How to Spot a Scam Contractor in San Jose?

Often times in San Jose, people get scammed by signing a contract or getting into a deal. Well, most of the times people are relatively unharmed but others, there is serious financial or property damage. Some scams revolve around experienced scamming companies while others just pretend to be General Contractors in San Jose. In the long term, the first type is more harmful than the second.

Let’s get into some of the ways you can spot a scam contractor in San Jose: 

Registration and License

If a company you see online seems like it is worth it, you should probably check to see if they have a license to operate as a company or even if they are registered as a legal company because companies without actual registration or license cannot be held liable for any damage and it is hard to prove their existence. A registered company, on the other hand, is proof in itself that a company exists and it will not vanish with your money.

Insurance

Every good company should have insurance. Most companies need at least two different types of insurances to operate legally and the third one should be for business ethics.

• Contractors Professional Liability

This insurance covers the property damage or physical damage to the clients, that can be proven in court as a company’s fault or negligence.

• General Liability Insurance

This insurance covers any damage that comes towards the business such as equipment damage or harm to an unrelated third-party.

• Workers Compensation

This insurance covers any damage that is done to the workers during the job. 

Looped Contracts

This is one of the most dangerous situations that you can get into. According to Breakthrough Builders, well-known contractors in San Jose, scam companies often trick their clients through snap decisions by putting them in a tight situation so they would sign a contract that is looped, without actually reading it. If you ask them for time, they can be quite charming and say, “Don’t you trust me?”. Don’t Trust Them!

Slot Tactics

This puts the client in a time constraint by telling them, “We have other clients lined up and they are willing to pay a lot but because you seem like a good person, we wanted to wait for you to see if you wanted to take this slot” or something along the lines.

Extreme Cost Fluctuations

If something looks too good to be true, it normally is. Many fake companies set up a fly-trap for their vulnerable clients by employing extremely low costs on their websites. This can escalate quickly as they add on to the costs later on while providing services, sometimes this can be justified while others, just add on to the costs through adding the rent of equipment they may already own or inflating the price of the material that is not as expensive.