Dishonest home owner on Alta Road in Berkeley Hills

El Cerrito CA

Description

I have been a general contractor for the past 30 some year. While back I received a service call from this lady supposedly a registered nurse, (someone you can trust), requesting service for a retaining wall located on Alta Road. At our first visit she expressed interest in repairing a falling retaining wall over 4 feet high. My recommendation was to rebuild the wall with an approved plan drawn by a structural engineer. The home owner then requested that I professionally hire an engineer I know for her, to make appropriate plans for her walls to be rebuilt. The structural engineer drove from San Jose to Berkeley hills, visited the site and later provided us with a detailed plan for the wall to be rebuilt. I prepared an estimate base on the detail received from the engineer and presented it to the lady in person when she requested to see the engineer's detail. I shared the info with this woman based on good faith however at that point her real personality surfaced when she refused to sign contract or even pay for the detail planed prepared by the engineer. After playing a long time game via email, she expressed disinterest in moving on with a contract. Driving by her house, I noticed that she had the wall completed by the handyman boyfriend using my engineer's PAID recommendation. She refused to pay any cost incurred. Later she threatened to contact the authorities if she was contacted again. Am I the only person this untrustworthy registered nurse has cheated. What is the proper step to deal with a crooked community member such as her.