Shock update after 26 old mattresses were dumped on a family's driveway
Laura and Jarrod Maultby shared photos of the wall of grimy mattresses left outside their Melbourne home following a disagreement with the service, Junk, last June.
The pair had asked the company to pick up and dispose of a pile of disintegrated wood and were billed $514 when it was completed.
The Maultbys claimed they hadn't expected the service to be so expensive, while Junk pointed to the price being outlined in prior paperwork.
In the service's terms and conditions, it states that if a customer's bill is left unpaid, it would leave an equivalent amount of waste back at their property.
It wasn't long before 26 dirty, old mattresses were dumped outside the family's home.
Junk owner Richard Furnari told Daily Mail Australia at the time that he had left '26 mattresses at $20 each recycling costs being the $520 that they owe'.
Mr Furnari later said he would pick up the mattresses and pursue the bill in Victoria's Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
He appears to have followed through on his word, with Ms Maultby last week launching an appeal for help after spending almost $200,000 on legal fees.
She explained on a GoFundMe campaign that entities associated with Junk were suing her and her husband in three separate lawsuits across two states.
'We hadn't refused to pay the invoice, we just queried it and wanted to come to a resolution with the business due to confusing quotations,' Ms Maultby wrote.
'We shared our story on social media, asking for help and advice. Our story went viral, and several news outlets covered what had happened.
'Since then, we've received numerous different legal threats from numerous persons and companies associated with the business, and have actually been sued in three separate lawsuits in different jurisdictions: one in the Supreme Court of Victoria, another in the District Court of Queensland by a franchisee of the company, and a third in VCAT.'
Ms Maultby said the Queensland lawsuit was 'particularly absurd', comparing it to 'a franchised pizza business in Queensland suing someone in Victoria for leaving a bad review about pizza from a Victorian store'.
Despite the couple deleting their social media posts when threatened with legal action, it 'wasn't enough to appease the business'.
The family has not named Junk in their posts due to concern over further litigation.
Ms Maultby said the Queensland matter has been dismissed, but could be resumed in Victoria, and that the Supreme Court case is currently on hold.
With the possibility of further legal action, the couple have turned to fundraising.
'The last year has drained our resources and nearly broken our spirits. We've already spent close to $200,000 in legal fees - clearing out our life savings, using our annual leave and borrowing heavily from our elderly relatives just to stay afloat,' she wrote.
'We are now facing the heartbreaking prospect of selling our already mortgaged home simply to defend ourselves and repay the family members who have sacrificed so much to support us.
'This isn't just about us, it's about anyone who has ever tried to speak up before. No one should have to defend themselves in three courts across two states for telling the truth.'
The couple have so far raised $2,500 at the time of publishing.
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