeur.

“Based on multiple incidents involving Francoeur and Howlett, it appears that they have a history of receiving payment for work to perform and then not performing the work,” police said.

Howlett is scheduled to return to Superior Court May 17.

The DCP offers guidelines online for homeowners, “12 Things You Need To Know About Home Improvement.” Homeowners can also file complaints online and, in some cases, tap into a state fund that provides restitution up to $15,000, according to the DCP.