SIGN LISTS SHOP'S DEBTORS; PAY UP OR SEE NAME IN LIGHTS

SCOTT CITY, Mo. -- Jim Glueck wants his customers to pay up. Those that don't run the risk of getting their names publicized on the portable sign that sits in front of his auto repair shop on U.S. 61 south of Scott City.

He's been doing it for about a year. Glueck, 36 said he got the idea from a Cape Girardeau motorcycle shop that listed on a sign the names of customers who had written bad checks.

Currently, he has the names of six customers representing five accounts listed on the sign. One account lists two people -- a father and son. Glueck said he repaired the son's truck, but neither the son nor the dad would pay the bill.

Glueck figures the customers currently listed on the sign owe him about $3,500 in all. The names have been on the sign for two to three weeks.

The names often stay on the sign for two or three months. "If I don't get a response, I will change the names."

Those that pay get their names removed from the sign. So far, there's been no shortage of names to put on the sign. Glueck estimates he has about 40 customers on his bad-debt list. Some owe thousands of dollars.

Most are old debts too, dating back two to three years.

Glueck runs Jim's Service and Repair, a no-nonsense repair shop stocked with car parts and plenty of elbow grease. He repairs everything from cars to farm equipment. "I do about everything," said Glueck, whose home is just across the gravel parking lot from his shop.

The shop's small lobby is crammed full of everything from a snacks and chips vending machine to a worn couch, which is a popular spot with his pet dogs. A handmade cardboard sign guards the entrance to the shop area: "Due to insurance regulations, employees only in shop area."

But that doesn't stop customers who often walk into the garage area to talk with Glueck and even pay their bills.

But it's those that don't pay that earn a place on Glueck's sign.

Glueck used to advertise his business on the sign. But he said there aren't enough letters to do both. "There's only so many e's and i's and a's in a letter kit."

When he first started putting bad-debt customers' names on his sign, there was an immediate response. Some customers came in and paid up just so their names wouldn't wind up on the sign.

"This is a busy highway out here," said Glueck. It didn't take long for word of the sign to get around.

In the past, he has had flashing lights on the sign, adding more attention to the list.

Glueck has received his share of criticism. He has received letters from area residents who believe he was wrong to name names.

But Glueck said he checked with the Scott County prosecutor before putting customers' names on the sign and was informed that the practice was legal.

Glueck acknowledged that few business owners would engage in naming names for fear it would hurt their businesses. But the rural Scott City man said he isn't worried about alienating non-paying customers. He said he doesn't need their business if they won't pay.

Glueck has taken some people to court for not paying their bills. But he said the law only allows him to take five people a year to small-claims court.

Besides, there is the added cost of paying a lawyer to litigate the cases.

The sign is a simpler and less costly means of trying to collect on overdue bills, he said.

Glueck used to let people pay off their bills a little at a time. These days, he expects most people to pay before the car leaves the shop.

Younger customers, he said, often have little interest in paying their bill. "The younger generation, they think everybody owes them something."

As for Glueck, he's sold on the sign even if some of his customers aren't.