I-TEAM UPDATE: Pool victims one step closer to refund from bond company

Tuesday, August 7, 2018

AIKEN COUNTY, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) -- There's been a lot of red tape to swim through here, even though it seems pretty cut and dry. Tuesday night, Columbia County Commissioners approved the minutes of their July 17, 2018 meeting. It included a unanimous decision for the County to proceed with helping the Wart family get bond money after a bonded contractor allegedly left them high and dry.

Here is the part of those minutes that reference the Wart complaint:

(I2c6) Complaint from Brandon and Lisa Wart on Egan Pools

Commissioner Allen made a motion to accept the Construction Advisory Board's recommendation to forfeit

the Egan Pools bond. Vice Chairman Duncan seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

That motion was approved three weeks ago, but we wanted to know why the minutes were just being approved on August 7th. We reached out to Paul Scarbary, Columbia County's Development Service Director. Cassidy Harris, Columbia County's Public Relations Manager, responded. "The approval of the minutes took an extra week this time around because we had a fifth week in July. However, with a normal month (four weeks), the turnaround time for approved minutes is the same….typically two weeks," she wrote.

We're also following other victims of other pool companies who are asking Columbia County for help. Keep in mind, each contractor is bonded, but each job is not bonded. However, the question our I-Team keeps returning to is the following: if a contractor can't get bond, they can't do business legally in the county. Wouldn't that be a way to weed out contractors who repeatedly rip customers off?

We'll be watching.

Tuesday, July 17, 2018 News 12 at 11 COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) -- The Wart family has been going back and forth with Columbia County and insurance for months trying desperately to get their money back, but they ran across a few roadblocks. Today, the Board of Commissioners approved the Wart's request, putting them one step closer to getting their money back. Lisa and Brandon Wart have been trying to get their money for a job not done, since January. After a storm damaged their pool liner, they paid Michael Egan of Egan Pools to fix it. Now, as their pool sits waterless and filled with green gook, they say Egan cashed that check and they never heard from him again. "$3,280." That's how much the Warts invested in a project never completed. They've been trying to get their money back ever since going through a tedious, confusing process. "Well, we started in January, and really, Columbia county didn't know about the process or how to go through it so we just kind of all learned it together," Lisa Wart took News 12 through the timeline. To do business in Columbia County, pool companies are required to have $5,000 in insurance. That reimbursement would cover the Warts, but, as News 12 has learned, they're not the only family falling victim to this scam. "If the bond company did pay the $5,000 to this couple, that means that anybody else that is a victim of the same pool company may not be able to get that money back because there wouldn't be any money left from the insurance company or the bond company," explained Columbia County Scott Johnson. The only other avenue, he says, would be to take it to court. "I think the most important thing to get out of this is that Columbia County is learning how to stop a person from fraudulently doing business in Columbia County. Which, in the long run, will save anyone else that's been put in our predicament," said Johnson. So, unfortunately, companies have to have thousands of dollars worth of insurance, but not per job. So if this family gets paid other families will probably have to take their case to court too. The new business license for pool contractors doesn't help current victims but it will require businesses to take an extra step and get a business license. That way, in future situations like this, the commission can go in and revoke their ability to do business in Columbia County.

Tuesday, June 19, 2018 (News 12 at 6 o'clock) COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) -- Ever since the News 12 I-Team started investigating a local pool contractor, we've been flooded with calls. The pool of problems we've exposed keeps getting deeper. Now we've discovered there's been a system in place all along in Columbia County to help victims get their money back, but it appears as though Columbia County has been asleep at the wheel. In order to legally do business in Columbia County, pool contractors have to be bonded. That means they need an insurance policy of sorts to pay their customers back if things go wrong, and, as we've shown you, things have gone wrong. Why, then, in the history of Columbia County, has no one ever gotten their money back? Brandon and Lisa Wart never intended to make any waves with their pool. "If you sign a contract to do something, do what you signed a contract to do," Brandon Wart said. "You know...it's pretty simple." It was also pretty cut and dry what they needed: a new liner. A storm damaged their old one. They paid Michael Egan of Egan Pools the full amount up front.

Brandon Wart: "$3,280." Meredith Anderson: "And he cashed the check..." Brandon Wart: "...in our driveway via mobile deposit." Lisa Wart: "And then, we never saw him again." They say they never saw him again in person, but we showed them his mug shot we got from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. Egan is facing theft charges. He has since bonded out. That leads us to his other bond, the kind needed to have his pool business in the first place. Columbia County only requires pool contractors to secure $5,000, but that would definitely cover the Warts. They went to the county to get the ball rolling on a refund. "They didn't have a clue how to process that request," said Lisa Wart. Brandon Wart: "According to Columbia County, this is the first time that anyone has ever pursued getting their money back from a lame contractor." Meredith Anderson: "Was that surprising to you?" Brandon: "Very."

Click here to see the full document. It surprised us, too, considering we know multiple families who say they've been victims, too. Take Carlo and Audra Bono for example. They claim another pool contractor, Earl Chastagner, left them high and dry with an unfinished mess in their Columbia County backyard. Then, we introduced you to Bill Cravens, a former Secret Service agent. Our cameras were rolling as he handed Chastagner an order from a Columbia County judge to pay him almost $10,000 for his pool problems. He's been waiting on that check for six years now. "There's people out there who are in debt a lot deeper than we are and don't know to go to the county to try to get their money back or try to get assistance from them," Brandon Wart said. Columbia County, meanwhile, didn't know how to give that assistance. That's why Brandon and Lisa Wart invited News 12 to walk into this meeting with them. This is the first time in Columbia County's history the Development Advisory Board has had a hearing like this.

The Board didn't even know they were supposed to hold it. The bond company had to tell the Advisory Board after Columbia County went to the bond company to get the family their money back. The County wasn't supposed to do that until the Development Advisory Board approved it. "Obviously, they have to do some work on their statutes on processing and how that works for people," Lisa Wart said.

Click here to see the full email exchange between Lisa Wart and Columbia County. The hearing lasted maybe 15 minutes. The Development Advisory Board approved the family's refund, now totaling $5,000. After waiting 8 months, it looks like the tide has finally turned. "Now that we'all educating ourselves, maybe now other people will know that they can go back and get help through the county and at least get some of your money back." In doing so, you could also protect others. If a bond company eventually decides to drop a contractor and that contractor can't secure a bond with another company, that's it. The contractor could no longer legally do business in Columbia County. Think of how many people might have been spared if Columbia County had weeded out some of these bad contractors along the way. Michael Egan, the suspect in Brandon and Lisa Wart's pool problem, is facing felony theft charges. He could spend a maximum of ten years in prison. We know this family is not alone. If you've had issues with a contractor, here are some resources to help. (, you cannot request bond money yourself. The County needs to do it on your behalf.)