Complaint Review: Consolidated Marine

I was in the market for a boat and was using a broker with Consolidated Marine also known as Ship and Sail.

I found a boat that I liked on January 10th, 2010 and issued a deposit check for $20,000 which was to be deposited into an escrow account per the preliminary purchase agreement. This vessel was rejected in accordance with the purchase agreement so Consolidated Marine and I continued to shop for a suitable boat.

I requested the deposit be returned to me on several occasions between January and March of 2010 but the money was never returned. On March 23rd we signed another agreement but I rejected this vessel based on the survey.

At this time the employees of Consolidated Marine became very rude and attempted to bully me into buying this vessel. I wrote a letter of vessel rejection with a request for a deposit refund and never received a response.

I learned during the month of April that the owner of the Marine cashed the deposit check and spent the money for personal usage. The check was never deposited into an escrow account which was a complete breach of the purchase agreement. I threatened the Marine with a lawsuit and Channel 2 Houston doing a scam piece in front of their place of business. I finally received a response and a promise to deliver $10,000 with in 7 days and the remaining $10,000 with in 14 days. I received the first payment of $10,000 the next week but the second payment never came. In June, the owner proposed a business deal which I rejected!!

My emails are finally returned in August when I agree to receive a $1,000 check every week for 10 weeks. Three weeks later the first check is received and it bounced. The owner apologizes and sends out a cashiers check at the end of September which was the last time I heard from anyone at Consolidated Marine.

Im still out the $9,000!! In my opinion the owner should be brought up on grand larceny, breech of contract, issuing a hot check and lose his license to perform business in the boating arena. I assure you Im working towards all of the above but wanted to inform other buyers of my horrible experience with this company. In this economy no one can afford to be ripped off whether it is a few hundred dollars or the $20,000 they tried to steal from me.

In my experience, I would never use or recommend using this company if youre in the market for a new or used boat. There are plenty of reputable boat dealers in the Clear Lake area that would be happy to earn your business and hopefully your respect. I recently filed a complaint with the BBB and hopefully it will show up on the BBB website when you inquire about Consolidated Marine.