ALLEGATION: Air Around The Clock Installed New Unit While Homeowners Were Away, Then Filed A Lien.
UPDATE July 21, 2026: Elias Hilal, an attorney for Air Around The Clock, tells BocaNewsNow.com that these women merely refiled a case that was already dismissed in County court. BocaNewsNow.com verified Mr. Hilal’s claim — a case was filed by Catherine Powell in 2025 and dismissed on January 8th, 2026. Hilal says Air Around The Clock has not yet been served in this latest matter brought by the people who already lost. He also makes the point that Air Around The Clock is not in the business of installing air conditioning units without signatures and payments — both of which he says the company has.
DELRAY BEACH, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2026 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Two Delray Beach-area women have filed a class-action lawsuit against a South Florida air conditioning company, accusing it of installing an HVAC unit without permission, slapping a fraudulent lien on one of their homes, and violating a laundry list of state and federal consumer protection laws.
Barbara J. Powell and Catherine Powell filed the complaint July 17 in Palm Beach County’s 15th Judicial Circuit against Around The Clock A/C Service, LLC, doing business as Air Around The Clock (ATC). According to the lawsuit obtained by BocaNewsNow.com and published below, ATC installed a 4-ton Rheem HVAC unit at Barbara Powell’s Delray Beach home back in 2016. In June 2024, Catherine Powell called ATC to have the coils cleaned for roughly $125 — but while both women were out of state, the suit claims ATC entered the property and installed an entirely new unit without ever getting authorization or signing a contract.
The lawsuit says the swap made little sense: the existing unit was only eight years old and still had two years left on a 10-year warranty. When Catherine Powell disputed the resulting credit card charge, the complaint alleges ATC retaliated by recording a $7,595 lien against Barbara Powell’s property — an amount the suit calls “greatly in excess” of any work actually agreed to. Powell later sold the home, but the lawsuit claims the lien held up her closing, forcing a title company to withhold funds in escrow.
Beyond the lien dispute, the complaint accuses ATC of never pulling a permit for either HVAC installation and of skipping legally required cancellation notices under the FTC’s “Cooling-Off Rule” and Florida’s Home Solicitation Act. The suit cites other customer complaints describing similar warranty and billing disputes with the company. Attorneys for the Powells, who are seeking to represent a broader class of ATC customers, are pursuing claims under Florida’s fraudulent lien statute, the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act, the Florida Deceptive and Trade Practices Act, the state building code, and breach of warranty.
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The lawsuit, filed by attorney Diane J. Zelmer of Berenson LLP, seeks class certification, injunctive relief, and statutory, actual and punitive damages, along with attorneys’ fees and costs. ATC has not yet filed a response in court. The full complaint is published below.
