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Summer Scams: driveway paving and barn painting

By Rich Kinsey

Spring and sunny skies are back in Chelsea. As the temperatures and dandelions rise, the chances of you becoming a victim of crime also rises.

Criminals are a rather lazy lot – choosing to steal and victimize instead of working and saving like most of us. Some of the more ingenious criminal enterprises come to us born in family tradition. These traveling criminals used to be called “gypsies” in a more unenlightened and less politically correct time. They made their living and fed themselves by preying on unsuspecting victims.

These particular criminals are smarter than most and travel back north when the weather breaks. They prey mostly on the greed of their intended victim, but in some cases use distraction and subterfuge to accomplish their thefts.

Common scams these group perpetrate involve giving their intended victim a “deal” at the expense of the scammer’s “boss.” Among the most common of these seasonal scams are the driveway resurfacing and barn painting scams.

Both scams involve the huckster pulling up and telling their victim that they just completed a job at a neighbor’s home and have some either driveway resurfacing material or barn paint left over that should probably take care of the victim’s “problem.” The price agreed upon is very low, presumably because the materials are leftovers from “the other guy’s job.”

After the deal is struck, the job is completed with inferior materials. In the case of the driveway resurfacing a very thin coat of undercoating – like for cars – is applied instead of the gooey sloppy messy stuff that actually seals asphalt driveways. You get what you pay for. A price too good to be true is just that.

Either that or the crew found some “trouble spots” and filled them in with some cold patch and now the price is severely elevated above what was agreed upon. The original salesman is now joined by some rather large, dirty, tired individuals with poor dispositions who express their displeasure in some rather intimidating ways when the homeowner/victim expresses reluctance to pay this new inflated bill. These criminals are good at what they do and very convincing in demanding payment.

It is only later after the criminals are no longer in the homeowner’s face that the light goes on and the victim realizes that he or she has been duped.

Many senior citizen victims will not even report the crime for fear their families will fear diminishing faculties and want to send them to assisted living or a retirement center.

Barn painting scammers also use inferior products – like watered-down paint that will run during the next rain – or run out and suddenly demand money for more paint and supplies. In the latter scam, the victim is faced with a half-painted barn and has to pay for more paint. When the victim pays for “more paint” the scammer pockets the cash and is down the road. Meanwhile, the victim has a half painted barn that he or she will now have to paint or engage a real local painter.

To prevent becoming a victim of such cons, remember that unsolicited contractors knocking at your door are immediately suspect.

Deals “too good to be true” are always just that. They are confirmation that you are about to be scammed.

Call your local police immediately and have these guys checked out if they knock on your door and do not let them inside your home.

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