Officials Offer Tips To Avoid Home Repair Scams After Storms

(KNSI) – Severe weather cut through central Minnesota this weekend, causing damage to homes. Officials are reminding you to avoid scams when finding a contractor to make repairs.

Clearwater and Monticello saw hail the size of softballs, as much as four inches in diameter. Wind gusts whipped up to over 50 miles per hour in Alexandria and Sauk Centre. It managed 49 miles per hour at St. Cloud Regional Airport.

Experts advise you to use local companies, if at all possible, for roof, siding, and other exterior work to return your house to a home. Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck told KNSI after a previous severe weather outbreak, the “ability to have that reputable contractor is really invaluable because it gives you confidence knowing that they’re less likely to rip you off or cut corners or do inferior work.”

Heck notes if you have a concern over the quality of the repairs, mediation will be easier to do with hometown businesses. You will be able to sit down face-to-face to come up with a solution, and, at worst, it is easier to involve courts when a local company with a fixed, known address is one of the parties.

If you can’t arrange something with a local company that you know of personally, officials suggest reaching out to your insurance company for a list of approved vendors.

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