My neighbor was scammed by driveway spraying scammers

[Ignoramus6369]

It happened yesterday. A truck cruised in our neighborhood and I saw them stop by our neighbor's house (we have a concrete driveway, his is asphalt) and they talked. Then I went to do something else, the next thing I know is that my neighbor's asphalt driveway was sprayed with some tar like substance. So I went to talk to see what happened.

He said that he was scammed: they first agreed on a certain price ($175), they took the money, sprayed half of his driveway, then acted all surprised and said that "it takes a lot more coating than they expected" and demanded $50 more for finishing the work. I guess with the implication that if he did not pay, they would drive off with his driveway half sprayed looking really stupid. So, he said he paid extra $50 and they finished the work.

So. I am aware that the general wisdom says do not give work to any "drive by" people. But I would like to know, let's say that due to poor judgment, it happened to me and these artists demand extra $50 to finish. What would be a sensible thing to do in these lousy circumstances?

i

[Leo Lichtman]

"Ignoramus6369" wrote: (clip) What would be a sensible thing to do in these lousy circumstances? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Ask to see their business license, and start dialing city hall on the cell phone. The problem is, the same brain that got your neighbor into that situation is trying to get him out of it. The best way to get out of trouble is to stay out in the first place.

[Jeff Wisnia]

At my age, my rules for a happy life are:

1. Never stand when you can sit.

1. Never pass up an opportunity to take a leak.

2. never trust a fart.

1. Never waste an erection.

and most importantly...

1. Never pay tradesmen in advance.

Jeff

[Toller]

Well, paying in advance was his first problem. After that she is pretty well lost, assuming they are con men.

Years ago I hired a reputable landscaper to put in a 6 course retaining wall. They put in 5 courses and said they were done. When I complained he said he had used up all his budgeted materials, so there was nothing he could do. I was going to sue him, and I would have certainly won, but my wife begged me not to. It was very painful to let that go.

[trader4]

And I think #5 is key here, unless he was gonna have sex with the contractor too, then #4 would apply.

These driveby seal coat guys are well known for having a high percentage of scammers. I would never use one period, because even if you pay them at the end, you don't know what they put down. And you can bet many of them use the cheapest crap that will look good right after it goes on, but might not last a month.

[Terry]

I think number 4 would be the most important. I can't figure out how to win a race with a pee hard back to bed.

[Nick Mueller]

Make an On-Topic posting in the right group?

Nick

[Jeff Dege]

If a contractor is doing work that requires him to make significant material purchases, paying half, or paying for the materials, is perfectly reasonable.

[Mike Dobony]

Poor judgment in the first place. Second, having work done without a signed contract. Third, not taking their license number and calling the police.

[Gene S. Berkowitz]

Gee, sounds like they're new at this scam; if they finished half, you'd think they would be trying to extort another $175. Fifty bucks is only slightly more than a decent tip.

--Gene

[Rocky]

Just be glad it was $50. BTW, you should MYOB, you're a nosey sob.

[jJim McLaughlin]

Dial 911.

[Anthony]

Ignoramus6369 wrote in news:j7KdnevMNrNPe9jbnZ2dnUVZ [e-mail]:

Get license plate, start dialing police, letting them know you are doing it. They would most likely finish it without the extra money to keep the police out of the area. When they leave, call the police anyway and report the scam and license so the guy a block down doesn't get taken.

Rule #1. Always get it in writing.

[Steve B]

Swallow hard, take down the license plate number, and walk away a wiser man. Then get on the phone and start calling local authorities.

Steve

[Ignoramus6369]

Would you think that the police would have any interest?

i

[Steve B]

It depends on the jurisdiction. In some places, they might consider it grounds for fraud. In others, they would refer you to the proper civil channel to connect to. And then lots of time, these guys are just "casing" and return later to pick up loose items at houses where they know what kind of car is parked in the driveway when someone is home, whether or not you have a dog, etc. It really all depends on the local authorities, and you'd have a better chance in a small town where the police are less busy than in a big city.

HTH

Steve

[trader4]

Yeah, like local authorities don't have anything better to do than waste their time on this crap? They're gonna tell you it's a contract dispute, it's a civil matter, and take it to court if you like. Good luck there.

[clifto]

Around here we have several companies that put flyers on the doorknobs in advance, specifying the price and saying when they expect to come around and do the work. We use a service which was recommended to us by a satisfied customer (we even actually saw his driveway done before we placed our order) and which accepts a personal check. They just did our driveway for the third year the other day and it's great.

The fun we have is watching the changes from neighborhood to neighborhood. Most offers on our driveway are around $45. Similar-sized driveways in ritzier neighborhoods get quoted from $75 ro $175 by the same companies. :)

[Steve B]

wrote

I guess you didn't read my post very well. I see that you even snipped it. I shall repost it. This time, if you don't read it all, JUST READ THE FIRST SENTENCE.

HTH, but I doubt it.

It depends on the jurisdiction. In some places, they might consider it grounds for fraud. In others, they would refer you to the proper civil channel to connect to. And then lots of time, these guys are just "casing" and return later to pick up loose items at houses where they know what kind of car is parked in the driveway when someone is home, whether or not you have a dog, etc. It really all depends on the local authorities, and you'd have a better chance in a small town where the police are less busy than in a big city.

Now go take a blood pressure pill and a nap.

Sheesh.

Steve

[dcaster]

Maybe, but here I suspect they would locate them and determine if they had a city business license. If not they would be happy to make sure they paid the city a nice fine for not having a license. You might not get your money back, but they might not be able to keep the money.

Dan