Unfortunately, scammers frequently target the carpet cleaning industry. To steal your money, they go after shoppers looking for a good deal and may employ pushy sales techniques. At best, they might do a subpar job of cleaning; at worst, your house might sustain serious damage.
The top three types of home services scams we hear about are as follows:
Internet and social media fraud
Online Facebook buy/sell groups and Kijiji are frequented by scammers. However, they insist that you contact them via a Facebook profile or email address that does not appear to be associated with the company, even though they may use a well-known or legitimate company name. Avoid them if they promise a deal that seems too good to be true and requires a credit card deposit to reserve your appointment.
High Pressure, Illegal Telemarketing
If a company calls you even though you are registered with Canada’s Do Not Call Registry, it is against the law and a sign that the business is unreliable.
Door-to-door sales con artists
Scammers may knock on your door with an offer that seems too good to be true before pressuring you to purchase baffling upgrades, or they may insist on following you inside before pressuring you to purchase expensive services without giving you a chance to consider them. The majority of reputable businesses avoid door-to-door sales, but if they do, their representatives will be in uniform, in possession of official identification, and driving a company vehicle bearing distinctive logos.When selecting a company to clean your ducts or if you are unsure whether you are dealing with a legitimate business or a con artist, keep the following in mind:
Investigate their reputation by consulting a variety of sources. The BBB tracks the reputations of members and non-members and assigns a rating based on what they discover as well as on customer complaints and reviews. Review sites like Google, Yelp, and Homestars can show you not only what clients are saying, but also how the business responds when a client files a complaint.
Require a phone call from them. During business hours, a legitimate business will be able to provide a local phone number for contact.
A quality/satisfaction guarantee should be considered when choosing a company.
Ask for a WCB Clearance letter from the company if you have any doubts about its legitimacy to verify that they have the necessary insurance to work on your project.
To make sure a business is registered with the Government of Canada GST Registry, ask for the business’s GST number.
Contact the office of business licenses to find out if they are authorized to do business in your city.
If you want to book a carpet or duct cleaning appointment online, NEVER provide a credit card number or PayPal deposit. The practice of paying in advance for services is strictly prohibited in Ontario.
