Midwest Storm Victims May be Victimized Again

'Storm chasers' perform shoddy repair work, then skip town

By Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com

March 21, 2008

Natural Disasters • Get Your Home a Flood Insurance Checkup • Dealing with Disasters: Financial Preparation is Vital • Storm-Tossed Texans Warned to Watch for Price-Gouging • Digital TV Transition Threatens Portables • Storm Season is Time to Review Insurance Policies • Scammers Exploit Iowa's Flooding • Post-Storm Survival Tips • Midwest Storm Victims May be Victimized Again • Fireman's Fund Offers 'Green' Policy • California Gears Up For Fire Scammers • California Wildfires Aftermath Requires Vigilance • Insurers Dumping Customers Along East Coast • Homeowners Insurance Rates Unfair, Massachusetts Charges • Researchers: La Nina Won't Affect 2006 Atlantic Hurricanes • 2006 Hurricane Forecast: More and Bigger • Few Americans Prepared For Disaster • Illinois Earthquake Rattles Insurers • Consumers Pay the Price for Disasters: Tips on Minimizing Your Losses • Congress Considers Taxpayer-Funded Catastrophe Insurance • Researchers Study East Coast Tsunami Danger • Is the Earth Getting Riskier? Expert Says No • One-Third of U.S. Population Lives in Hazard-Prone Areas • FEMA Tightens Flood Insurance Standards • Preparing Your Home for a Storm • Keeping Food Safe During an Emergency • Hurricane Season Is Time to Review Insurance Coverage • Tremors Rattle Californians

Another storm may follow the heavy flooding that has ravaged the Midwest and claimed the lives of at least 16 people.

It's a financial storm – one caused by unscrupulous con artists who prey on people in areas damaged by Mother Nature.

These con artists are called storm chasers, according to Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon. They're traveling crooks, who often go door-to-door and offer such repairs as new roofs, windows, carpet cleaning, and other home services.

"This flood of water may very well be followed by a flood of con artists," Nixon warns. "Consumers need to know there are people out there who want to take advantage of their misfortune by promising services, collecting money, and not following through on the job."

Storm chasers often do shoddy work and then skip town, leaving consumers without their money or any type of warranty.

Nixon says homeowners should be wary of hiring any contractor who:

• Offers services door-to-door;
• Drives an unmarked vehicle or has out-of-state plates;
• Demands full payment in advance;
• Has no address, just a phone or P.O. Box;
• Uses a high-pressure sales technique;
• Has no I.D.

Before hiring anyone to work on their homes, Nixon says consumers should:
• Only deal with companies they know or ones that have been recommended;
• Get at least two written estimates;
• Get a written contract that details all the work to be performed;
• Only make payments when the work is done to their satisfaction

Nixon also warns that some companies may try profit from storms and other disasters by increasing the prices of their goods.

"Any time a business raises prices simply to profit from a natural disaster, that's price gouging, and it's illegal in Missouri," Nixon said.

He urged consumers to report any cases of price gouging to the attorney general in their state.

Missouri officials recovered more than $170,000 in restitution from companies that gouged consumers during the winter storms of January 2007.

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