about door-to-door repair
scams
Emily Stewart • Poughkeepsie Journal • May 17,
2010
KINGSTON — They come door to door, offering to
reseal the driveway, fix the roof or clean out a
chimney.
The high-pressure pitch may involve a load of
blacktop from a job just finished “down the street,”
and a deeply discounted price — but only for today.
In Kingston, the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office
charged three men earlier this month with third-
degree grand larceny, a felony. They are accused of
being involved in a driveway-sealing scam.
Two of the men, Rodney Cooper, 48, and James
Lambert, 45, are wanted on arrest warrants, said
Detective Sgt. Drue Lynch of the Ulster County
Sheriff’s Offoce.
The third, Rodney T. Cooper, 28, turned himself in
to police May 3, Lynch said. He was released May 11
from the Ulster County Jail on a court order.
The Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that the
men preyed upon a homeowner by offering to seal
her driveway for a reduced price.
When they finished, the cost had jumped into the
thousands. The homeowner did not have the cash to
pay them, so they drove her to the bank to remove
the money, police said.
An employee at the Citizens Bank in Kingston alerted
authorities and stopped the transaction before the
woman could remove $5,000 from her account,
Lynch said.
While most home repair companies are legitimate,
authorities said, this isn’t the first time they have
seen this kind of scam.
“This is when we start to have problems with door-
to-door home improvement scams,” Nelson Kranker,
director of the Dutchess County Consumer Affairs
Department, said in an e-mail.
Hanlon of the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office.
“They claim to have extra blacktop from a job. They
want to sell it cheap — get in, get out. Or they say,
‘We have to get rid of this today.’ They’re not
reputable,” Hanlon said.
“Anyone who comes looking to pressure you into a
sale is not going to be a reputable paver,” he said.
Afterward, they may do shoddy work, or only part of
the job, then want more money. Worse, it could cost
even more to undo the work they did, he said.
Janet Caffo, director of the Ulster County Consumer
Fraud Bureau, said in addition to driveway repairs,
the bureau tells people to be aware of chimney
scams as well.
Caffo said eight complaints involving driveway
repairs were reported to the bureau between July 9,
2009, and May 12 of this year.
“Of those, some were inconclusive. Some were
successfully mediated. One was referred to the
Ulster County District Attorney as a larceny, and the
company fled the state,” she said.
Caffo said consumers can call the bureau to inquire
about a company they may be unsure of.
“It doesn’t have to rise to the level of a complaint.
guidance,” she said.
Residents of Dutchess may contact the county’s
Department of Consumer Affairs.
The state also has a consumer protection hotline.
Lynch said the Sheriff’s Office has gotten more
complaints of this nature than usual this year.
He said this kind of scam differs from others — such
as identity theft — because the perpetrators actually
talk to the person face to face.
“This is totally different. It’s hands-on,” Lynch said.
When asked why this particular swindle “works,”
Lynch said, “It’s quick, it’s easy and it’s lucrative.”
Also, the perpetrators often skirt the line between
what would constitute civil or criminal charges.
“There’s a saying, ‘Push the envelope,’ ” Lynch said.
“They don’t push it off the table.”
These kinds of scams “give the honest guy a bad
name,” he said.
“Crime Beat,” which explores law enforcement
issues and cases worked by police in the mid-
Hudson Valley, appears each Monday. To suggest a
topic, call 845-437-4834. Reach Emily Stewart at
estewart@poughkeepsiejournal.com or 845-437-
4882.
Consumer Protection Board, call 800-697-1220 or
visit www.nysconsumer.gov/complaint.htm.
• The Dutchess County Consumer Affairs Department
can assist residents with histories of retail businesses.
The department can be reached at: 845-486-2949.
• The Ulster County Consumer Fraud Bureau can be
reached at 845-340-3260.
Recent Comments