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- Driveway
Sealcoating Scammer
- Posted: Aug 09, 2015 11:45 AM EDT
Updated: Aug 23, 2012 11:48 AM EDT
FRANKFORD, Del. - Delaware State Police
are seeking the public's help to
identify a man who they say offered to
seal coat an elderly woman's driveway,
followed her to the bank, then took off
with the cash.
The defrauding happened last month on
the 30000 block of Pyle Center Road, in
Frankford, state police said.
It was July 19 when the man knocked on
the woman's door and offered to seal
coat her driveway. The 80-year-old woman
initially refused but eventually agreed
to let him do the work.
When the man said he'd need money up
front to start the job, the woman drove
to a bank in Millville, where she
withdrew an undisclosed amount of cash.
According to state police, the man
followed the victim and, when she exited
with the cash, he took it out of her
hand and fled in a white pickup truck.
The suspect was described as being
white, 30- to 35-years-old, at least 5
feet 9 inches tall, weighing between 150
and 200 pounds. He was wearing an orange
T-shirt and blue jeans, and he had
tattoos on both arms as well as the back
of his neck.
Police said he's possibly operating a
two-tone white and tan Ford pickup
truck.
Anyone who has any information on the
suspect is asked to contact Troop 4 at
302-856-5850 ext. 386 or Delaware Crime
Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333. Information
may also be provided via the internet at
www.tipsubmit.com. You can also send an
anonymous tip by text to 274637 (CRIMES)
using the keyword "DSP."
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July 7, 2012
Driveway scam nearly
worked
Woman able to cancel
check in time
By Joanne Arbogast
The Daily Item
LAURELTON — With the summer home
improvement season under way, last month we
warned residents, especially seniors, about
people coming to the door unsolicited
offering contracting services such as
painting your house or repairing your roof
or driveway at a price “too good to be
true.”
Con artists, usually working in pairs, will
not only use high-pressure sales tactics in
their sales pitches but may also use this
cover to gain entry into your house to case
the premises.
They may also talk you into a deal, take
your money up front and never deliver what
they promised.
Linda, who works in the governor’s office in
Harrisburg, lives off the beaten track near
Laurelton with her 76-year-old husband who
is a veteran and hard of hearing. “We’re
isolated,” she said, adding that they don’t
get drop-in visitors.
Last week, around 10 a.m. while she was at
work, two men came to the door. They had
arrived in two trucks with Maryland license
plates, and made an offer to her husband to
put sealant down on their 90-foot rough
drive for $1.75 a foot. Her husband gave
them the go-ahead to do the job, though he
had been given no final cost of the project
or a contract to sign.
For more details, see Sunday’s edition of
The Daily Item.
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- Driveway repair
scammers working in Douglas County
- By 6News Staff on
November 14, 2011
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- Douglas County District Attorney
Charles Branson wants county resident to
be aware that driveway repair
scammers are currently working in the
area. The men have already scammed one
Douglas County resident out of $1,500.
The scammers are said to be driving a
2000 or newer, white, one ton, General
Motors brand, extended cab pickup truck
with Illinois plates. Victims of these
scams are encouraged to contact Law
Enforcement to make a police report, and
also contact the D.A's Consumer
Protection Unit. If these men show up at
your home, individuals are being told to
call 911.
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Action 9: Woman gets sloppy asphalt
driveway installed
Posted: 11:32 am EDT September 28, 2011
Bill and Elaine Knight gave away the last of their savings,
$4,500, to a contractor who knocked on their door promising
a good deal to pave their driveway with asphalt. But after
the paving, Elaine said she can poke holes in it with her
cane. “Anywhere you push on it, you’re going to get the
gravel. The pavement is going to come up,” she said. “I
mean, it’s terrible,” said her husband, Bill. The driveway
is a nothing but a mix of crushed asphalt, loose rocks and
dirt sprayed with a black sealant. Knight has tried
unsuccessfully to get the contractor, Matt Sherlock, to fix
the work. Now she said he doesn't even answer his phone
anymore. “We left messages and he never called us back,” she
said. But Knight isn't the only victim. Another driveway
nearby that Sherlock was paid to pave appears also shoddy.
After hearing complaints from homeowners, Carolina Paving,
the Hickory company supplying Sherlock with crushed asphalt,
has cut him off.
"I hate that it took as long as it did to find out about it
because it’s costing people money,” said Carolina Paving
manager Justin Johnson. Action 9 checked with the Better
Business Bureau, and the same Matt Sherlock showed up under
the heading "Irish Travelers.”
That's a band of traveling contractors from Ohio with a
20-year record of ripping off homeowners.
Knight warns others if he shows up at your door, learn from
her and don't do business with him.
"It’s a scam. They were con men,” Knight said.
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Be on the watch for paving scams
Written by Press Release
Friday, 02 July 2010 13:25
With warmer weather comes the urge to tackle those home
improvement projects. And while reputable contracting
companies are the rule not the exception, the Missouri
Department of Transportation is reminding residents to be on
the lookout for traveling dealers pitching driveway paving
offers that are too good to be true.
Specifically, the department says to be wary of paving
companies that approach your home claiming to have extra
asphalt left over from a job and offering to pave your
driveway. Workmanship can be poor and the costs can be much
higher than what was originally quoted.
The Better Business Bureau recommends the following steps to
protect yourself against less than reputable paving
companies:
• Ask for local references and verify that the contractor is
in compliance with local licensing, bonding and insuring
requirements.
• Ask for identification and make a note of the license
plate number on the contractor’s vehicle.
• Solicit two or three bids for the work you are planning,
but don't automatically accept the lowest.
• Make sure all bids are based on the same materials.
• Read all agreements and guarantees before signing.
• Make sure you understand all terms and conditions.
• Never sign a contract with sections left blank.
• Do not pay for work in advance. Pay by check when the work
is completed to your satisfaction.
You can contact the Better Business Bureau with any
complaints by visiting http://www.bbb.org/. Consumers can
also verify the status of a contractor with the Department
of Consumer Protection at 800-842-2649.
For additional information regarding this or other
transportation-related topics, call MoDOT toll free at
1-888-ASK MoDOT (275-6636). Transportation information is
also available online at
www.modot.org.
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Driveway Deal or Summertime Scam?
June 27, 2010- Summertime scams hit snow-belt homeowners where they
live.
Homeowners should look out for groups of traveling scam
artists offering roof repair, driveway paving and sealing
and other summertime home upkeep, Ohio Attorney General
Richard Cordray warns.
"Known by law enforcement as 'travelers,' these
professional thieves make their way through Ohio and other
northern states in the summer months," Cordray said. "They
offer to pave driveways or repair roofs for a very low
price, but they intentionally deceive homeowners and do
extremely shoddy work."
Travelers often target middle-class homeowners,
especially those over 60. Travelers generally dress
professionally, speak politely and drive well-maintained
vehicles, giving homeowners the false impression that they
are trustworthy.
In many cases, travelers lie to homeowners, telling them
their driveway or roof needs to be repaired. They work
quickly, paving a driveway in less than an hour. Later, the
asphalt will crack or will fail to set properly, leaving the
homeowner's driveway a gooey mess. Other times, travelers
"seal" a driveway or roof with a useless mixture of diesel
oil and paint that will wash off in the rain.
Weeks later, some travelers revisit their previous
victims to offer phony follow-up repairs or more
seal-coating. Again, the work is completely substandard,
even if the victim does not realize it.
Homeowners can protect themselves by learning to
recognize the signs of a traveler, including contractors
who:
• Come to their door uninvited
• Notice a problem with their roof or driveway
• Say they have leftover materials
• Offer unbelievably low prices
• Accept cash or check only
• Promise an unconditional guarantee on the work
• Start work immediately
• Take only 30 minutes to an hour to finish the job
Consumers also should check a company's reputation with
online review sites, their local consumer affairs office or
their state's attorney general's office and the Better
Business Bureau before paying any money.
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Police warn about possible driveway
repair fraud
- June 16, 2010
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- STAUNTON — Police are investigating possible fraudulent
activities concerning two men claiming to be with a
Strasburg driveway sealing company.
Officer Lisa Klein, a spokeswoman with the Staunton Police
Department, said an elderly Staunton woman paid more than
$10,000 within the past week to two men representing the
“Repair-N-Seal" company.
Klein said work on the driveway was finished but the quality
was “questionable” at best.
The men are reportedly using a white van. Klein said police
could find no record of a “Repair-N-Seal” company in
Strasburg.
Klein advised that if residents are approached about having
their driveway sealed but are dubious, they should contact
the Staunton Police Department at 332-3842.
“If you’re not sure they’re not 100 percent legit, call us,”
Klein said.
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- RI Woman 'Taken for a ride'
- Scammers are looking to make a quick buck
Updated: Monday, 03 May 2010, 6:17 PM
EDT
Published : Monday, 03 May 2010, 6:08 PM EDT
CUMBERLAND, R.I. (WPRI) - This time of year is
prime-time for scammers looking to make a quick buck
at your expense. Eyewitness News reveals a "deal"
that more often than not is too good to be true. And
if you're not careful, you could be "Taken for a
Ride."
If your driveway is in need of repair, beware.
Paving scammers scope out homeowners just like you,
and offer you a deal you just can't pass up.
"I've got this great deal we're doing a job up
the street had some extra asphalt."
It happened to Debbie Simon of Cumberland. A
paver offered to do her driveway for $3 a square
foot. But the deal was only good for that very
moment, take it or leave it.
"We figured if we could get it done today, well,
great," said Simon.
But what happened next is so infuriating; Debbie
says she can hardly believe it.
"My family and I feel taken, like, how could we
let somebody take us like that?"
Turns out the deal, was not a deal. It ended up
costing them a lot more than was promised. And it
only gets worse. So, what was the condition of the
driveway? That's a whole other story!
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Beware of Paving Scams
05/03/10
Lynchburg, VA - A
Campbell County woman says she was scammed out of 200
dollars by man who said he would pave her driveway. The
homeowner says the contractor covered her driveway with hot
tar, but it left a sticky mess. When she called to get a
refund, the business owner was nowhere to be found.
At
the time she says she thought the business was legitimate
because he had a contractor's vehicle and even handed her a
bill. She says the worst part is there's little she can do
about it now.
Oliver-"I called the better
business bureau but he doesn't have a business so how do you
file a claim. It's pretty much a robbery yah know." Police
say if someone offers to do any contracting service you
should do your research first. You can easily check up on
contractors through the state board for contractors’
website.
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Elderly Fall Prey to
Driveway Scam
April 8, 2010
Jones County Sheriff's Department officials say there
have been reports of several workers who are traveling
throughout Jones County soliciting elderly homeowners to
hire them for driveway repairs then hiking the charges once
repairs are complete.
"The workers, believed to be from out of state, are charging
inflated prices for poor quality work," Sheriff Alex Hodge
said. "The 'soliciting workers' are offering to complete a
sealing or resurfacing job for a low price then inflating
the price several thousands of dollars when the job is
allegedly complete, intimidating the elderly homeowners to
pay for the job.
"If you do agree on a price and are then charged several
thousands dollars more for the job without prior notice
please get a vehicle description and contact the Sheriff's
Department immediately before paying them."
To report suspected drug or criminal activities to the Jones
County Sheriff's Department, call 425-3147 or leave tips
online at www. jonesso.com. Crime tips also may be called in
to Crime Stoppers at 428-7867.
Around the PINE BELT
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