CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A Clarksville couple says a local plumbing company installed a new septic system in their backyard without their consent — and then took them to court when they didn't pay.
Bernard and Julia Sullivan, both in their 60s, say Freedom Plumbing of Clarksville showed up last October and installed a complete septic system, including field lines, in a project that cost more than $16,000. The Sullivans say they never agreed to the work.
WATCH: No contract, no payment — and still a $16,000 lawsuit
"I didn't get to talk to my husband about it because it happened so quick," Julia Sullivan said. "Cause I come to the door and go like, what's going on? And they said we're putting in a septic system and running field lines."
The Sullivans say they were in the middle of working out financing through the VA and were not ready to move forward.
"I wanted to wait until everything got done and settled with the VA people," Bernard Sullivan said, adding that he also wanted to secure enough money to refinance his home before paying for the project.
Freedom Plumbing started the work anyway, without receiving any payment upfront. When the Sullivans still had not paid, the company took them to court.
"They talking about how if I don't pay and stuff they're going to put a lien and stuff on my home," Bernard Sullivan said.
In January, the Sullivans were sued for $16,401.90 in Montgomery County General Sessions Court.
The lawsuit accuses the couple of breach of contract, wrongfully keeping someone else's property, and benefiting from work they did not pay for.
At a court date in early September, the Sullivans — without an attorney — met privately with the plumber's lawyer, without a judge present, and agreed to a payment plan. Their daughter, who was not present and learned of the situation after the fact, said her parents told her they were scared they would lose their home if they did not agree.
Their daughter, LeShonda, said she contacted Freedom Plumbing directly after learning what happened.
Bernard suffers from memory loss after developing sepsis following a UTI.
"I called Freedom Plumbing. We spoke very cordially. He said he's sorry this happened, he could understand, or he could see that my dad was babbling a lot and didn't know what was going on, and in my brain I was like, if you knew this, you shouldn't never even went and did this big of a job," LeShonda said.
I spoke by phone with the owner of Freedom Plumbing and then with the company's lawyer. The lawyer says Bernard Sullivan met with the company twice and was given multiple estimates before any work began. The Sullivans also had a construction permit from 2024, valid for three years, which I obtained a copy of from TDEC. The company says that permit meant nothing was preventing them from getting started.
But on one key point, everyone agrees: there was no signed contract.
"It doesn't exist. It's just an invoice with numbers on it," LeShonda said. "They just literally went and did this job and then billed my parents this tremendous amount of money."
The owner of Freedom Plumbing says a verbal agreement is a binding contract. He also says his company called multiple times, pleading to collect payment, and was hung up on.
LeShonda says her parents receive a lot of sales calls and mistook the calls for spam.
Needless to say, the situation has taken a toll on the family.
"He's been up at night, can't sleep, and of course it messes with me," Julia Sullivan said.
The case raises a broader legal question: can a contractor be paid when there is no signed contract, and the homeowners say the work was only supposed to proceed if financing came through? The family is now looking for an attorney experienced in helping older adults navigate this complex legal dispute.
Can you help? You can email me at hannah.mcdonald@newschannel5.com.
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