(Undated)– With the recent storms and their cleanup, comes an opportunity for scammers to scam you.
Sonya Sellmeyer, the consumer advocate at the Iowa Insurance Division, offers this advice…
“We want people to just understand that sometimes there are bad contractors out there looking to scam individuals that are at a vulnerable time after having storm damage. So we want you to make sure that you check to make sure that a contractor you’re going to be working with is registered with the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing, and you can do that online, just google contractor registration Iowa. That will come right up. But check to make sure that they’re registered with the state there. Also make sure before you sign any contracts there’s no blanks in the contracts and that you’re not paying anyone up front either in cash or even with a credit card or gift cards even. We don’t want you paying anyone up front. You know usually most contractors will ask to have a down payment. Do that, but don’t pay everything up front before the work is even started or done.”
Sellmeyer adds that if you’re planning on insurance paying for your damage, make sure the damage is over your deductible before even seeking a contractor. And she says be sure to check to see if any damage might be covered by the government through a disaster declaration.
(Courtesy Community First Broadcasting station KIWA in Sheldon)
