AG acts against local contractor

Attorney General Tom Corbett’s office filed a petition Thursday to revoke home-improvement contractor Ralph F. Kline Jr.’s right to do business in Pennsylvania.

Kline, who has owned Ralph F. Kline Roofing, Siding & Insulation under various names since 1968, was served a contempt order request that seeks “enhanced civil penalties” of $395,000 and consumer restitution of $33,309.59.

Kline could not be reached for comment Thursday.

An Intelligencer Journal report published Oct. 1 revealed Kline, of 300 Lakeview Drive, Manheim, has appealed more than 40 civil lawsuits to Lancaster County Court since the late 1980s after losing civil judgments to clients who sued him in district court.

Since the article’s publication, more than 13 additional consumers have come forward and filed complaints against Kline with the attorney general’s office, according to Deputy Attorney General Jodi L. Zucco.

“We’re talking about a course of conduct that has gone on long enough,” Zucco said Thursday. “At this point we think there are more than sufficient grounds to bring this action.”

In 1991, the state Bureau of Consumer Protection, under then-Attorney General Ernest D. Preate Jr., filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of nine of Kline’s customers. In December 1993, Kline settled the case out of court by entering into a consent decree with the attorney general’s office. Court records say Kline agreed to pay $22,000 in consumer restitution, penalties and costs.

According to the agreement, “Defendant Kline shall comply with all industry codes and standards as well as any local laws and/or ordinances in connection with performing general home improvement and repairs.

“Defendant Kline shall comply with all written guarantees or warranties given to any purchaser of materials or general home improvement and repair services provided … them, whether provided prior to or after the effective date of this consent petition.”

Seven months later, however, the attorney general’s office took Kline back to court because 10 more people had filed complaints against him, according to court records.

In November 1994, Commonwealth Court President Judge James Gardner Colins found Kline had violated the consent agreement, but the judge refused to shut down his business.

Instead, Colins once again ordered Kline to pay restitution and abide by his settlement agreement with the state.

“Any future violations of the Dec. 2, 1993, consent decree or of this order shall result in defendant Kline’s forfeiture of his right to do business in the commonwealth,” Colins said in the ruling.

Since that ruling, however, Lancaster County civil court records show more than 30 complaints from local customers.

Complainants make various accusations against Kline. Some say he hiked his job prices after signing contracts, some say he refused to refund deposits when he failed to complete work and others say he refused to correct the shoddy work he did complete.

The latest complaint includes affidavits from 16 of Kline’s customers, but allows for additional relief if there are other consumers who feel they have a right to be repaid by Kline, Zucco said.

“He has now had two bites at the apple,” Zucco said. “If there are more people out there, we’d like to hear from them.”

The case will be assigned to a Commonwealth Court judge and a hearing will be scheduled, Zucco said.

“At this point, we’re trying to get relief without a hearing, based on the prior order,” she said. “We’re pretty confident that we’ll be able to meet the burden that’s required to do that.”

A three-month review of civil court records compiled by the Intelligencer Journal shows that in every case where parties have opted to fight Kline’s appeal in Lancaster County Court, they have prevailed.

Nevertheless, of the 41 cases reviewed by the Intell, 25 were dropped when his customers learned he had paid $96.50 to appeal the case to Lancaster County Court and that they would have to hire an attorney if they wished to pursue the matter further.

The actual number of lawsuits filed against Kline may never be known because most of these seemingly minor cases are disposed of by the 20 district judges throughout the county and the case records eventually are destroyed.

Zucco said consumers who think they’re being defrauded by Kline can file complaints with the Attorney General’s Office by calling (800) 441-2555 or visiting its Web site, www.attorneygeneral.gov.


Penn Township Police Sgt. Matthew C. Weidman filed forgery and theft by deception charges against Kline for the Oct. 13 incident.

According to Weidman’s report, Kline passed the forged check at Union National Bank on Lancaster Road in Mount Joy.

“This officer attempted to contact the actor about the issue,” Weidman writes in the complaint. “He kept saying (the other party) owed him money for tools he kept that were not his and I kept telling him I was not calling about that. He then said he would not be able to comment on anything more and the conversation ended.”

A court date on the criminal charges is scheduled for Nov. 23 at the office of Manheim District Judge John C. Winters.