HOME REPAIR SCAMS

With the recent storms, please be alert for home repair scams!  The Police Department would like to remind you that the Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act requires contractors to furnish customers with written contracts for any repair or remodeling work costing more than $1,000.  A contract must be signed by both the customer and the contractor. The law also requires contractors to carry at least minimum amounts of insurance for property damage, bodily injury and improper home repair.  Contractors also must provide consumers with an informational pamphlet entitled “Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights.”  Consumers should never give out personal or financial information over the telephone; legitimate government agencies do not call consumers asking for this information

Here are some tips from the Attorney General:

  • Call the Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud Hotline to check out a contractor and to find out how many consumer complaints, if any, have been filed against a particular business.
  • Be wary of contractors who go door-to-door to offer repair services.  Home repair con artists are often transients who move quickly into a troubled area. Ask for recommendations from people you know and trust and, whenever possible, use established local contractors.
  • Even if there is a need to act quickly, shop around for the best deal.  Get written estimates from several contractors and don’t be rushed into a deal.
  • Get all of the terms of a contract in writing and obtain a copy of the signed contract.  Never make full payment until all the work has been completed to your satisfaction.  Do not pay in cash.
  • Be aware that you have the right to cancel within three business days if you sign a contract based on a salesman’s visit to your home.
  • Ask to see required state or Village of Wauconda permits or licenses. Insurance adjusters must be licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Insurance, and roofers must be licensed by the Division of Professional Regulation.

Also, in recent years, media reports in the wake of major storms and tornadoes indicated that consumers were called by someone falsely claiming to be associated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and requesting bank account information from the consumer that would assist with the repair of their storm-damaged home.

We will send a police officer to your home while the contractor is present to help you determine if there is a potential for fraud.  You can call the the Police Department at 847-526-2421, or the Consumer Fraud Hotline at  800-386-5438 (Chicago).