‘It’s not right’: Mobile detailing company accused of taking money for jobs never done

ORLANDO, Fla. — A local man contacted Action 9, claiming an auto detailing company took him for hundreds of dollars.   And he’s not alone.  Hundreds of people have filed complaints with the Better Business Bureau about this company.

“I was stupid. And I don’t want other people that are supposed to be smart like I am, who know better, to get caught in this kind of trap,” said Brett Cloutier.

Cloutier lives in Clermont and has a warning about this local company he found online to detail his Toyota sedan.

He told Action 9, “I found All American Mobile Detailing. And who wouldn’t choose something that says All-American, right?.”

Cloutier said the mobile detailing company asked him for a credit card when he set up an appointment.  Then All American Mobile Detailing called him to reschedule.  That’s when he discovered the estimate was over $100 more than he thought.  So, he told them he wanted to cancel the service.

Cloutier explained, “They said, ‘Okay, well we’ll cancel it.’ And I checked my bank account, my credit card and I saw that there was a pending charge. And the next day I saw it for $581.99. It went through.”

Holly Salmons, President of the Better Business Bureau in central Florida, said All American Mobile Detailing has an “F” rating because of hundreds of complaints it’s received.

“Consistently consumers have reported… over 500 times just in the last year an issue getting refunded as an issue of giving a credit card or giving some sort of payment up front,” Salmons said.

Time and time again, consumers claim they were charged for jobs that never happened. One consumer complained they were hit for $1,000 even though the detailer never even showed up.

Holly Salmons recommended not paying in advance for this kind of service.  She said, “Especially this company that you’ve not previously done work with and that there’s not that trusted, you know, established relationship.”

All American Mobile Detailing is operated by John C Carta.

The Action 9 team went to one of his business addresses in Altamonte Springs.  The sign was still up, but the place looked like a ghost town.  And at another location nearby, Consumer Investigator Jeff Deal was told the company was no longer there, even though John Carta’s parking spot was still marked with his name.

But at a home in Seminole County, a man who appeared to be Carta peered out of the side window after Jeff Deal knocked, but he never answered the door.  The Action 9 team saw him walk outside a few minutes later after they were already down the street preparing to leave the neighborhood.

Calls and emails to John Carta were also not returned.

As for Brett Cloutier, who is a retired law enforcement officer, he filed a police report about the incident.

He said, “You know, it’s not right. And this company needs to be held accountable for inappropriate activities. They need to be done away with in this state for doing business.”

Cloutier hopes this will help get justice for consumers and prevent future victims from being taken to the cleaners by this mobile detailing operation.

“I don’t want somebody else going through this, plain and simple,” he added.

Brett Cloutier has also disputed the charge with his credit card company and is hoping that will goes away.

If you have an issue with this mobile detailing company, you can always file a complaint with the Florida Attorney General’s Office along with reporting it to local law enforcement.

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