CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — After nearly a year with plumbing issues, an elderly couple is finally getting them fixed after the company they hired now admits they never got the necessary permits or engineering reports required for the job. But now they've promised to finish the job and do it right.
This story actually started in April of last year.
Frank and Lisa Johnson have lived in their home in central Corpus Christi for a long time. But their health is failing, and because of that, they began noticing the toilet in the master bathroom backing up.
That’s when they contacted local plumbing company Bodine Scott.
"And he showed up and said it would be $25,000 and that he would start right away," Mrs. Johnson recounted to the Troubleshooters. "It wouldn’t take long. Then he came back and said it’d take more than a week, so we had to go to a hotel."
On Nov. 1, 2024, the Johnson’s paid Bodine Scott $25,326.00 with a cashier's check. But that didn’t mean their plumbing problem were washed away.
"Finally he finished up, but when he did, we still had plumbing problems. So I called him back. He charged me some more money and then it didn’t work. And he came back again and charged me some more money," Mrs. Johnson said.
Around this time, the Johnsons claim they received this anonymous letter
It suggested they contact the city’s development services department and ask if Bodine Scott had pulled the permits and engineering reports required for a job like this.
The Johnson’s first contacted the troubleshooters for help earlier this month.
The Troubleshooters contacted development services and on Friday, March 21, Bill Wittliff, a deputy building official with the department, met the Troubleshooters at the Johnson’s house.
"Do you agree," we asked, "That permits and engineering reports and all those things are required?"
"Yes," Wittliff said. "Anything under the house requires a permit because it’s got to be certified by an engineer on the backfill."
Further, Wittliff said he would contact Bodine Scott to find out exactly what happened in this particular case.
And a short time later, the same day, Wittliff notified the Troubleshooters that Bodine Scott had not pulled the necessary permits or engineering report.
Thus they would be fined $650.00 and have to pay for the permits.
Later that same day, the Troubleshooters contacted Bodine Scott, and eventually spoke with General Manager Phillip Mundahl.
While acknowledging the company’s mistake, and that there was a disconnect pulling the permits, he also pointed out they went back to the house multiple times at the Johnson’s request. He also emphasized they stand by their work and reputation as a business.
He also promised to have a crew at the Johnson’s home on Monday morning to make things right at no charge to the couple. Sure enough, 9 o’clock Monday morning, trenches were being redug at the house.
Vernon Huggins, a plumber with the company, was there.
"We’re gonna expose everything, and I’m going to get up under there and check and make sure everything is done properly. And I’m gonna put it up for inspection so a city inspector can come out and make sure everything’s done properly," Huggins explained.
Huggins also showed the Troubleshooters, on his phone, the permit that had been pulled.
The Johnson’s maintain that Bodine Scott never gave them, nor did they sign a contract or itemized list of the work the company was going to do for the Johnson's.
But the company insisted they have a contract signed by Mrs. Johnson. Mundahl sent a copy of it to the Troubleshooters.
