Griffith council pauses Champion Technologies license hearing after questions about insurance certificates and unlicensed plumbing work

The Griffith Town Council on Monday opened but did not resolve a suspension hearing for Champion Technology Services LLC after testimony raised questions about the provenance of an insurance certificate and whether plumbing work at a renovation was performed without the appropriate license.

The hearing began after the council cited town ordinance 14-3-72; council counsel Estrada presented evidence and called two witnesses. Building Commissioner Veronica Horka told the council she reviewed a certificate of insurance dated June 19, 2025, and “it just raised a red flag immediately,” saying the certificate showed inconsistent fonts and what appeared to be white-out around the effective date. Horka said she contacted the listed insurance agent, who instructed the town to void the June certificate and supplied an updated certificate later the same day. Horka said a fully compliant certificate that included workers’ compensation and employers’ liability was not on file until Dec. 9, 2025.

Plumbing inspector Terry Lynn Cheek testified he inspected a residence where work had been done and found multiple code violations — including gas piping problems, missing stud guards, and the absence of a required dual check valve and thermal-expansion protection. Cheek said the permit originally on file showed a different contractor pulled the permit, but the homeowner told him Champion Technologies had done the work. “I can only go by what the homeowner said,” Cheek said.

Champion’s attorney, Brian Bullock, told the council he had found no evidence of intent to defraud on the part of his client and blamed the problems on administrative errors by the insurer. “In my examination of those documents, I don't see any evidence of fraud or misrepresentation on the part of my client,” Bullock said, urging the council not to impose sanctions for a carrier error.

Owner and contractor Dr. Lawson said his company performed HVAC work on the project and that he had been working to correct insurance paperwork amid broker and carrier confusion. He said he did not personally perform the plumbing work and asked the council for leniency: “Don't take my license away because I've never … I didn't have ill intent,” he said.

Council members questioned the witnesses about three distinct certificate versions mentioned in testimony — the June 19 COI, a Nov. 25 corrected certificate, and documentation supplied in December — and why the June document was marked void. Members also pressed for a direct email or statement from the insurer confirming whether the June 19 document had been issued to the town and whether it was valid at the time work occurred.

Because the council had not received complete corroborating documentation (email chains from the insurer, an explicit statement about the June COI and the company’s full set of policies), members voted to continue the hearing and requested additional records. The council instructed staff to obtain correspondence from the insurer and to provide the council with the chain of emails and certificates before reconvening the hearing; members discussed giving at least a week's notice for the next date.

Next steps: the council will reconvene the suspension hearing after staff obtains the insurer's correspondence and the full insurance policy documents, plus copies of permit and inspection records cited in testimony.