TAMPA, Fla. — Where there’s damage, heartbreak and destruction — trickery, theft and scams often follow.
Insurance Schemes
“What’s happening right now is you are in a vulnerable place,” said Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis. “Maybe you've got a tree on your house, maybe you've got some water damage, and you get approached by a solicitation at your doorstep; you need to be very suspect,” he said.
Patronis is warning property owners about the age-old, fly-by-night contractor, along with a new insurance scheme where scammers try to get between you and your insurance claim.
“They’re using a product called directional payments. They're going to direct the payments away from you to them, and then they will bill your insurance company from whatever amount they put on the invoice,” Patronis explained.
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Patronis also warned about signing agreements with a contractor you don’t know.
“If you don’t sign anything, you’re not obligated to anything,” he said.
Consumers can check a contractor’s license here.
The state has also created a free resource to help connect homeowners with licensed contractors and suppliers. You can visit DCNOnline.org and search by county for a list of licensed contractors.
Impersonation scams
From questionable contractors to impersonation scams, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) added that you should look for high-pressure tactics from people who may look and sound official but are anything but.
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“This is anywhere from people claiming to be with FEMA, people claiming to be with your local utility company, any government or local organization involved in this process; there could be scammers that pretend to be them, whether it be through a text message, an email to you, or someone knocking on your door or even a phone call," explained Bryan Olgesby with the BBB of West Florida.
Charity Scams
The state and BBB warn that giving shouldn’t result in being left with the short end of the stick when it comes to charities.
“There are a lot of great charities out there that are collecting donations, and then there's a lot of scammers that are going to establish fake charities that have name similarities,” said Oglesby. “So, you have to be very careful,” he said.
“GoFundMe does a great job for a lot of people in times of need, but somebody will take sensational photos, create a fantastic narrative, and prey on the generosity that's in your heart,” explained Patronis.
He continued, “If you know the person who is advocating in the GoFundMe, great, but I would be very suspect to something that you don't have personal knowledge of."
Most charities are required to register and file financial information with the state. You can check a charity’s financial record and registration status by visiting Check-A-Charity. You can also check how much of your donation goes to the cause versus administrative and other costs.
Other resources so you don’t get scammed
“We've been hit hard. We've been hit by two hurricanes. We're very emotional. We haven't had electricity for days, so our guard is down right now, and we want to make sure that consumers know that these bad actors go out there,” warned Oglesby.
The bottom line, consumer advocates say, is to do your research. Check out company licensing records and history of complaints. If you’re hiring someone to do repairs to your home or to remove trees from your yard, you’re safer getting that help through referrals, not random strangers.
Here are some additional links to keep you from becoming a scam victim.
