You know your driveway or patio needs concrete repair, but maybe you haven’t gotten around to making a phone call to a vetted contractor quite yet. In the meantime, a crew of workers shows up at your door, offering to mend the cracks and sinking slabs that have become quite an eyesore. Do you take them up on their offer?
Even though you would like to believe the best and trust everyone you meet, this situation puts you at risk of falling for a common concrete repair scam.
If you’d rather not pay a second time to fix shoddy repairs, follow the important steps below when hiring anyone to conduct concrete repair on your property.
Get a Quote from a Trusted Contractor
For the most part, it’s not wise to hire someone who shows up on your doorstep. Instead, you should look into a concrete contractor’s background. Read reviews and call references. Check their standing with the Better Business Bureau. Then get a detailed quote in writing before any work is started.
When you’re paying someone to carry out work on your home, you’re making an investment. The best investments are made with thought and consideration. If you never heard of a concrete repair team until the day they randomly showed up to offer their services, they probably can’t be trusted.
Ask for Detailed Information on the Damage
Any concrete repair contractor with experience in their field can tell you exactly why your structure has sustained damage. Whether the problem arose due to shrinking, settling or an improper initial installation, they’ll diagnose it and be able to explain it to you in detail.
If they can’t, you know you’re dealing with a novice, and it’s best to look elsewhere for concrete repair.
Don’t Fall for Common Tricks
One of the common scams is claiming you’ll get a “once-in-a-lifetime deal.” A scammer might tell you they have extra concrete and they have to use it that day, so they’ll give you a steep discount and do the work right then and there. This is a deal you should pass up.
No worthy concrete repair contractor canvasses neighborhoods in an attempt to get rid of “extra” material.
Another common trick is to make you feel like you’re being included in an elite group. They might mention the names of a few people in the neighborhood, and they might even lie, saying your neighbors told them to come to you next so you could join in this special deal.
If you’re hiring anyone to make concrete repairs based on the recommendation of a neighbor, call that neighbor to confirm before you hand over the money.
A Bad Repair Costs More in the Long Run
If concrete repair is completed incorrectly, you’re going to have to pay to have it removed, then you’ll have to pay again to fix the original problem. Don’t expect to chase down the scammer and get your money back or make them do it over again. They probably skipped town with your cash, and they probably don’t know how to make repairs correctly either.
If you’re looking for quality work from a team with a long list of satisfied customers, save yourself a whole lot of trouble and contact Lift-Up Concrete first when you need concrete repair for any structure on your property.
