BELLEVILLE – Tiger Plumbing is being sued for allegedly fraudulently performing more than $32,000 in unnecessary home repairs and digging up the wrong yard.
Plaintiff Katarina R. Harris and Alex J. Whiteside filed the lawsuit in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Tiger Plumbing, Heating, Air Conditioning & Electrical Services, doing business as Tiger Services, Tiger Plumbing Services, LLC, Tiger Heating and Air Conditioning Services, Inc, Tiger Electrical Services, LLC, Tiger Business owner Jeffrey Gamblin, Watercress Financial Group, LLC, and Ally Financial, Inc., doing business as Ally Lending, citing breach of contract and violations of the Consumer Fraud & Deceptive Business Practices Act.
According to the lawsuit, on April 6, 2023, Whiteside noticed that the plumbing in their residence had a sulfur smell and called Tiger Plumbing for service. A representative of Tiger Plumbing allegedly recommended that the plaintiff should purchase a water heater to avoid a catastrophe to their home. The charge for a new water heater would cost them roughly $12,500. The Tiger representative also recommended a $5,000 dehumidifier to avoid black mold.
The plaintiffs state that while the Tiger Plumbing representative was installing the dehumidifier, he, without permission, ripped out the plaintiff's metal sewage pipes and replaced them with open PVC plastic pipes to insert the drain line for the humidifier. The open PVC pipes caused plaintiff's home to experience an odor of sewage. Tiger Plumbing allegedly fraudulently claimed that the sewage line to the plaintiff's home should be replaced, a job that would cost $20,000. The plaintiffs claim they negotiated a deal for the job to be completed for $15,000, not knowing that the open PVC plastic pipes were causing the sewage smell.
Harris claims that prior to obtaining her approval for services, the Tiger Plumbing representative forged her signature onto a contract for the project.
The lawsuit states that during the installation of the new sewage line, Tiger Plumbing dug up the wrong yard and began construction without securing necessary inspections or permits.
The plaintiffs claim the total bill for all the work was $32,548.31, before interest, and that the contract has been transferred to the Watercress Financial Group and Ally Financial. The amount has accrued interest and other charges, and the total is increasing every month.
The plaintiffs allege Tiger Plumbing misrepresented the scope of the work needed to accomplish the plaintiff's project goals, misrepresented the condition of the sewer line, failed to obtain necessary permits and inspections prior to commencing work, forged Harris' signature to the written contract, and damaged the plaintiff's neighbor's property, subjecting the plaintiffs to a damage claim from the neighbor.
Watercress and Ally are named in the lawsuit as co-defendants because they are the holders of the alleged fraudulent debt and have attempted to collect the debt from the plaintiffs. As holders of the debt, Watercress and Ally are responsible for the alleged fraudulent acts of Tiger Plumbing and its employees. The plaintiffs state that Watercress and Ally owe them a refund for the total loan amount. They have allegedly refused to issue a refund or cancel the debt, which has impacted the plaintiffs' credit rating, the complaint states.
The plaintiffs are seeking damages in excess of $50,000, plus court costs, attorney's fees and any other relief the court deems proper. They are represented in this case by attorneys Brian M. Wendler and Angie M. Zinzilieta of Wendler & Zinzilieta, P.C. in Maryville.
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 23-LA-813