Connecticut Nabs 115 Home Improvement Contractors
Working as an unregistered home improvement contractor is bad business -- and hiring one is a bad decision. That's the message sent by Connecticut Consumer Protection Commissioner Edwin R. Rodriguez, announcing the results of a 10-week sting operation that caught 115 home improvement contractors who had either failed to register with the Department of Consumer Protection, or who violated other requirements of the state's Home Improvement Act.

Consummer Affairs.com
Connecticut Nabs 115 Home Improvement Contractors

June 6, 2006

Working as an unregistered home improvement contractor is bad business -- and hiring one is a bad decision.

That's the message sent by Connecticut Consumer Protection Commissioner Edwin R. Rodriguez, announcing the results of a 10-week sting operation that caught 115 home improvement contractors who had either failed to register with the Department of Consumer Protection, or who violated other requirements of the state's Home Improvement Act.

"The law requires home improvement contractors to register and follow certain procedures for a reason -- to protect homeowners," Rodriguez said. "We are not trying to prevent people from making a living; we're just making sure that they're making an honest living. This includes complying with State laws that assure consumers a level of financial protection.

"Contractors who ignore the law are unfairly competing with those who take the time to register and abide by the law, and that is also a concern. But our main purpose in this enforcement effort is to protect the integrity of the marketplace and safeguard consumers from contractors who would exploit them for financial gain," said Rodriguez.

The Department's Trade Practices investigators set up their undercover operation in March at a house that was provided by the State Department of Transportation. Home improvement contractors who advertised their services were invited by undercover Home Improvement Special Investigators to bid on various projects.

The contractors toured the sting house, met with investigators who were posing as homeowners, and offered contracts for painting, kitchen remodeling, siding, roof and window installation, landscaping and more.

Four of the 115 individuals found in violation of Connecticut home improvement laws were from out of state. The remainder were from towns across Connecticut. In all, 78 contractors were unregistered. The remaining 37 were cited for various violations of the Home Improvement Act or the Home Sales Solicitation Act.

"Home improvement complaints rank as the top consumer complaint in Connecticut and elsewhere across the country," Rodriguez said. "While home improvements themselves can be expensive, any problems that arise often cost consumers thousands more to fix. Unfortunately, there have been many cases where a homeowner is left with a huge problem and has no financial means of getting it repaired."

A home improvement contractor is defined as anyone who performs improvements on residential property in Connecticut when the individual job exceeds $200 and when the cash price of all work performed in one year is more than $1,000.

All home improvement contractors -- including roofers, addition and remodeling contractors, driveway pavers, and persons who install fences, siding, insulation, windows, masonry and underground fuel storage tanks -- must be registered with the Department of Consumer Protection.

Under Connecticut law, a consumer who suffers construction damage or problems as a result of work done by a registered home improvement contractor may qualify for the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund, which can return up to $15,000 in restitution per contract. The Fund paid out $2.5 million to consumers in 2005.

Rodriguez offered these additional tips for selecting and working with a home improvement contractor:

• Never agree to unsolicited, on-the-spot offers. This is the time of year when unregistered and unscrupulous contractors may show up at your door, offering to give you a low price for a driveway because they have "leftover materials" from another job, or a low-price chimney cleaning that quickly turns into hundreds of dollars of repairs.

• Get at least 3 bids and make sure they all include the same details, such as quality of materials, size of the project, and time frames.

• Check references -- really check them. You should contact former customers, your local building official, and anyone else who is knowledgeable of the contractors you are considering.

• By law, all home improvement contracts must be in writing, must contain all details of the job and bear the contractor's registration numbers. In addition, the contract must give you 3 days to cancel. Never allow the contractor to persuade you into forfeiting this right. This is your "cooling off" period, a time to assess the contract, especially if you feel you signed it under pressure.

• Be sure the contract includes a payment schedule that roughly parallels the progress of the work, perhaps breaking the bill in quarters. Don't pay a lot of money up front and never pay cash.

• Check with your local building official to be sure the contractor has taken out all necessary permits.

• Make sure those hired to do plumbing and electrical work hold the appropriate license – this license is separate from the Home Improvement registration.

"Hiring an unregistered contractor could cost you dearly, as thousands of homeowners in Connecticut will find out this year when their projects don't meet expectations," Rodriguez said. "Contractors who don't register are committing a criminal offense. Don't put your dreams and hard-earned dollars in the hands of someone who is careless about his legal responsibility to the state; he may be careless with you as well."
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2006/06/ct_contractors.html