Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday announced on October 22, 2026 a settlement that secures $700,000 in consumer restitution from Gillece Services, LP and Gillece Plumbing and Heating, Inc. The state says the companies misled customers into paying for unnecessary home improvement work, especially sewer pipe replacements.
The money comes with a $50,000 payment in costs and $250,000 in civil penalties that are suspended, meaning they are not collected unless the company breaks the terms. The agreement is a Consent Order filed in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.
The question for Gillece customers is what they will receive and when. According to the Attorney General’s release, eligible consumers will be contacted by the Office of Attorney General and do not need to take any action. The release does not say how many consumers are affected, how eligibility is determined or when payments will go out.
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What the state says Gillece did
The case names Thomas Gillece Sr., Thomas Gillece Jr. and two former technicians along with the companies. The state alleges an advertised “$93 or Free Clog Crusher Special” for sewer clogs steered consumers toward costly excavation they did not need, and that consumers were told their pipes had defects that did not exist.
Other allegations reach beyond sewers. The state says consumers received false gas leak and cracked heat exchanger diagnoses, which utility companies later discredited. Some work allegedly did not match written warranties, and some customers did not receive contracts or cancellation notices. The settlement is not an admission of violating the law.
“Gillece pressured consumers to undergo expensive home repair work that was oftentimes unnecessary,” Sunday said, adding that the settlement “would not have been possible without the assistance of the consumers” who came forward.
New rules for sewer and furnace diagnoses
Technicians who sell sewer excavation or hydro jetting must now hold NASSCO’s Lateral Assessment Certification, and any recommendation to repair or replace a sewer line must be backed by documented defects that meet NASSCO severity standards. If a line cannot be opened, the company must make multiple snaking attempts and tell the customer a second opinion is available.
On the heating side, HVAC technicians must hold NATE certification and use carbon monoxide detectors calibrated on the manufacturer’s schedule. A gas leak diagnosis generally must be confirmed by the customer’s gas provider before repair work is sold. A cracked heat exchanger or other dangerous condition must be confirmed by two NATE-certified technicians.
Records, contracts and two banned technicians
The company must keep detailed records supporting its repair recommendations and give them to the Attorney General’s office on request. It must also do its work in a workmanlike manner, hand customers contracts and cancellation notices at signing, and avoid advertising claims it will not honor.
Two former technicians, James F. Hackwelder and Joseph A. Nikoula, are barred from the plumbing industry for five years. A 2023 summary judgment in the case remains in effect, requiring the company to honor verbal cancellation requests and to stop false or misleading advertising and misrepresentations about flat-rate pricing.
What a customer can do while waiting
A customer who paid for sewer or heating work from Gillece and has not heard from the state can file a complaint through the “Submit a Complaint” link on the Attorney General’s website. The office’s main number is 717-787-3391. The release gives no complaint instruction specific to this case, and it names no deadline.
The restitution total is fixed at $700,000, but the release leaves open how it will be divided. Customers who still have invoices, contracts, warranties and photographs of the work hold the paperwork the state would most likely want to see.
Paid Gillece for sewer work and waiting on restitution?
The state says Gillece customers were pressured into repairs that were often unnecessary, and the release names no date for when restitution will arrive. A customer who cannot find an old invoice or warranty may have trouble showing what was paid.
The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit includes a fraud evidence and report log for invoices, calls and dates, the first-hour recovery plan and the free credit-freeze steps, so a homeowner who paid by card or check has a record in order when the Attorney General’s office reaches out.
Get the Senior Fraud Defense Kit’s report log for a sewer-work restitution claim →
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
