Above & Beyond Contracting

I needed a plumber to install water shutoff valves on basement pipes, and two install replacement faucets in our powder room, one bathroom and kitchen. I located "***Pro. Uniformed Plumbers & Heating Techs Ready to Help You 24/7 (Tristate Area/everywhere)" on Craigslist on October 12, 2009. I called the phone number listed (267-694-6520) the same day and set up an appointment for October 14, 2009. Bob Maines and a helper kept the appointment, and gave me a written estimate of $285.00 to perform all of the items listed, and charged $75.00 for the service call, as agreed upon. He had me write the check to the order of "Joe Locke", and an appointment was made for October 20, 2009 to complete the items listed on the Estimate form. On October 20, Bob Maines and his helper returned to complete the work. They managed to cause a severe water leak in working on the powder room faucets, and we had to turn off the main water valve, shutting off all water to the entire house. Bob Maines and his helper left our house "to have lunch" and "to pick up additional parts at Home Depot". When they failed to return within two hours, I checked the work areas that the two had been using, and found that there were none of the work tools that they had brought into the house in the morning. Being completely without water service to our home, I called the above listed phone number several times, but got only an answering machine each time, and received no phone call back in return that afternoon. I then called a local plumber, who arrived at 7:30PM, and installed shutoff valves to the powder room, so that water service could be restored to the rest of the house. With the agreement to return on Oct. 22 to complete the remaining items needing repair or replacement, the second plumber charged $180.00 for the emergency visit. He returned two days (Oct. 22, 2009) later to complete to properly install the powder room faucet set, and complete the remaining items on our list. On the morning following the emergency repair, we received a phone call from the offices of Above & Beyond Conracting, explaining that Bob Maines and helper "...had been involved in a traffic accident on the way to Home Depot, and had been hospitalized". The caller stated that the company would reimburse us the amount of the emergency service call, $180.00. In the weeks that followed, no reimbursement check was received. My phone calls to the above business phone number went to the company's answering machine, and were not returned. We are still awaiting the promised reimbursement of $180.00 from Above & Beyond Contracting, and still wonder why they took all of their work tools with them on the trip to have lunch and stop at Home Depot for additional parts.