A Derby roofer has been banned from doing business in Kansas after failing to register with the attorney general’s office or respond to a lawsuit filed in May, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said today.
In a default judgment entered in Mitchell County District Court, Chief Judge Kim W. Cudney ordered Mike’s General Contracting, LLC, to pay a $40,000 civil penalty and permanently enjoined the company from performing roofing services in Kansas without a registration certificate from the attorney general’s office.
The company is registered to Phong “Mike” Nguyen of Derby, according to records filed with the Secretary of State’s office.
In a petition filed in May, Schmidt accused the company of engaging in the business of, or capacity as, a roofing contractor within Kansas without having a valid registration certificate.
Despite repeated notice of the requirement to register, the company failed to register but allegedly performed roofing services for a Mitchell County couple.
After completing the work, the company demanded additional payment without itemization or explanation of why more money was justified and subsequently sued the couple when neither they nor their insurance company would pay the extra amount. The court entered the default judgment after the defendant failed to respond.
“The Legislature determined in 2013 that Kansas consumers should be protected from fly-by-night roofing contractors, by requiring a registration certificate from the attorney general’s office to perform roofing services,” Schmidt said. “That law has now been in force for more than two years, and despite repeated notice, this roofer has failed to comply with the law.”
Schmidt’s office has filed five other cases against unregistered roofers, which remain pending.
Schmidt reminded consumers to make sure roofing contractors are properly registered before signing any contract or having any work done.
Consumers should request a copy of their roofer’s registration certificate and then should check the attorney general’s consumer protection website at www.InYourCornerKansas.org to confirm that the registration remains active.
