Unfortunately, in this world we have to be on our guard a lot of the time. This is also the case when it comes to having work done on our home. As home inspectors, we get to see first hand when someone has been the victim of a home maintenance scam. What are some of the ways you could be tricked into having unnecessary work done?
One that many are familiar with is someone turning up at our doors, offering to redo the driveway. They might tell you that they have some left over from another job. While it might look ok at first, the materials used are usually very low quality, sometimes just black paint, which will quickly deteriorate.
The roof is also another area that fraudsters will use to get you to spend unnecessary money on. If they only look at the roof from the ground and determine work should be done, do not listen to them, especially if you are told you need a whole new roof.
If a so called HVAC specialist wants to charge you a fortune to replace “broken parts”, ask them to show you first where they are broken and, if they are, have them show you the new parts before they install them.
Be careful that if you employ a painter to do work on the home, they use the paint you agree to. To save money, dishonest tradespeople have been known to say they use a certain high quality type of paint, and then pour low quality paint into the high quality paint cans.
While it should be noted that many skilled tradesmen are honest, it is important to look for signs of fraud. Ask as many questions as you can to find out what kind of work you will be getting. An honest worker will be happy to answer your questions.
