INDIANAPOLIS — Several consumers are raising concerns about the sudden closure of a northside day spa.
Philipe’s Day Spa, 4635 E. 82nd St., closed its doors within the last week according to customers and neighboring businesses in the Clearwater Village Shopping Center.
No one answered the phone at the spa Wednesday morning, and the Facebook page is no longer available.
The business is registered to Brian Luborsky in Ontario, however, Call 6 Investigates was unable to reach Luborsky.
State licensing records show the spa has had a cosmetology/beauty culture salon license since at least 2003.
Customer Audie Gilmer uses the spa regularly, and has $190 in gift cards still left to use at the facility.
Gilmer and other consumers contacted Call 6 Investigates asking what they can do to get their money back.
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The Better Business Bureau says an option is to send the company a letter asking for a refund, because their mail may still be forwarded.
You can also try filing a dispute with your bank.
"Go back to the credit card company and ask if you can have credit back on that purchase, that would be one thing, and see if they've done anything at all to satisfy the obligations that they have ," Tim Maniscalo, CEO of the Better Business Bureau of Central Indiana, in a previous interview with RTV6.
According to the Fair Credit Billing Act , you can dispute a charge when you pay for goods or services you didn’t accept or that weren’t delivered as agreed.
Another option is to file a complaint with the Indiana Attorney General’s office.
The Attorney General’s Office Consumer Protection Division also provided the following tips:
- If the payment was made recently, the consumer can alert their credit card company or bank that the charges should be reversed because the business is not going to perform the paid for services. A consumer should take this step as soon as they have reason to think they are not going to receive the services or product.
- Contact the company and request information about how to obtain a refund or the product purchased. If the company does not provide the requested relief,file a complaint with the Office of the Indiana Attorney General.
- While the Office of the Indiana Attorney General Consumer Protection Division can provide mediation services and may be able to pursue an action against the company, we cannot act as an individual’s attorney and therefore it may be advisable for a consumer to retain their own legal counsel. Consumers can also pursue small claims cases if the disputed amount is under $6,000. There are resources available on how to pursue small claims cases pro se on the Indiana Supreme Court’s website.
- Contact other rating agencies such as the Better Business Bureau in your area. Certain companies have agreed to be bound by the terms of arbitration through a process with the Better Business Bureau.
Call 6 Investigates did not find any bankruptcy filings for Philipe’s Day Spa.
If a company files for bankruptcy, the court typically decides who receives a company’s assets.
Under Chapter 7 bankruptcy law, the money gained from selling the company’s assets goes first to back taxes, secured creditors and employees, according to the BBB.
Depending upon how much the shuttered company owes you, you can also file a suit in small claims court.
If a retailer goes out of business, you may be able to get the product’s manufacturer to honor a warranty.
