The 72-year-old former nurse didn’t think twice about paying a $5,000 down payment after dealing with the person she was buying from, Ed Schijns at Dragon E-Bikes in Halifax, for about 20 years. It was in December 2019. She was initially told the delays were due to wheelchair parts coming from China, and soon after the wait was caused by COVID-19, in addition to Schijn’s health issues. But after several months passed, she began to wonder what had become of the wheelchair and the $5,000 she had paid for it. “I started to feel really worried about it, really worried. We were in contact with him every other day and my condition was getting worse and more painful and I wasn’t getting anywhere,” Myatt explained, referring to several emails and phone calls that had gone through. unanswered.
“He’s just never available”
Because her adrenoleukodystrophy condition has worsened, the current mobility scooter she uses is no longer the right fit. “My attitude is closed,” Myatt said. “It hurts, I keep trying to keep myself from falling.” Her partner Tom Mulrooney ended up making several visits to Dragon E-Bikes’ Gottingen Street location in Halifax to try and talk to Schijns to try to understand what was going on. “He’s just never available. Either he’s not there or he’s busy with a client, so he just decided to ignore us completely,” Mulrooney said. “He had sat down with us and said ‘Can you help me here?’ we were absolutely willing to do that.” After all communication about the wheelchair ended, Betty and her partner Tom Mulrooney decided to go to small claims court to try and get the money back. (Craig Paisley/CBC) Mulrooney began doing his own research, checking with other wheelchair companies how long it usually takes to build and deliver them. He found that delays beyond a few months were a clear sign that something was wrong. The last email they received from Schijns apologizing for the delays was in May 2020. It wasn’t something they wanted to do, but with no contact or any sign of the wheelchair or the money, they decided to go to small claims court. Ed Schijns did not appear at the hearing, which was held by phone in June. A written judgment was granted, ordering Dragon E-Bikes Ltd to pay $5,000 in addition to $299.35 in costs. It seemed like a great discovery. But so far they have not been able to recover the money. “I can’t believe how hard it is to get $5,000 when the other party isn’t willing to pay,” Mulrooney said.
Schijns says he is working to repay the money
When approached by CBC News, Schijns acknowledged that it had been “a long time” since he last contacted Betty Myatt. His recollection is that it was sometime in the spring of last year. However, he said he intends to return the money, which is why he did not contest the small claims action. “I’m working on it. It’s been a bad year because of COVID. Everything is suffering. Our supply chain is killing us,” Schijns said. In fact, Schijns claims he has also been frustrated by his suppliers in both Toronto and China. From there he says various parts of the wheelchair were ordered. Some parts are now in his office he said and he is chasing the others. He admits he could have done a better job explaining the circumstances to Betty Myatt. “I’m embarrassed. It’s been a lot of headaches, I have to talk to her,” he said. “I don’t disagree with that. I know I owe Betty the money, I promise I’ll pay that money back.” Dragon E-Bikes is currently out of business, Schijns said. He has been forced to lay off eight people he said because of hard times. Home Health Care Equipment is now operating out of the space where Dragon E-Bikes used to be. (Dylan Jones/CBC) Meanwhile, Betty Myatt and her partner have gone to a different company to get a replacement wheelchair. Now he has arrived, giving her the support and freedom she craved. Its design means she doesn’t need as much help getting in and out of the wheelchair, giving her more independence. And it helps with her back pain now that her posture is properly aligned. However, the energy and time it took to address the issue was stressful. “We went through hell, it was terrible,” he said. Despite what Schijns told CBC News about the refund, she doesn’t believe it, describing it as another delaying tactic. “That’s his game. He never showed up in court. That was very disturbing emotionally and physically,” Myatt said. “We don’t see our money coming in.” MORE TOP STORIES
