GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) -- When you need work done on your home, hiring the wrong person for the job can cost you big. One West Michigan woman learned that firsthand.
“I just don’t want this to happen to anyone else,” Heidi Young said.
Young wishes she done more homework before hiring Bill Secrest to do some remodeling jobs in her Wyoming home.
Target 8 first exposed Secrest in January 2015 when he was a no-show snow plow driver. Among the customers he left in a lurch was a woman with brain cancer whose friends had raised money to make sure her driveway got plowed.
Secrest ultimately pleaded guilty to larceny by conversion for taking money but failing to plow. At the time, he told Target 8 his plow had broken down and that he would “make it right” with his customers.
More than a year later, Secrest is still trying to make a living off of homeowners who need work done. But this time, he’s doing remodel projects, holding himself out as a “licensed” contractor.
SECREST OR EUGENE?
Heidi Young says he was using a different name when she hired his latest business, “Midwest Fence Contractors” to install and fence and sliding glass door.
“He went by William Eugene, not William Secrest,” Young explained.
In fact, when she paid him to work on her home, she made the check out to “William Eugene.” It was only later that she noticed that he added “Secrest” when he went to cash the $1,550 check.
“This William person is going around just telling people that he’s somebody he’s not and has experience he doesn’t,” Young said.
INSTRUCTIONS FROM YOUTUBE
Young said she realized right away that Secrest wasn’t doing quality work.
“You can see the door is out of plumb,” she explained. “The header is still not installed correctly.”
Young says a city inspector who checked Secrest’s work told Young she would have to rip it out and redo it.
“I also had to pay a fine because we did work without a permit, which William told me we did not need,” Young said.
Young says Secrest agreed to fix the problem, telling her he had been researching how to do it.
“”I’ve been reading and watching YouTube videos,” reads one of Secrest’s texts to Young.
“This is a licensed contractor who has to watch a YouTube video on how to do a job," Young noted.
SECREST LIES ABOUT LICENSING
When Target 8 paid Secrest a visit recently, he said he could not say much about the work he did for Heidi Young because she has filed suit against him.
“We just didn’t finish the job,” Secrest said.
“She was very angry and irate when we went to her house and she -- we -- agreed not to (do) any business with each other anymore,” he continued.
“I think he just doesn’t know how to do it and sells it as if he’s had a lot of experience,” Young said.
Target 8 wanted to see Secrest’s sales pitch for ourselves, especially after another tipster reported that Secrest is also repairing roofs. So we set up a meeting with Secrest to get an estimate on a leaky roof.
“You guys are licensed and all that?” asked an undercover "homeowner."
“Yep, yep,” replied Secrest.
“I’ve got my own business, Midwest Contracting. I got a business license, contractor’s license, liability insurance," he continued.
But Target 8 could find no record of a contractor’s license for Secrest or either of his latest businesses, Midwest Fence Contractors and Midwest Contracting.
When Target 8 questioned Secrest about his licensing claim, he seemed to back away from it.
“How come you’re telling people that you’re licensed?” Target 8 investigator Susan Samples asked.
“I do have a driver’s license,” Secrest replied.
When Target 8 asked why Secrest had yet to “make it right” with his snow plow victims, he ended the conversation.
“Look lady,” Secrest said. “Get the f**k away from me. I’m not going to deal with this. This is harassment."
Confronting a 'Con'tractor
HOW TO CHECK OUT YOUR CONTRACTOR
But Heidi Young says she’s the victim.
She also had advice for other homeowners looking for help:
“Make sure you see some ID,” she warned. “I mean, something as simple as that could have maybe prevented this problem if I’d been able to look him up and see who he really was.”
Consumer advocates also urge you to confirm that the person you’re hiring has a valid contractor’s or builder’s license, as well as liability insurance.
You can look up commercial licenses through the State of Michigan's website.
The Better Business Bureau of Western Michigan also encourages you to ask for names and contact information of prior customers so you can find out if they were satisfied with the work done. You can also check the BBB’s website for prior complaints.
Finally, make sure you ask the city where you live if you need a permit for the work you’re having done. It is ultimately the homeowner’s responsibility to pull the necessary permits, which means you’re the one who could be forced to pay a fine if you fail to get the city’s approval.
And if you hire a contractor who doesn't pay subcontractors or suppliers, you could end up on the hook for those bills, too -- even if you paid the contractor. An attorney told Target 8 that one way to avoid that is to demand a sworn statement from the contractor laying out who got paid and how much. You can also tell your contractor that you'll be paying subcontractors and supplies directly or through joint checks.