NICB to Boston-Area Homeowners: Beware of Insurance Scammers

Shady contractors come out after the snow melts

DES PLAINES, Ill. - As the Northeast continues to get pounded by storm after storm, there's one more threat that Bostonians need to watch out for: shady contractors or "storm chasers" looking to make a fast but fraudulent buck using your homeowners insurance. Heavy snowfalls are damaging roofs, resulting in an unusually large number of insurance claims, and those storm chasers can't wait to get their hands on your money.

After a disaster, contractors will often go door-to-door in affected neighborhoods offering clean up, construction or other repair services. Most of these business people are reputable, but many are not. The dishonest ones may execute schemes to defraud innocent victims, such as:

• pocketing the payment and never showing up for the job;
• never completing a job that was started; or
• using inferior materials and performing shoddy work that's not up to code.

Almost all of these scams are unsolicited - they begin with a knock on the door from a contractor seeking work. The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) recommends that "if you didn't request it, reject it." If you have storm damage, call your insurance company first.

NICB offers these tips before hiring a contractor:

• Take pictures of your property before, during and after flooding or other damage
• Get more than one estimate
• Get everything in writing: cost, work to be performed, work and payment schedules, guarantees, and any other expectations
• Demand references and check them out
• Ask to see the salesperson's driver's license and write down the license number and their vehicle's license plate number
• Never sign a contract with blanks; unacceptable terms could be added later
• Never pay a contractor in full or sign a completion certificate until the work is finished and ensure reconstruction is up to current code
• Make sure you review and understand all documents sent to your insurance carrier
• Never let a contractor pressure you into hiring them or letting them do unnecessary work
• Never let a contractor interpret the insurance policy language
• Never let a contractor discourage you from contacting your insurance company

For more on disaster fraud, watch this video .

Anyone with information concerning insurance fraud or vehicle theft can report it anonymously by calling toll-free 800-TEL-NICB (800-835-6422), texting keyword "fraud" to TIP411 (847411) or submitting a form on our website. Or, download the NICB Fraud Tips app on your iPhone or Android device.

About the National Insurance Crime Bureau: headquartered in Des Plaines, Ill., the NICB is the nation's leading not-for-profit organization exclusively dedicated to preventing, detecting and defeating insurance fraud and vehicle theft through data analytics, investigations, training, legislative advocacy and public awareness. The NICB is supported by more than 1,100 property and casualty insurance companies and self-insured organizations. NICB member companies wrote $371 billion in insurance premiums in 2013, or more than 78 percent of the nation's property/casualty insurance. That includes more than 93 percent ($168 billion) of the nation's personal auto insurance. To learn more visit www.nicb.org .