Don’t Get Taken for a Ride: Your Guide to Avoiding Garage Door Scams
Welcome to the garage door repairs and replacements world, where scammers often prey upon homeowners. It’s unfortunate but true that many repair companies take advantage of unsuspecting homeowners by implementing schemes such as the lifetime guarantee, hardware overhaul, and emergency repair scams.
They install low-quality components, charge exorbitant labor costs, and provide free replacements when parts inevitably break.
As a result, homeowners are trapped in a never-ending cycle of repairs and replacements, leading to frustration and significant expenses. In this guide, we’ll help you identify these scams and avoid falling victim to them, allowing you to become a more informed garage door owner.
How To Avoid Scams
Homeowners frequently face various types of scams regarding garage door repair. These scams can include the lifetime guarantee scheme, the hardware overhaul hustle, and the emergency repair racket.
If a repair company fails to include labor under warranty, they might install low-quality components and provide free replacements when they wear out quickly. However, these companies charge excessively high labor costs even with free replacements. Additionally, the quality of the replaced components could be better, leading to a vicious cycle of further breakage, trapping homeowners in a frustrating and costly scenario.
The hardware overhaul scheme is one of the most common garage door repair scams. In this scenario, a professional may visit your home, inspect your garage door, and recommend replacing everything from torsion springs and cables to rollers and bearing brackets. They may even doubt the manufacturer’s warranty by implying that most garage doors break down after expiration.
Scam #1: It All Needs To Go
While such repair professionals may sound confident and convincing, they must provide complete or correct information. In reality, a properly constructed and installed garage door should last over a decade, even if the warranty on individual parts expires after a year.
If a garage door repair professional recommends replacing your entire door based on this limited information, it is wise to seek a second opinion. The rest of your garage door is in good condition and must not be replaced.
Scam #2: It’s An Emergency
The emergency garage door repair scam involves taking advantage of homeowners in urgent need of repair services. Scammers overcharge for the repairs and inflate the extent of the damage or parts needed, putting homeowners under undue financial strain. These fraudulent repair services also target homeowners needing more knowledge about their garage doors.
Thus, educating yourself about your garage door and any damage it incurs is essential. Moreover, to avoid being scammed, seek a second opinion and compare quotes to ensure you receive fair pricing.
Major Red Flags
Here are some potential warning signs that you should be aware of when dealing with garage door repair companies:
- Lack of a permanent physical address: Legitimate companies typically have a permanent physical address that you can locate. If you need help finding a company’s physical location, or if their address differs from what’s on their website or ads, be cautious when working with them.
- Prices that seem too good to be true: If a garage door company offers you significantly lower prices than other companies, they might be hiding something in the fine print. Always read any contract carefully and investigate hidden costs or red flags before signing if the fees seem too low.
- Recent or frequent name changes: If the name of the company you are dealing with is new, changes frequently, or differs from their advertisements or website, consider finding another company to work with. Listen closely when they answer the phone to confirm that the name matches their website or ads. Changes in company names may indicate that they are trying to evade someone or something.
- Unprofessional attire or unmarked work vehicle: If a work van arrives without identifying markers such as the company’s name, logo, or contact info, investigate further. Although the company may still be legitimate, an unmarked vehicle may indicate an illegitimate company.
- Lack of Better Business Bureau (BBB) rating or history: You can check the BBB to ensure the company is listed under its given name. If they have no rating or account with the BBB, be cautious when working with them.
- Suspicious or nonexistent website: A company’s website is vital to its legitimacy in today’s digital landscape. However, if a company is illegitimate but still has a website, likely, they won’t go to great lengths to update or fill out their website. Thus, suspiciously vague or nonexistent websites are signs of illegitimate companies.
- Excessive advertising: While advertising is necessary for businesses, excessive advertising may indicate that the company is overcharging to recoup expenses.
- Trust your gut: If you have an uneasy feeling about a particular company, take the time to do some background research. Your intuition may tell you something is off before you know exactly what it is.
Go With An Experienced Company
In conclusion, dealing with garage door scams can be a frustrating and costly experience for homeowners. However, with so many scams and red flags to watch out for, it’s important to trust a reputable and experienced garage door company like Hostetler & Askew. With over 40 years of experience serving the greater Goshen area, they have built a solid reputation for providing high-quality garage door services, including repairs and replacements, at fair and competitive prices.
By choosing a trusted and established local company like Hostetler & Askew, homeowners can know that their garage doors are in good hands and will not fall victim to any garage door scams. Call now! 574.444.9700
