Avoid Home Repair Fraud

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon encourages consumers to take several precautions to avoid home repair fraud:

* Get written estimates from at least three local contractors. Ask for an address and phone number if the workers say they are self-employed.

* Get all guarantees in writing. Ask for the names of references and call them.

* Don’t pay more than one-third of the total price if the contractor requires a down payment.

* If a contractor asks for an advance payment on supplies, consider writing the check directly to the supplier.

* And check for complaints before hiring a contractor by calling your local Better Business Bureau or the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection hotline at 800-392-8222.

Related Web sites:

http://www.usps.gov/fyi/welcome.htm

http://www.bbb.org/bureaus/index.html

http://services.state.mo.us/ago/homepg.htm

Source: "Home Repairs: How Not to Get Taken" from the Office of Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon, Oct. 27, 1997.

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