Action Tree Service

On January 2015, in response to my request for a bid on a tree removal job, MrD*** *** B*** owner of Action Tree Service which operates in the Panama city area came to my residence in Callaway FloridaI found MrB*** to be courteous and responsive to my inquiries about his companyI particularly liked the fact that he was a military veteran - having served in the USAF He provided a written estimate of $for cutting and removing the trees and all debris He quoted an additional price of $for grinding the stumps In response to my question about being licensed, he verbally responded that he was licensed, bonded, and insured In a later follphone call, MrB*** warned me about individuals and companies who were not licensed and bondedAfter considering all the bids I received, I decided to engage MrB*** servicesHis demeanor and past military service were strong factors in my decisionHis bid was not the cheapest among the bids I received
MrB*** began the work in March On March 2015, while cutting a particularly large tree near the front of my house, the tree trunk fell on a power line causing a power outage and damaging a line belonging to COMCASTCOMCAST sent a field representative on March to interview MrB*** complete a damage reportHe indicated to the COMCAST representative the bill should be sent to him and he provided an address of XXXX XXXXX Ave, Panama City, Florida MrB***, later the same day, assured my wife that all of the damages would be taken care of
MrB*** completed the job on April and was paid $by check
In July and again in September 2015, I received copies of correspondence from Phoenix Loss Control - a collection agency representing COMCASTThey had attempted multiple times to call MrB*** at ***-***-*** He does not return the calls They have mailed him the COMCAST invoice of $at three different addresses: MrB***'s residence, a P.OBox on the invoice, and the address provided to the COMCAST field Rep which turned out to be a vacant lot owned by MrB*** It appears MrB*** is attempting to dodge his responsibility to take care of this matter
I have conducted my own investigation into MrB***'s background, business practices, and credentials Here is what I have learned:
MrB***'s business - Action Tree Service - was no longer "licensed" in Florida as of September I have a copy of the State of Florida's certification to that effect
There is no mail delivery at the address of the vacant lot
MrB*** has a history of code violations associated with this vacant lot as attested by public domain information obtained from Bay County Code enforcement There are pages of code enforcement documentation in the public records of Bay County
In 2015, Bay County Florida levied a special assessment of $on MrB*** associated with the County's removal of a building and structures on the vacant lot owned by MrB***
MrB*** does not return my phone calls but he will return a phone call from a number he does not recognize - particularly if he thinks the call is related to new businessOn Oct 2015, MrB*** returned a call from my wife's cell phone When told that COMCAST was attempting to collect on the damages, he told my wife, in response to her question about his business being insured, he again replied that he was insured
On October 2015, I mailed a certified letter to MrB*** at his residence I included a copy of the correspondence from Phoenix Loss Control MrB*** signed for this letter on October There can be no doubt or question about MrB*** not knowing about COMCAST's repeated attempts to collect
COMCAST's November attempts to deliver - via certified mail - another letter were ignored by MrB***
Here is my Bottom Line on this business
Any positive comment I might have made about the work performed by MrB*** is completely lost and overshadowed by the fact that he lied when asked about his license to operate his business
MrB***'s deliberate attempt to obfuscate matters by providing an address for a vacant lot; his repeated failure to return phone calls; and his deliberate avoidance of responding to correspondence from COMCAST are not the actions of a reputable business
I expect when MrB*** is investigated the record will show anomalies with his insurance documentation - either non-existent or not in effect at the time he performed the work for me
I DO NOT RECOMMEND THAT ANYONE SHOULD ENGAGE THE SERVICES OF MRD*** *** B***