£3,500 and no work done: the offer to help that’s really a roofing scam
Source: The Guardian ·
Citizens Advice warns of its No 1 scam as growing number of people are targeted by criminals posing as roofersThe builder who calls at your door says they are doing some work in the area and has spotted a loose tile on your roof. They offer to fix it for a good price that you agree to.But when they go up on their ladder to inspect the problem, they see another problem. Rain has been splashing…
From the source
The builder who calls at your door says they are doing some work in the area and has spotted a loose tile on your roof. They offer to fix it for a good price that you agree to. But when they go up on their ladder to inspect the problem, they see another problem. Rain has been splashing out of the gutters and the wood around them is getting damaged. The only solution, the builder says, is to have rigid PVC trays installed to divert the water. More rain is forecast and you are worried about what damage could be done so you pay the builder via bank transfer to get the job done there and then. They are gone within an hour, having apparently completed the work. But nothing was done because there was no problem with your guttering. Instead you were one of a growing number of people who have been targeted by criminals posing as roofers, only to make off with payment after doing unnecessary or no work. The charity Citizens Advice says suspected roofing frauds were the top scam it heard from…
BestAIBroker analysis
- Finance-aware sentiment: slightly negative (-0.10 on a -1 to +1 scale).
- Event classification: OTHER.
- Market importance score: 33/100, weighting entity relevance, source credibility, multi-outlet coverage and recency.
- Symbols referenced: A.