Better Business Bureau Warns Homeowners of Summer Home Repair Scams

The sun is out and the sky is clear, which means it’s the perfect time of year to hire a roofing repair or siding and window replacement company to complete some much-needed repairs on your home.


With the warmer weather, however, also comes an influx of home repair scammers who complete substandard repairs on a house, then take a homeowner’s money and leave town before the homeowner realizes what has happened.


Because so many Americans have learned this the hard way, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) has included home repair scams on its list of the top five summer scams, according to a June 18 WLS-TV Chicago article.


Home and roofing repair scammers are known for going door-to-door and using high-pressure sales tactics to coerce a homeowner into hiring them. Scammers will offer a variety of repair services — from roofing repair, to air conditioning repair, to house siding replacement and home window replacement — and they tend to target senior citizens.


To avoid being scammed by people posing as representatives from home and roofing repair companies, do your research before signing any contracts. The BBB’s website is a great resource where you can read customer reviews and complaints. You also can’t go wrong by hiring a local roofing company with a good reputation in your area to perform roofing repairs, instead of company represented by a door-to-door salesperson.


Before agreeing to let a home or roofing repair contractor work on your house, be sure to get all information about the project in writing, especially the start and finish dates. You should never sign any contract with open-ended completion dates or blank spaces on the document, the WLS-TV Chicago article reports.


There are approximately 12,236 window installation companies across the country that employ 107,037 people and generate about $7 billion in revenue each year. It’s important to make sure you choose the right home, window and roofing repairs to keep your home in top condition — and to keep yourself safe from a scam.