JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Marine veteran says he was left with an expensive mess after paying almost $50,000 to a local contractor to remodel his home. He came to the "Ask Anthony" team for help.
"He said he could do everything I wanted, including installing windows throughout the whole house as well at the whole kitchen for the price. It sounded good and I hired the guy," John Jimmerson explained.
Back in March, Jimmerson came to an "Ask Anthony" listening session. He hired a local contractor, whose price was cheaper than the rest, to do work at his home.
"I paid him basically 98 percent of what I owed him. He won't answer texts and I've tried to call him. He's still in the area, I guess, but I can't get a hold of him."
Anthony Austin stopped by Jimmerson's house to see why he was upset with the contractor's work. He showed our cameras how the floor was popping up and defective windows in the kitchen.
"When he put them in, you could literally almost push the window out into the backyard," Jimmerson said.
The military veteran says this all started in March 2021 with a contractor named Chris Asay.
"He never did any of the work. He had his little workers come in and do the work."
He may not have done the work, but he did get the checks.
"One for $16,000. Another one for $14,000," Jimmerson added.
The "Ask Anthony" team looked up records for Asay on the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation website. You can check there to see if a contractor is licensed.
According to the state's website, Asay has eight complaints filed against him. The earliest in 2008 with the most recent in 2015. All are for unlicensed activity.
Jimmerson says he is now taking legal action to get his money back. He's currently spending thousands more to make repairs to his home.
"I want something done. I don't want him to take advantage of anybody else," Jimmerson said.
We contacted Chris Asay and told him this story was airing on First Coast News. He offered no comment.