Construction Company Canvassing Neighborhood

March 4, 2016 12:36 PM

A few weeks ago a salesman came through my neighborhood offering to do work that would be paid by my homeowners insurance. After he came through I saw a few of my neighbors with signs in their yard advertising work being done by this company. I begged off when he came to my door. My question is, when a company is offering to do work that supposedly will be paid by the homeowners insurance is this a legitimate claim or is this guy doing something shady? I am a new homeowner so this is new to me.
posted by zzazazz to Home & Garden (10 answers total)

No linky, but that is a well known scam. And I think the "companies" that do this work are usually just passing through an area. I think you might google "tavelers" and "construction scam" to get a better idea of what I mean. Once the work is done and they have their money - poof - they're gone. If the work fails, there is no warranty, nobody to sue.

Also, why would anyone make a claim against their insurance if they did not have to? Gosh it's hard to find decent companies and individuals to do quality work on your home. You were right to bypass this "offer."
posted by jbenben at 12:44 PM on March 4, 2016 [8 favorites]

Shady as hell!

Guy gets up on roof, claims hail damage, gets homeowner to file claim, it's all hunky dory until the work done is piles of crap.

After any severe weather, it's a good idea to inspect your home for possible damage. If you suspect damage, you call your insurance company, they send someone out to inspect and confirm, and then they give you a list of approved contractors and then you have the work done (minus your deductible.)

Some rando who shows up to your door with a polo shirt with a name on it and a clipboard in his hand....nope, nope, nope.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:48 PM on March 4, 2016 [12 favorites]

This is often a scam. If you have real damage, follow the steps outlined in this guide from the North Carolina Department of Insurance.
posted by Area Man at 12:51 PM on March 4, 2016 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Awesome, great answers. Thanks, y'all.
posted by zzazazz at 12:54 PM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]

It's pretty typical, if someone on my block has roof work done, for the company put up the sign in that yard, and to drop pamphlets or occasionally even door-to-door canvas the neighborhood, especially during their slow season. The idea is, I'll be like, "Oh, I do need some roof work done, I've seen this crew working the past week, and I can ask Joe how happy he was with their work and if he liked it, maybe I'll call them."

It is ALSO a well-known scam, however, especially after a natural disaster.

I would never hire in a time-pressured situation ("I can give you a great price if you sign on today!" or "We'll only be in the neighborhood until tomorrow!"), and never without looking up the company and seeing they were licensed and bonded and looking at online reviews. There's just no reason to hire a shady roofer (/painter/siding guy/whatever) when you can just as easily hire a legit one. But I have definitely found roof/siding/paint guys by seeing them do work for my neighbors.

I will say, after a storm or something where multiple people on the block are all having the same kind of (insurance-paid) work done? It's fucking impossible to get the legit guy out as quickly as you want them. Like they'll come put up tarps but unless you call within minutes of the storm or you're related to the owner, you're going to be waiting and waiting. We had a big wind storm a couple months ago and the waiting list for tree guys was SIX WEEKS unless the tree was through your roof. Contractors aren't usually selling too hard after a storm; they don't need to.

And yeah, if insurance is paying, call your insurance agent. They may recommend contractors or have local companies they work with. Sometimes they can get you bumped up the list so you get gotten to faster, since they give the contractors a lot of work.

(Finally, after you live in the area for a while you will start to recognize legit companies because you'll have seen their signs in a variety of places over time and you'll be like, "Wow, they did a really nice job on that siding" and they're still in business five years later. That's really what the yard signs are for, I know two or three roofing companies off the top of my head just from seeing their signs over and over again in passing over the last ten years.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 1:00 PM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]

Even if the most reputable contractor in the universe goes around knocking on doors and you know you need work done, you say no. Unless you want to do someone a favor, there should almost always be a competitive bidding process for any construction job. Going door-to-door circumvents that whole process, so you really have no idea of where the price you're being charged is at all reasonable.
posted by LionIndex at 1:20 PM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]

Please let your neighbors know. It's better for everyone if this kind of dishonesty is as unrewarding as possible.
posted by amtho at 1:29 PM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]

A group of my in-laws do this together. They find things that need to be done (legitimate things), then they bill the insurance company full prices while hiring the cheapest labor. They pocket the difference and literally make millions per year (not exaggerating). Makes me feel sick because it screws everyone who has insurance over on insurance premiums.
posted by TinWhistle at 1:34 PM on March 4, 2016

Here's a thing it took me a long-ass time to internalize: unless it is a Girl Scout, say no to anyone who comes to your house and interrupts you without warning to sell you something. Assume you are being cased or scammed.

At this point I have two No Soliciting signs plus a note taped to the second one (the one that says no politics, religion, sales, or service) that says, "We do NOT buy anything from someone who ignores the signs. Ever." and then in pen I had to add "NO STREET NUMBERS I WILL _NOT_ PAY" because that shit was getting so out of hand I've had my numbers repainted 4 times in a year.

If none of that works and I'm stupid enough to an, this is my script: "I work in security. I do not give information to cold callers, and I do not buy anything. Please leave now." And I close the door.

I don't work in security, I work in IT, but it stops them from deploying their "great deal/this is special" scripts.

I do make note of yard signs, but I get their name and do research. I dislike door hangers because they still make my dogs bark but I will do business with them if I'm interested enough.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:12 PM on March 4, 2016 [8 favorites]

Is it repair work for damage (or "damage"), or something more of an upgrade, like, I dunno, installing a backflow valve in the sewer line for a homeowner's insurance discount?

It still sounds sketchy as hell, but the latter would concern me less than the former. Just a thought.
posted by AV at 2:44 AM on March 5, 2016