ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The Anchorage Police Department has issued a warning to Anchorage residents after receiving multiple complaints of door-to-door salesmen offering driveway paving and asphalt services for a fraction of the cost.
In a post on social media Thursday, the department said a company has recently been scamming homeowners in Southcentral Alaska — either not showing up after a customer pays up front, or using inferior products to complete the job.
In an emailed response from APD Friday afternoon, community relations specialist Amanda Brimanis said the department “cannot release any names of businesses unless/until criminal charges are filed.”
Tim Schrage, owner of Signature Land Services, said this is not the first time he’s heard of these scams within the state since opening his business 15 years ago — but it’s a common occurrence down in the Lower 48.
“They move from state to state, they change logos on their trucks, they buy false business licenses, they build a website — they do everything to look legitimate,” Schrage said. “They’re out to try and get people to make instant decisions on paving their driveways or sealcoating their driveways. They typically do a haphazard job, they get their money, and they leave town before they get caught.”
Schrage said the scammers don’t necessarily have a financial impact on his business, saying he’s more concerned that it’s creating mistrust between residents and reputable dealers.
“They change the tone in our market for what paving companies do,” Schrage said. “The vast majority of us are Alaskans for life. We’re folks that are employing Alaskans. We just want to see that the customer gets what they pay for.”
According to Schrage, door-to-door sales are not a standard practice in the paving industry, and homeowners should always get an official estimate from a company before hiring them to perform any work on their property.
He said the scammers will knock on doors offering services for a fraction of the price, saying they have leftover materials from another job they completed in the neighborhood and forcing an individual to make an instant decision over whether or not to take them up on the deal.
APD also said the scammers try to get people to pay up front and then never return to the home to complete the work.
Schrage said there are other red flags that consumers can look out for, such as a recently-issued business license, sole proprietorship of a contractor’s license, and if the Better Business Bureau has flagged the company.
He said reputable paving contractors have been working together to inform the public of the scammers, and that they’ve been working with their suppliers to be diligent about who they distribute materials to.