| HOME AND HOME APPLIANCE REPAIR AND IMPROVEMENTS
Q. Does the law protect consumers who contract for home repairs
or improvements?
A. Yes. The Federal Trade Commission and federal truth-in-lending
laws police this area. To
a certain extent, the states regulate home repairs, too. Generally, as
in any other contract,
home-repair contractors may not mislead you in any way to get the job.
Be aware of these
tricks:
• promising a lower price for allowing your home to be used as a
model or to advertise their
work;
• promising better quality materials than they will use (beware
of "bait and switch" here as
well);
• providing "free gifts" - find out when you will receive
them, or try to get a price reduction
instead;
• not including delivery and installation costs in the price; starting
work before you sign a
contract, to intimidate you;
• claiming that your house is dangerous and needs repair;
• claiming that the contractor works for a government agency;
• offering you a rebate or referral fee if any of your friends agree
to use the same contractor.
Q. How may I protect myself?
A. Get several written estimates. Check into a contractor's track
record with other customers
before you sign a contract. Don't pay the full price in advance, and certainly
not in cash. Don't
sign a completion certificate or receipt until the contractor finishes
the work to your
satisfaction - including cleanup.
Q. Are there special things to look for in a home-improvement
contract?
A. Yes. Be sure the contract has all the details in writing.
Too often a contract of this type will
read "work as per agreement." Instead it should specify who
will do the work, and include a
detailed description of the work, the materials to be used, and the dates
of starting and
completion. It also should contain all charges, including any finance
charges if you are paying
over a period of time. In addition, the contract should include the hourly
rate on which the
total cost is to be based. Be sure any "guarantee" is in writing.
Be especially wary of any mortgage or security interest the contractor
takes in your
home, which means that you may lose your home if you don't meet the payments
for the work.
(If the contractor takes a mortgage or security interest, federal law
gives you three days to
change your mind and cancel.)
Consider having a lawyer look at the contract, especially if there's a
security
agreement. If problems do arise that threaten your rights to own your
home, see a lawyer
immediately. (For more on this topic, see the section on home ownership.)
The Top 10 Consumer Problems
The State of New Jersey's Office of Consumer Protection published
a list of the 10 most
troublesome consumer problems in that state, which unfortunately exist
in every state. The list
also includes basic advice for handling each problem.
•
Fly-by-night home repair contractors (as discussed previously in this
chapter).
• Telephone solicitations. Always ask the caller
to send written information. Also,
determine your total obligation before agreeing to anything. Don't
give credit-card
information to strangers over the telephone.
• Furniture delivery delays. Do not take "ASAP" (as
soon as possible) as a delivery date in a
sales contract. Get an exact date. If the merchandise doesn't show
up by that date, you
would then have the right to cancel.
• Free vacation offers.
An example is the postcard telling you about a "free vacation"
you
have won: Just call a toll-free number and "confirm" your
credit card number. Later the
vacation is not as free as you thought. Play it safe--book your travel
arrangements through
a reliable agent or directly with travel carriers.
• "Bait
and switch" tactics (see the section above on advertising).
• Mail-order rip-offs. When shopping by mail, you're always
taking a risk. When the offer
sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• Work-at-home
schemes. Usually aimed at young mothers and the disabled, these schemes
promise to help you "earn money in your spare time." They'll
ask you for twenty dollars in
"startup" costs. What
you'll get is information about how to rip someone else off the way
they just cheated you.
• Detours around contract cooling-off
periods (see the section above on door-to-door sales).
Federal law only protects you if you sign the contract in your home
or somewhere other
than the normal place of business. Even at home, don't depend on a
cooling-off period -
think before you sign.
• Health spa memberships. Most complaints
center on high-pressure sales tactics. A year's
membership can cost quite a bundle--make sure that you'll use it,
and that all
"understandings" and assurances are in
writing.
• Time-share lures. People often buy time-sharing
vacations on impulse. Be sure you're
ready to go to the same place during the same period of time for years
to come. If the timesharing resort (or condominium or whatever) is
not fully built, make sure all occupancy
dates are in the contract and review these contracts with a lawyer.
High-pressure timeshare
sales pitches have led to a federal law giving consumers some protections.
The
federal Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act gives you the right,
in some
circumstances, to get out of a time-share contract.)
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More Top Scams
A listing of the "top scams" compiled by the Better Business
Bureau of Mainland British
Columbia (Canada) adds the following:
• phony invoices that
look authentic but are really solicitations;
• advertisements
offering "big money" overseas jobs which are really selling
nearly
worthless listings;
• look-alike postal notices asking for
payment to release unsolicited merchandise held at a
warehouse in the recipient's name;
• offshore lotteries
implying that you've won even before you buy your tickets;
•
loan brokers who charge hefty up-front fees but seldom deliver;
• solicitation for "charities" that are really businesses.
The Better Business Bureau usually can help consumers only before
they commit. It maintains
information on the reliability of businesses throughout the continent,
but it is not a
government agency and has no power to enforce contracts or penalize
wrongdoers. |
Q. What about appliance repairs?
A. Much of what the "Automobiles" chapter discusses
about car repairs applies to home
appliance repairs. You can best protect your rights by getting a written
estimate. At least make
sure you get an oral estimate before work begins, telling how the repair
shop will figure the
total charge, including parts and labor. Also, tell the repair shop to
get your approval before
beginning work. It will then be able to give you a better idea of how
much the repair will cost.
Q. How can I determine whether is it no longer worth fixing a
major appliance?
A. When deciding whether to repair or replace, consider these
points:
• the appliance's age and likely life span after this repair, compared
with that of a new
appliance;
• how the repaired appliance will compare with a new appliance in
operating costs and
efficiency;
• the length of the warranty on the repair, compared with the warranty
on a new appliance;
• the price of a new appliance compared with the cost of the repairs.
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