Call Kurtis: Motorcycle Business Leaves Customers Short-Handed

Is there any resolution when a company goes under and doesn't fulfill your order? An Elk Grove motorcycle rider called Kurtis when she didn't receive all the parts to her $26,000 custom chopper kit.

Laura Scott is no stranger to life on two wheels.

"I started riding little mini-bikes and dirt bikes and stuff when I was younger and spent most of my life on and off motorcycles," said Scott.

Her BMW motorcycle is nice, but it isn't the bike Scott dreamed of building on her own.

Under a sheet, in her garage lies her dream chopper. It's not much of a motorcycle now; just a frame, engine and a few components. She paid a Southern California company, Big Bear Choppers, in full for the chopper kit, but didn't receive all the parts.

"I feel that my dreams have been shattered. I also feel like I've been taken advantage of," said Scott.

Big Bear Choppers owners Kevin and Mona Alsop appeared on Bloomberg TV's "The Mentor" last fall. In the show, the couple admitted to major problems with the business.

"It's really like jumping into a shark tank and figuring out how to survive," Kevin said on the show.

After getting advice from a successful CEO, the Alsops came up with a new business model.

"We're not going to give up and we're here for the long haul. And we're staying in it and we're in it to win it," Mona said on "The Mentor."

But the new business plan apparently didn't work. Shortly after the episode aired, Big Bear Choppers closed for good.

"You absolutely can sue them before they file for bankruptcy," said consumer attorney Eric Ratinoff.

But Ratinoff says even if you win a judgment, it's tough collecting from a closed-down company that's lacking money. And if the company does file for bankruptcy, lenders will likely get paid first.

"Odds are you're an unsecured creditor, and you can get in line behind everyone else," said Ratinoff.

Kevin Alsop admitted to us the company is a victim of the recession, saying Scott is one of around 25 customers who didn't get their orders fulfilled.

Scott thinks it'll take an additional $5,000 in parts to complete her chopper.

"The excitement and the dream is destroyed and I just don't even want to build it anymore," said Scott.

Even though the company is out of business, Big Bear Choppers are still being made. A company called Rage Hard Choppers bought the BBC name and hired Kevin and Mona Alsop.