Beware quick-buck artists swept in by storm

By CRAIG PITTMAN

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 25, 1998

t always happens: Just as the hurricane leaves, the fast-buck artists show up to cash in on the calamity.

More coverage from the Times on our Georges site.

After Hurricane Andrew devastated South Florida six years ago, bags of ice that normally went for 99 cents were being sold for $5. Within two weeks the state attorney general's office fielded 1,000 complaints about price gouging.

Unlicensed contractors and unscrupulous con artists descended on the disaster area. Among those eventually charged with fraud was a minister who promised to build new houses for storm victims. Police said he collected more than $60,000 in deposits. The victims wound up with nothing.

So on Thursday, local and state consumer watchdogs were warning Tampa Bay residents to be cautious. Pat White, president of Pinellas County's Better Business Bureau, said anyone with damaged property should be sure to notify the insurance company first, then take the time to get two or three estimates from licensed, local contractors.

"Be sure you use people in our area who have a satisfactory record with us and proper licensing," White said. She said printed lists of legitimate contractors, including electricians, plumbers and companies that deal in mobile home services, can be obtained by calling 535-5552 on Monday. After a storm, so many local businesses may be wiped out that the remaining legitimate contractors are too busy to take on every job offered.

That might make it tempting to hire someone who shows up out of the blue promising to fix everything immediately, so long as the homeowner pays for everything in advance. Be suspicious of solicitations asking for money upfront, warned Deborah Berry, an investigator with Pinellas County's consumer affairs division. After other storms, she said, "people gave some of these solicitors money and they never came back."

Even well-intentioned contractors who are not licensed "may not have the capital to complete the job and will quit halfway through when they run out of money," Berry said. "Or they may be cited by the building department and have to stop."

Meanwhile, the attorney general's office has set up a toll-free hot line -- (800) 329-6969 -- for anyone who wants to report price gouging related to Georges. Violators could be fined $1,000 per sale up to $25,000 for multiple violations committed in a 24-hour period.

Water, ice, gasoline and gas-powered electric generators are the items most commonly subject to radical increases in prices before and after a hurricane, said attorney general's office spokesman Joe Bizzaro.