A Davenport woman says she wants her money back from a home repair contractor who touts helping veterans, and has been accused of bad business practices by customers in the past.
Barb Speidel paid $2,000 to Tim Coker of Master Roofing and Home Improvement on September 19th for a concrete slab for a garage.
"And he said all the work is done by vets, and I said, 'That's great because my dad was a vet and I would really want to help them out,'" said Speidel. Coker asked for, and received, half up front, and they agreed he would be paid another $2,000 after the job was finished.
Two thousand dollars later, no slab has been poured. Speidel later Googled Coker's name and saw a previous story done in May by WQAD about Coker and US Vets Home Improvement Company.
"I saw your story, and said, 'Oh, no,'" Speidel said.
Since then, she's made several phone calls and sent texts to Coker.
"He's giving me excuses that he's had a funeral and then delays everything. I think I've been taken," she said.
Coker came under fire in May after two angry customers said they paid him for work he never finished. At the time he said he would repay the money. They have never seen a dime.
Speidel has already hired another company to pour her concrete, and fired Coker. She wants her $2,000 back.
"I've worked hard to make improvements on my house. It's upsetting, and what's more upsetting, is he gives vets a bad name. My dad is a veteran and is buried on Arsenal Island. He died two years ago. I did this in his honor," she said.
She says she is a wiser consumer now, but it shouldn't be like this.
"I won't do it again, and I won't trust anybody. I will not pay for a job until it's done. But, I'm a fighter. I'm not going to stop until I get my money. I will find a way to get it," she said.