DC Construction Services

Janet-Marie R.

Overview: Unlicensed contractor despite claims of being licensed and insured. Lack of communication. Delays in start date and time to complete project. Quick to take our money and leave us with an incomplete bathroom and work that is not up to code. We contracted with Dave Campbell/DC Construction Services in April 2015 to perform our bathroom remodel which was to start on June 29th and take 2 weeks to complete according to him. The start date got postponed to the last week of July and we made the agreed upon initial payment for him to start the work. The revised start date came and went with no sign of Dave and it became increasingly difficult to get in touch with him. When we did, we received various excuses for the delays and the promise that we were next on his list. After asking for our deposit back come late October, which resulted in a long phone conversation, we reluctantly agreed to proceed with a new start date of November 30th. The 2 week project quickly turned into 3 weeks before we had a functional shower (the only one in our 1.5 bathroom home) and 4 weeks before we had a functional toilet, but still no sink as Dave had agreed to build a custom vanity and linen cabinets as part of the remodel. The new tub and tile work looked great and we were thrilled to have a shower and toilet again. We quickly overlooked the delays as there was visible progress and an end in sight. The 2nd payment had been made, and at Dave’s request, we even agreed to pay a portion of the final payment as we were assured construction of the vanity was in progress and the job would be completed in the next 1-2 weeks. The 2 weeks passed with no communication and repeated requests for updates went unanswered. We finally got a quick reply on week 3 with the promise of a detailed update later in the day, but we again heard nothing from him. After reaching out again at week 4, we messaged Dave that we made other arrangements to complete the vanity and the bathroom and we then proceeded to do so. It wasn’t until 2 days later when we asked for our faucet and our house key back that we finally received multiple replies and excuses. Shortly thereafter we discovered that Dave Campbell has been unlicensed since June 2014, despite reassuring us several times that he was licensed and insured. The plumbing work that was done would need to be redone as it was not up to code. A visit to the Town’s Department of Inspections confirmed that a building permit should have been pulled for the work completed and that no permit was pulled for the plumbing work either. We are now out several thousand dollars and left with an unfinished bathroom that will need substantial additional work at a considerable additional cost to complete.