As Spring is beginning to show up here in Northeast Ohio, you may be thinking about doing some painting projects around the house. You may also be considering hiring a local painter to help you out. I had the same idea awhile back when I hired Brian Shamblin of Brian’s Painting in Twinsburg, Ohio. Sadly, my project didn’t get done to my satisfaction and it’s turned into quite the ordeal. I’m putting this post together so you’ll know the kind of contractor you’re working with when you deal with Brian Shamblin.
To make an incredibly long story short, we hired Brian to do some exterior painting. He was hired (and paid in full) to do some exterior trim, fill in some cracks, do some caulking, etc. around several of our outside windows. Brian showed up and completed half of the job before the rains came. Brian told us that he would return to complete the job when the weather cleared. Brian never showed up.
We tried to contact Brian on several occasions to no avail. He did not return text messages, emails or voicemails. Finally, we had no choice but to take Brian to small claims court. We took Brian Shamblin and Brian’s Painting to small claims and very easily won judgement on July 3rd, 2012 in the amount of $2,167. And here’s where the fun begins.
Rather than holding to his obligations, Brian decided to start moving money around, closing accounts and being completely difficult for not only us, but for the court to work with. Sadly, a win in small claims court doesn’t mean a whole lot in Summit County as it’s up to the plantiff to collect. When dealing with Brian Shamblin that has proven to be quite difficult.
We went through SEVERAL proper channels to get this matter closed including several “Debtor Disclosure” where Brian is asked to disclose where his assets are kept so they can be seized, to a “Show Cause” hearing where Brian had to appear in front of a judge to show his assets. Naturally, after this hearing, Brian proceeded to close his accounts and move his money elsewhere.
Just to show you that I’m not simply a bitter plaintiff looking to drag Brian’s name through the mud, here is the official court docket of our case – Case #2012CVI00363. You can do your own search here. In doing a search for “Brian Shamblin” I see I’m not the only one that’s having issues collecting from Brian… but I’ll let you do your own search.
So… left with no other recourse, I was forced to file a Judgement Lien against Brian and Brian’s Painting. You can see the details of that lien here – Case #JL-2013-9000. Documentation is available here on the Summit County Clerk Of Courts website. I’m guessing Brian doesn’t even know the the interest is running on this cause if he did he’d pay it off rather quickly (I’d think). If you’re not familiar with judgement lien, “A judgment lien is a type of nonconsensual lien (a lien that attaches to your property without your agreement). It is created when someone wins a lawsuit against you and then records the judgment against your property.” Essentially, this means that Brian can’t sell his house… ever… without paying us what we’re owed.
So the good news is, I’ll get my money someday. The bad news is that until that time I’ve got nothing to do other than to warn others about working with Brian and Brian’s Painting.
Brian Shamblin & Brian’s Painting
(216) 235-2375
1916 Hillsdale Dr, Twinsburg, OH 44087-1223
You can see that Brian’s Painting is NOT BBB accredited. We tried to open a complaint with the Better Business Bureau but they said they could not open a case so long after the fact. Too bad… would have liked to have warned more folks.
Do you have a similar story about Brian Shamblin and Brian’s Painting? I know there are more folks out there that do. Let me know!
