PORTLAND, Ore. — Several customers complained they ended up with a bill of more than $1,000 after responding to an advertisement promising air duct cleaning for $39 and furnace service for $99.
“I think they saw an old woman with glasses and a cane and think: ‘Oh boy, a sitting duck,'” explained Sharon Berg of Mulino.
Berg said workers from US Air Ducts & Builders left her with a bill for $1,250 after an hour-long service call in late November. She had planned on paying far less for the promotional offer.
“I think they should have warned me and given me some type of an estimate. I would have said, ‘There’s the door,' because I couldn’t afford that,” said Berg.
The Vancouver-based company offered to cancel her five-year VIP membership and reduce her bill, although US Air Ducts & Builders is still demanding roughly $500. Berg is disputing the charges.
The company sent her to a collection agency.
A KGW investigation found 16 consumer complaints about US Air Ducts & Builders to the Washington Attorney General’s office since 2017. Seven different consumers have complained to the Oregon Attorney General’s office about the company.
Public records show several customers complained about aggressive sales tactics and excessive bills.
“As soon as they walked through the door, they were telling me that I needed more. I had a bad coupon. I needed the better coupon and let me tell you all that we can do,” explained Reanna Blair of King City.
Blair said she felt pressured to buy the “VIP Package” for $1,794, instead of the $39 air duct cleaning she had seen in a promotional advertisement.
“I was home alone with my kids and it was two men that came to my house and I felt cornered and pressured,” said Blair, who is contesting the charges. US Air Ducts & Builders also sent her to a collection agency.
US Air Ducts & Builders is registered with the Washington Secretary of State at a Vancouver address. KGW found the office empty. Another tenant explained employees cleared out of the building in late January.
State records list David Moshe as the company’s governor or manager.
In 2016, the Better Business Bureau issued an alert surrounding companies Moshe was involved with. The BBB warned Moshe was the general manager of US Air Ducts & Builders, along with the vice president of Family Fresh Air.
The BBB reported a pattern of complaints from consumers about Family Fresh Air regarding service, advertising, customer service and sales issues.
In 2015, the Washington Department of Labor & Industries suspended the license of Family Fresh Air for failing to pay a fine.
State records show Moshe is also associated with companies using the names US Air Ducts & Sky Builders and DM Duct Cleaning.
KGW found Moshe leaving the property of a newly registered company in Vancouver called DLM Services. It filed articles of incorporation with the Washington Secretary of State in January 2019.
Moshe declined to answer questions about why businesses he’s associated with opened, then closed after various consumer complaints.
Moshe said he wasn’t responsible for answering consumer complaints about US Air Ducts & Builders because the company is closed.
“The company doesn’t exist anymore,” explained Moshe. “That’s the beauty of it.”
Moshe confirmed he is associated with DLM Services, although his name does not appear on state records.
“That’s my company. We are a call center. We just established the company,” said Moshe.
A van in the parking lot displayed advertising for “Professional Air Duct Cleaning," along with a phone number matching the number used for Family Fresh Air, a company Moshe was formerly involved with.
A man leaving the van declined to answer questions about what specific company he worked for.
US Air Ducts & Builders is facing a civil lawsuit filed in Multnomah County. In the complaint, a customer claimed the company violated the Unlawful Trade Practices Act, Financial Abuse of a Vulnerable Person and Violation of Home and Telephonic Solicitations.
Court records show Moshe was questioned during a deposition in the case. Moshe claimed his promotional flier for US Air Ducts & Builders was sent to about two million households.
Customer Sharon Berg said she received another flier just last week from US Air Ducts & Builders. It offered the same promotional rate: air duct cleaning for $39 and furnace service for $99.