風蕭蕭_Frank
以文會友
成本$300要價$10萬：士嘉堡夫婦修補屋頂搭上畢生積蓄
士嘉堡一對退休老夫婦萬萬沒想到，修補家裏的屋頂竟變成一場噩夢，導致他們失去了畢生的積蓄。
兩周前，73歲的羅賓（Robin Rushton）正在家門口的院子裏幹活，一名男子走了過來詢問他是否需要給煙囪加一個蓋子，報價為800元。
他和妻子朱迪（Judy Poirier）都是退休教師，他們一致同意支付這項服務的費用。朱迪說："我們早就想這麽做了。"
這個決定引發了一係列糟心的事，導致他們失去了7萬元。
在完成煙囪工程時，一名工人說他發現屋頂上有損壞。最初，隻需要更換屋頂瓦片。隨後，更有經驗的工人——一名屋頂工和一名"檢查員"聲稱發現了更嚴重的問題，需要進行結構修複，材料和人工費用需合計6.2萬元。
朱迪說，在接下來的兩天裏，這份報價不斷上漲，最後超過了10萬元。
"強烈的恐嚇手段"
朱迪說，這些人通過"強烈的恐嚇手段"，讓房主相信自家的屋頂需要立即施工，否則就會塌陷。
朱迪說："他們說木頭潮濕、腐爛、破損、發黴。屋頂將會坍塌，非常危險。冬天就要來了。"
"我們嚇壞了。我們想，'天呐，及時發現真是不幸中的萬幸。因為萬一屋頂塌下來，後果不堪設想。'"
這對夫婦為煙囪支付了800元，為整修露台支付了1500元，為更換瓦片支付了5000元的押金，所有都是用現金支付。
當承包商說屋頂需要進行額外施工時，他們要求朱迪給承包商開具一張4萬元的銀行匯票，羅賓也開具了一張自己的3萬元銀行匯票。
這些銀行匯票的收款人是一個他們從未見過的人，而不是屋頂公司或其員工。朱迪說，她認為這個人是供應材料的個體或進行設計工作的建築公司。
CBC新聞未能找到接收7萬元銀行匯票的人。
成本300元，要價10萬元
朱迪說，他們要求對方提供明細發票和其他書麵文件，但遭到拒絕，這最終讓他們產生了懷疑，於是他們請來了一位有施工經驗的朋友洛德（Dean Lord）對正在進行的工作進行評估。
洛德在木工領域工作了26年，他說他發現屋頂的結構沒有任何問題，不需要進行如此大規模的重建，隻需要更換一套新的瓦片，費用大約為8,500元。
他指出："隔熱層沒有水漬，框架上也沒有水漬，屋頂的結構是完好的，不會坍塌。"
洛德批評該公司所做的工作是"垃圾"，並說他們提供的報價"太離譜了"。
他說："他們用幾張膠合板和幾塊2x4的木板進行修補，成本大概300元，這不是一項價值10萬元的工作。"
根據洛德的評估，這些工作既不必要又不符合標準。這令朱迪和羅賓感到震驚，他們憤怒地將施工人員趕出房子。
這對夫婦急忙趕到各自的銀行，要求撤銷銀行匯票，但為時已晚。
銀行工作人員表示他們無能為力，錢已經轉走了。
朱迪當場崩潰了，那是他們畢生的積蓄。
她在事後選擇曝光是為了提醒其他人，不要落入同樣的陷阱。
承包商反咬一口：還沒進行整改就被要求離開
Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry公司的經理約翰遜（Derek Johnson）在接受電話采訪時承認，房主對公司所做的工作不滿意，但他說工人們正試圖整改工作時卻被要求離開。
約翰遜說："我們多次試圖聯係（房主），但似乎聯係不上他們。我們不是拿了錢就跑的公司。"
約翰遜拒絕回答有關工程成本或公司是否計劃退款給這對夫婦的問題，他說負責公司財務決策者目前正在度假中，無法提供答案。
CBC新聞多次聯係該公司的所有者，但截至發文前仍未能與其取得聯係。與此同時，安省商業登記處搜索"Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry"，沒有找到以該名稱注冊的企業。
工傷保險局（Workplace Safety and Insurance Board）的一位發言人說，企業必須出於保險目的而進行注冊，但該機構沒有以Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry或公司網站提供的聯係信息注冊的企業。不過，發言人表示企業有可能使用不同的地址、電話號碼或法定名稱進行注冊。
Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry公司網站上列出的營業地址是一家不同的企業，主要郵政信箱和接收郵件。
警方警告：房屋裝修詐騙案激增
多倫多警方警告稱，最近家庭裝修詐騙案激增。警方在上個月發布的一份新聞稿中稱，犯罪嫌疑人通常會挨家挨戶招攬生意，分發欺詐或不存在的公司的傳單，並提供屋頂、鋪路或圍欄等服務。
警方表示，這些工程通常要麽根本不會完成，要麽不達標準或使用劣質產品。
"犯罪嫌疑人通常以老年人和弱勢群體為目標，他們通常要求以現金或銀行匯票的形式付款。"
多倫多警方證實，朱迪和羅賓已於11月13日向警方投訴，並表示調查仍在進行中。
來源鏈接：https://twitter.com/jobnews41/status/1726951225802035515
Toronto retirees say life savings lost after door-to-door reno pitch
Two weeks ago, Robin Rushton was doing yard work outside his Scarborough home when he was approached by a man who asked if he wanted his chimney capped.
Rushton and his partner, Judy Poirier, who are both 73-year-old retired teachers, agreed to pay for the service, which can protect a chimney from animals and the elements.
“We had been wanting to do this for a while,” Poirier said. “The guy said $800. So we thought, ‘Great, sure, go ahead.'”
That decision kicked off a series of events that Poirier says led to the couple losing their life savings.
Over a period of days, Porter said three individuals associated with a company called Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry noticed other things on the property that needed to be fixed, starting with their deck, which they agreed to sand and finish for $2,500.
While completing the chimney work, one worker said he identified damage on the roof. Originally, it was just the shingles that needed to be replaced. Then, more senior workers — a roofer and an “inspector” — claimed to notice more extensive problems requiring structural repairs that would cost $62,000 for materials and labour.
Over the next two days, Poirier said that quote rose steadily to beyond $100,000.
‘Heavy scare tactics’
Poirier said the men used “very heavy scare tactics” to convince the homeowners that they needed to do the work immediately or their roof was going to cave in.
“He used the words that there was damp wood, rotting wood, broken wood, mould. The roof was going to collapse. It was dangerous. Winter is coming,” Poirier said.
“We were terrified. We thought, ‘Oh my God, this is a blessing in disguise that this happened, because imagine if the roof had fallen in on us.'”
In total, the teachers said they paid $800 for the chimney, $1,500 to refurbish their deck, and paid a $5,000 deposit for the shingle replacement, all in cash.
When the contractors said additional work on the roof needed to be done, they requested Poirier give the contractor a $40,000 bank draft. Rushton also provided a bank draft of his own for $30,000.
The bank drafts were made out to a person they had never met — not the roofing company or its employees. Poirier said she thought the person was the individual supplying the materials or an architectural firm doing design work.
CBC Toronto was not able to locate the individual who received the $70,000 in bank drafts.
Poirier said their requests for itemized invoices and other paperwork were rebuffed, which eventually made them suspicious enough to call in a friend who has contracting experience that they trusted to evaluate the work being done.
What he found shocked Poirier and Rushton, and caused them to kick the crew off their property.
Dean Lord, who’s worked as a framer for 26 years, said he found there was nothing structurally wrong with the roof that would have required such an extensive rebuild.
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Lord said their roof could have used a new set of shingles, which would have cost around $8,500, but the structure did not need to be replaced.
“There was no water damage and no water damage to the insulation. There was no water stains on the framing of the rafters,” Lord said.
“That roof was not falling down. It was structurally fine.”
Lord criticized the work the company was doing as “garbage” and said the quote they provided for the job was “outrageous.”
“They were patching it with a few sheets of plywood at $300 expense and a couple two-by-fours and that’s not a $100,000 job,” Lord said.
Company says it was told to leave before it could rectify work
Derek Johnson, a manager at Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry, admitted in a phone interview that the homeowners weren’t happy with the work the company had done, but said the workers were trying to rectify it when they were told to leave.
“We have been trying to contact [the homeowners] several times and we can’t seem to get hold of them,” Johnson said.
“It’s not like we’re taking the money and run.”
Johnson refused to answer questions about the cost of the work or if the company plans to refund Poirier and Rushton, saying the owner of the company makes financial decisions and is away on vacation.
CBC Toronto reached out to the owner multiple times, but was unable to reach him by the time of publication. A search for Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry in the Ontario Business Registry couldn’t find a business registered to that name.
A spokesperson with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, with whom businesses are required to register for insurance purposes, said it also doesn’t have a business registered to the name Eagle Eye Roofing and Masonry or the contact information provided on the company’s website. But the spokesperson said it’s possible the company registered using a different address, phone number or legal name.
The business address listed on the company’s website is a separate business that rents out postal boxes and accepts mail.
Police warn of surge in home renovation scams
The situation is unfolding as police warn of a recent surge in home renovation frauds.
In a news release last month, Toronto police said suspects usually solicit business door-to-door, hand out flyers for fraudulent or non-existent companies, and offer services for roofing, paving or fencing.
Police say the work is usually never completed, is substandard or is done with poor quality products.
“Suspects often target elderly and vulnerable citizens using high pressure tactics to commence work. They usually demand payment in the form of cash or bank draft,” the release said.
Toronto police confirmed Poirier and Rushton filed a formal complaint with them on Nov. 13, adding the investigation is ongoing.
Armed with Lord’s assessment that the work was both unnecessary and substandard, Poirier and Rushton rushed to their respective banks to ask to reverse the bank drafts. But it was too late.
Bank staff said there was nothing they could do. The money was gone.
“I’m an emotional wreck … I can’t tell you how terrible it is,” Poirier said. “We’ve had to cancel our vacation we were going on. I don’t know how, if, we’ll ever be able to build our savings up again.”
Poirier said she is speaking out to warn others.
“I just don’t want people to be caught up in the same situation,” she said. “If somebody tries to tell you there’s anything wrong with your home, stop immediately. Sit back, take a breath and find other people that are in the same business and get other assessments.”
