Consumer Affairs Office Warns of Paving Scammers

Homeowners should be on the lookout for scammers offering dirt-cheap driveway paving, according to a warning from the Gloucester County Office of Consumer Affairs and Weights and Measures issued Tuesday.

Unscrupulous contractors are soliciting deals for $150 asphalt resurfacing jobs and are typically targeting senior citizens. The Office of Consumer Affairs has received complaints of contractors ripping off seniors over the past several weeks, with the most recent coming just last week.

“If someone shows up at your home unsolicited and offers to resurface your driveway or do any other type of home improvement project, tell them no, and if the person does not leave, call the police,” said Freeholder Director Robert Damminger. “These types of scammers target seniors and try to take advantage of people who are not prepared to make quick decisions.

“Anyone who is getting any work on their home done should have a written contract and show proof that they are registered with the state as a contractor. ”

Scammers may be trying to skirt the New Jersey Home Improvement Contractors Registration Act by offering home improvement projects for under $500, which is the minimum threshold for requiring contractor registration and other mandatory consumer information under state law. 

Most of the reports coming into the Gloucester County Office of Consumer Affairs have involved contractors who start a job, then hike the price by $25 or $50 with the job nearly complete. If the consumer refuses to pay the extra cash, they take the money the resident has already given them and leave the project unfinished.

Director Damminger said, “We want all residents to know, especially our seniors, that they can call the Office of Consumer Affairs or their local police if they feel they are being harassed by high-pressure sales tactics.”

Statistics show that during the summer months, these types of complaints skyrocket, including high-pressure, door-to-door magazine sales and security system sales.

Deputy Freeholder Director Warren S. Wallace, liaison to the County Office of Consumer Affairs, said scammers will sometimes troll through a neighborhood, looking for senior citizens and homeowners working outside to find targets, then make a hard-sell front-door visit.

“Homeowners should be suspicious of these unannounced visits as ways for people to gain entrance into their homes,” Wallace said. “This isn’t about making people nervous or frightened, but this is a real issue and a word of caution in these instances is justified.”

For more information or to inquire about any other possible scams, contact the Office of Consumer Affairs and Weights and Measures at 856-384-6855.