A Marion County man who was employed at a local recreational vehicle dealership for over a decade, claims he was retaliated against and terminated by his supervisors after he allegedly brought up issues of noncompliance with state law.

Attorneys representing Kevin Lopez O’Brien filed the lawsuit against Lazydays of Central Florida, LLC, in the Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Marion county on September 4.

According to the complaint, O’Brien began working as a technician assistant/helper for Alliance Coach in August 2013. He was promoted to a service technician the following year and in 2016, he tested for and received “an RV-LP Qualifier for LP gas service and affixed that Qualifier to the Alliance Coach LP license.”

Alliance Coach was eventually acquired and rebranded by Lazydays RV in 2019. After the acquisition, O’Brien remained employed as a service tech.

In August 2022, O’Brien claims he was approached by one of his supervisors about “taking over the Master Qualifier duties” for the organization.

At the time, O’Brien informed management that ” supervisor would need to take on the role and requested clarification,” according to the complaint.

O’Brien claims he was told that a “new position…would be assigned” and, based on that representation, he claims he agreed to obtain his Master Qualifier license through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Service (FDACS).

O’Brien tested for and received the license in question in September 2022. According to the complaint, the “technical lead position” was never created.

In August 2024, O’Brien received notice from FDACS that his Master Qualifier license was up for renewal, prompting him to read through the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Liquified Petroleum Gas Code 58, Florida Statute Section 527, and Florida Rule 5J-20.

During his review of state law, O’Brien claims it became apparent that, because of the role that he was in, his license did “not comply with Florida law,” according to the complaint.

O’Brien claims he told his service manager that his role did not “align with Florida law requirements” and that the business was not in compliance. O’Brien says he raised the issue “on multiple occasions with increasing urgency over the next several months” to no avail.

In October 2024, O’Brien claims the company created a new position and promoted another employee without providing him the opportunity to apply. When that position opened in November 2024, O’Brien says he was told he could not apply until the new year.

The complaint alleges that O’Brien continued to reiterate through February of this year to his employer that his role did not meet the requirements of Florida law and that there may be “possible consequences for all parties involved should the situation not be rectified.”

In addition discussions, O’Brien says he provided several options to rectify the alleged issue, including having another manager take on the role, hiring an individual in the role, or allowing O’Brien to “retain the Master Qualifier legitimately through career advancement.”

In March, O’Brien claims he was overlooked for another job and established a meeting to address his concerns once again.

At that point, “after repeated objections and suggestions to remedy the violation,” O’Brien claims he had no other option “but to remove his Master Qualifier license from” the company’s location.

On March 10, O’Brien emailed the FDACS to inform the department that he was vacating his Master Qualifier License from the location. On March 11, the facility confirmed that the license had been removed.

That same day, O’Brien claims that the general manager at the business’s Tampa location terminated his employment “in retaliation for O’Brien engaging in protected activity” under the Florida Private Whistleblower’s Act.

The complaint accuses LazyDays of firing him in violation of the FPWA.

“[LazyDays RV] retaliated against [O’Brien] for engaging in protected activity under the FPWA by terminating his employment,” reads the complaint.

O’Brien is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages, excluding attorney’s fees and interest.