Contact your credit card company immediately. I was able to obtain a refund for a purchase (airline tickets) from a company that also went bankrupt. They were able to issue me a temporary refund right away for 'purchased items not delivered' and then after a 60 day investigation the refund was permanent.

My credit card company also went to bat for me on another refund where I returned items, but the company didn't issue me a refund. Again the credit card company won and I got my refund!

I'm so sorry to hear about your bad situation. Good luck!

raehelen, I am so sorry to hear about your experience. You may have read that I had a bad experience with a crook who took $9K from us and even lied about ordering the cabinets (and then lied about the business being bancrupt, which we later found out was actually personal bancruptcy). After a lot of hassle and phone calls, we ended up getting the situation resolved through a branch of the dept of justice and the trustee assigned to the idiot's personal bancruptcy case. Although the drama ended up costing us a long delay, stress, and heartache, we were very lucky that we got our money.

There were quite a few red flags that we ignored because the jerk promised us such a good deal! Here is what I would like to add to the list:

1) If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.

2) If the business does not accept credit cards, walk away. We should have used a credit card!

3) If you are asked to put down a significant amount of money, it should raise a red flag. The guy wanted 70% down and we were too stupid to give it to him.

4) If the business is too desperate for your money AND cashes your deposit check even before you sign the contract, it should raise a red flag. (Now, if you are too stupid to give the business a deposit check before the design is drawn and way before the cabinets are ordered, you should get your head examined. Oh, and if you are stupid enough to continue to do business with a business who breaks your trust by cashing your check before the contract is signed, you should seriously get your head examined-- yep, we were that stupid).

5)Getting everything in writing does not protect the consumer if the business declares bancruptcy! We were suspecious of this man, we kept everything in writing (email communications, etc) thinking that we could use it if trouble arose. However, the documents would have been useless had the business actually become bancrupt.

6) Just because the business has a nice, fancy showroom does not mean that it is a solid business financially.

7) I agree - use your 'spidey sense'!!! The whole thing felt so fishy, but DH kept on telling me to stop being so suspecious of people! I should have listened to that little voice!

8) After the experience we went through, I am now reluctant about doing business with a small company. In our case, the business had one employee (the idiot). As much as I like to support local small businesses, I would rather not deal with a business that has an owner who also happens to be the judge, jury, and executioner.

I'm so sorry you are having to deal with this. If you purchased a particuliar brand of cabinet (not built by the company you were dealing with) you should contact the manufacturer and ask to speak to the local rep. Cabinet companies will often try to work this out with you. All of your advice is good. I am a kitchen designer who left a company 2 years ago because they were having trouble paying their bills and I couldn't in good conscience continue to take deposits from clients knowing the circumstances. It cost me quite a bit in commisions but at least I could sleep at night. Good luck.

Another warning. Don't just ask for references, ask for their most recent three or four clients. Anyone can pull three people over 5 years who were happy, but you want to know how their current and most recent clients feel. This will also tell you how busy they stay; if they give you three clients and they're six months apart, either they're holding out their unhappy clients or they just aren't on top of their business (depending on size of course).

Caligirl,

That's a good point about the most recent 3 or 4 references.

Ngng, unfortunately, the bulk of our deposit was by cheque, they couldn't accept VISA at first (so Ni has a good point about the not accepting credit cards- arghhh)- the last vanity/granite top was paid with VISA and supposedly I will be getting both of those next week (Still have to see).

We are actually in a 'not bad' position. We still owe them a fair amount of money, and so essentially have not paid for the granite that has already been installed (and needs to be replaced). They say they will still be giving us the replacement granite (but won't be doing final fabrication and install). Not sure if that means we are not expected to pay for it (Guess that may be one reason they're going under).

But, our granite needs to be replaced, and am not looking forward to that hassle. Can't even start looking for new fabricators until I know if I am getting this new granite. I now have to look for a carpenter to finish off the last few cabinet details.

I just hope that my experience and advice can help prevent someone else from going through this. What should have been the experience of a lifetime (renovating our house from top to bottom) has been an ongoing night mare- 1 and 1/2 years and counting, and the kitchen is STILL not finished!

Lessons I have learned the hard way.

1. If someone will be working in your home, ask to see their driver's license or some form of identification. Photocopy it/photograph it. I want to know that they are who they say they are, and I want a way to track them down if they disappear.

2. Do a background check. It's not expensive to do online these days. Tell them that you are going to do a background check and warrant check. The ones with nothing to hide will not be perturbed; the ones who have something to hide will be scared off.

Yes I have been burned, and I didn't listen to my spidey-sense. I tried so hard to be accomodating and a "good client", but this industry is clearly full of crooks. Now I let it be known right from the get-go that I have been burned in the past, I want to know everything about you, and I will hunt you down and make your life very uncomfortable if you step out of line.

I always tried to see the good in people, but I gotta say that this experience has punished me for that. Jailbird contractor might be getting out of jail this week, and I am worried about how that will all play out.

Has it been everyone's experience that all legitimate companies, cabinetmakers in particular, accept credit cards for payment? What are some other things we can do to protect ourselves or to further investigate if a company is legitimate, other than checking references? Sometimes it can be difficult to know if a company is having financial difficulties.

Has anyone had any experience with NW Caseworks on NE Marx St. in Portland, Oregon, 97220. Website: www.nwcaseworks.net? They do not accept credit cards at this time and I am wondering if they are legitimate. Feel free to email me privately, if you prefer. Thanks!

Barbaraz, you can check their licensing by the link below. I glanced through it- I think Oregon has one of the best licensing websites I've seen! It has lists of all sorts of information, including cross referencing the principal of the company. You might also want to check the BBB, and just google the company name along with the owner's name.

Someone here posted to call the references after a company took their money and didn't deliver- I thought that was a great idea.

Here is a link that might be useful: Oregon Contractor License

If your state requires them to have a contractor's license, then they may have been bonded, and you can make a claim against the bond. Check with your state's contractor board.

Carla in Sac

I went to at least 4 contractors for estimates, the only one who took credit cards was Home Depot. Another place I went to that had a store front probably would have also, although I did not get to the point of getting an estimate from them or detailed info about payment. No GC I talked to locally would accept credit cards. Even a modest kitchen would probably result in a fee from the credit card company of 500-1000.00 that the GC would have to pay. I have not done the math on what it would be for a 50,000.00 or more kitchen, but expect that the cost would have to be factored into the price of doing the job. Most around here just do not accept them. But then again, most local large home improvement projects around here are paid in cash, financed by savings, investments or home equity or mortgage loans. I did ask about credit cards from a few. I got a polite negative, a incredulous look, and a laugh. I stopped asking after that. It is a great idea, but definitely limits your options.

Sue

W got burned by a local cabinetmaker (we eventually got our money back.). Then we went to a highend kitchen showroom to buy our second set of cabinets, and we politely asked whether they would set up a credit card system. They did, for us, so it is not so crazy to ask. Many people would love to get the frequent flier miles / points on a cabinet purchase, so it is not so farfetched.

LC

bumping for new GW members....