Tis the Season for Boston Homeowners to Avoid Home Improvement Scams

Contractor grievances top list of national consumer complaints

Golden, Colo. (PRWEB) November 20, 2005 -- Red is the color most closely associated with the holiday season – but for Boston resident and bride-to-be Lisa Radzevich, red was the color she was seeing just one month before her wedding. With the big day approaching and guests pouring into her home, the last thing she needed to worry about was the painter she hired through a referral who left her home looking like a candy cane. Lisa was seeing red and it wasn’t just the paint on the walls.

Nightmare contractor stories are nothing new. In fact, according to The National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators, gripes about home improvement contractors have been among the top five consumer complaints filed with state and local consumer agencies for the last five years. In 2004, complaints against home improvement contractors topped the list at number one, beating out automobile sales, auto repair, credit fraud and telecommunications complaints.

Having had a poor experience hiring contractors through the yellow-pages, Home Depot and now a trusted referral, Lisa was desperate and went online as her last resort. “I came across ServiceMagic.com, a matchmaking website that said it would connect me with prescreened residential contractors. I had nothing to lose so I tried it.” After plugging details about her project into a form and adding a note outlining the work she needed, she submitted her service request. Within minutes she had names, contact information, complete profiles and past Customer Ratings & Reviews for three contractors in her area. First thing next morning she had someone at her house who provided a bid and then completed the project one day later. The wedding was saved…or at least the bride’s sanity was.

“The key to any successful home improvement project is doing ones homework.” said Rodney Rice, co-CEO of ServiceMagic. “With the Holiday season upon us, many folks are short on time and may have a greater tendency to skip doing the necessary screening on the service professional they hire. We started ServiceMagic to take out the legwork required to find reputable providers. A Christmas present of sorts to all American homeowners.”

ServiceMagic (www.servicemagic.com) connects homeowners with prescreened and customer-rated residential contractors in their area. In fact, more than 33,600 consumer service requests have been placed by Boston residents this year to find a contractor (from maid services to custom home builders and everything in between). ServiceMagic prescreens the contractors in its national network, consisting of 35,500 residential contractors – more than 1,300 in the Boston area– to verify they hold applicable state licensing and insurance. Consumers rate the contractors they hire through ServiceMagic so future consumers can view this information prior to making a hiring decision. Additionally, the company provides a customer resolution center and service guarantee if projects go awry.

Tips for Hiring the Right Contractor
ServiceMagic helps consumers save time by prescreening its member businesses for applicable state licensing and insurance and providing past customer feedback. To avoid home improvement contractor nightmare stories, ServiceMagic suggest consumers consider doing the following homework, especially if they are working with a non-ServiceMagic contractor.

- Verify Insurance. Ask the contractor to provide a copy of their insurance certificate and verify with the insurance agency or carrier that the policy is still in good standing.
- Verify Proper Licensing. Ask the contractor to provide a copy of their license or check with the state licensing board. It is important that you verify the license is still in good standing.
- Check References. Call the references and if possible go look at the work.
- Finalize the Contract Before Starting a Project and Document all Changes. Make sure all changes to the original contract, no matter how small, are documented and signed off by both parties.
- Pay Upon Completion. Don't pay in full until the project is completely finished and you have completed your final inspection. Avoid paying in cash and be sure to get a receipt for all payments. Some states have legal limits on the amount of a down payment contractors can ask for; check with the Contractor State Licensing Board to verify the limits in your state.
- Get Detailed Estimates. Know exactly how much everything is going to cost so there are no last-minute surprises – make sure you get it in writing.

About ServiceMagic®, Inc.
ServiceMagic®, Inc., headquartered in Golden, Colo., is the nation's leading online marketplace connecting homeowners with prescreened and customer-rated home service professionals. Using proprietary technology to match consumer service requests with local service professionals in real time, the company addresses more than 500 different home service needs that range from simple home repairs and maintenance to complete home remodeling projects. ServiceMagic’s nationwide network is made up of more than 35,500 prescreened home service professionals. The company is an operating business of IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI). For more information visit http://www.servicemagic.com.

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