ST. LOUIS – A St. Louis resident alleges a contractor listed on a digital marketplace trespassed on her property and stole parts from her air conditioning unit.
Marian Darrough filed a complaint on June 15 in the St. Louis Circuit Court against HomeAdvisor Inc. alleging negligence.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff purchased a home warranty from Home Service Warranty Club Corp. and contacted it in June 2014 regarding excessive noise from her air conditioning unit. The suit states Home Service Warranty Club used the defendant's online service to locate William Burns Jr., doing business as Absolutely Affordable Heating & Air Conditioning.
The plaintiff alleges Burns went to her home without her knowledge and permission and completed the work without first contacting Home Service Warranty Club for authorization. The suit states Home Service Warranty Club denied Burns' request for payment and that he later trespassed on the plaintiff's property and stole the motor and fan unit.
The suit also states that Burns is not licensed to perform air conditioning maintenance in St. Louis and that he had a criminal weapons conviction.
The plaintiff holds HomeAdvisor Inc. responsible because the defendant allegedly failed to perform continuously updated criminal background checks on the contractors listed on its website. She alleges she would not have been injured had HomeAdvisor not misrepresented that Burns was a fit and appropriate contractor.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks damages of no less than $25,000, punitive damages, costs, attorney's fees and expenses. She is represented by John J. Ammann of St. Louis University Legal Clinic in St. Louis.
St. Louis Circuit Court case number 1822-CC10540