UPDATE MAY 8: Republic Services has agreed to remove the liens and fines from Alex Mack's account. however, the company maintains that their billing practices are legitimate and they are working within the law.
ORIGINAL STORY
A Las Vegas man says his trash bill has topped $2,600 after an unpaid bill began to pile up liens and late fees.
Alex Mack says the eye-popping bill is more than 15 times the yearly cost for trash service.
"It's a lot for trash service that costs about $175 per year," said Mack.
Mack says the issue started in 2009 when he purchased his Las Vegas home but continued to live full-time near San Francisco, CA.
Mack admits he did not sign up for waste disposal service at his Las Vegas home because he only visited occasionally and claims he never placed a single bag of trash at the curb until he moved to Las Vegas full-time in 2016.
"When I called Republic Services to set up my trash services, that's when they hit me and said 'oh, there are liens on your home because you didn't pay your trash service," explained Mack.
Mack showed an itemized bill statement which shows multiple liens were placed on his property and eventually the bill grew to more $2,600.
“How can the city of Las Vegas allow their residence to be gouged like this?" said Mack.
Contact 13 reached out to Republic Services regarding the bill. A spokesperson said they are working with Mack to come to an agreement.
Mack said a company representative contacted him and his liens and fines have been reset and his account has been credited.
Mack is the second Contact 13 viewer to come forward with issues regarding Republic Services' lien and billing practices.
In March, John Deagosteno said his bill snow-balled to nearly $2,500. Republic Services also helped John and reduced the amount he owed to $400.
Contact 13 has looked into the liens facing Clark County Residence. Attorney James Adams, who has filed a class-action lawsuit against Republic Services, estimates there are 10-20,000 liens on properties across Clark County.
