Complaint Review: THe Burt Collection

Around August of 2010, Paul Burt (owner of The Burt Collection) agreed to restore to "working condition" (I specifically requested not "show car") a Volvo P210 Duett (given to me by my father-in-law) for somewhere between $10,000-15,000, within 3-4 months.  I gave them $5,000 to get started with.  By December, having paid each and every invoice sent to me, I was in for almost $13,000, and all that I had was a pile of parts and a body stripped down to the metal.  One of the line items in one of the invoices for which I was charged $3,000 was for "Overhaul Motor Disassembly and Inventory".  Yet, when I looked at the removed engine in the shop, it was still completley assembled and untouched (I have pictures).  No dissasembly.  No inventorying.  For about $3,500 one can get a completely refurbished and warranteed indentical street version of the B18 Volvo engine!

I was obvioulsy upset and not remotely happy or satisfied with how much I had been charged, the lack of progress of the project even though I had already paid about the maximum of what I had been quoted, and the specific example of where I felt completely misrepresented and overcharged for work that hadn't even been done.  Paul Burt told me he was sorry, and that he would complete the work and not charge me for labor, and only asked to be reimbursed for any out off pocket expenses, such as parts.  I relunctantly said OK.  And then nothing.  And for the subsequent 2 years (!), nothing.  Nothing more has been done to the car.  Even after numerous and repeated phone calls, and emails.  Even after a couple of times when I ran into Paul Burt and he would once again sincerely assure me that the work would be done...nothing.

Consequently, I recently sent a demand letter through an attorney.  Paul now claimed that he did not owe anymore work on the car.  Incredible.  Therefore, I have now filed a Consumer Fraud Complaint with the Illinois Attorney General.  I am now aware that there are others that have had unfair dealings with The Burt Collection.  

If you are someone who has also had an unfair experience with The Burt Collection regarding car restoration work, or any other dealings, I encourage you to stand up for your consumer rights and also file a Consumer Complaint with the Illinois Attorney General.  You can find their website at www.IllinoisAttorneyGeneral.gov and the web page with information about filing a complaint at www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumers/filecomplaint.html