With homeowners working away on their renovation projects before the rainy winter comes back, Better Business Bureau (BBB) is urging the public to use caution when hiring a contractor.
With homeowners working away on their renovation projects before the rainy winter comes back, Better Business Bureau (BBB) is urging the public to use caution when hiring a contractor.
With similar numbers to last year, the BBB has received several local Scam Tracker reports about people losing thousands of dollars to contractor scams, primarily due to fly-by-night businesses using high-pressure sales tactics and demanding upfront fees.
These con artists find plausible reasons for consumers to give them money and will either deliver shoddy work, or no work at all.
“Home improvement scams placed number four on the BBB list of Top 10 Riskiest Scams across Canada for 2021,” said Simone Lis, President and CEO of BBB Serving Mainland BC.
“Homeowners should be extra cautious when hiring a contractor for their home renovation projects, given that 69 per cent of consumers who encounter this scam lose money, with a median average loss of $661. If you hire the wrong vendor, you could be facing a wide range of problems from unfinished work and damage to your property, to losing valuable time and hard earned dollars.”
One homeowner from BC shared his experience with BBB this year, stating “[This] business owner drives around in affluent neighbourhoods in his truck and…
