When disaster strikes, you need to know that the people you’ve hired to help you are trustworthy. Unfortunately, there are people in this world who take advantage of others, whether that comes in the form of overcharging for services, knowingly performing substandard work, or just up and disappearing in the middle of a job. These things, and more, have all happened to unsuspecting homeowners who have hired restoration companies that didn’t deserve their trust. However, there are plenty of legitimate restoration companies out there who really value their customers. Here are a few red flags so that you can avoid getting taken advantage of. 

First Step: Read Reviews

The first step when hiring anybody, especially people who’ll be dealing with your home, is to read reviews on sites like Google Business. If people have had negative experiences with any restoration companies you’re thinking about working with, they will likely want to let other potential customers know about them. Similarly, if someone has had an incredibly positive experience, they may want to share that as well. Be sure to find a site where businesses cannot pay to remove or alter negative reviews and watch out for restoration companies with positive reviews that sound excessively generic. For example, if a company has 12 different 5-star reviews all saying basically the same thing, they could be hiring people to write fake reviews. 

Talk to Friends and Family

If your family and friends live in the same area that you do, there’s a chance that they may have experience with local restoration companies. Try asking for recommendations on Facebook or by directly contacting people who have had restoration done, and get as much information as possible from people you trust. If they’ve had overwhelmingly positive or negative experiences with certain restoration companies, they will likely be happy to talk to you about it. 

Chat With The Business

Reach out to the business before you make a decision on whether or not to hire them. You’ll likely get a better idea of who they are, what their values are, and whether they are a company you trust by speaking with them. Watch out for an unwillingness to answer questions, evasiveness, or vagueness on the company’s history or the details of the proposed project. If you cannot get a clear answer out of the company, that’s a red flag. 

Look For a Company With History in the Area

Restoration companies are trusted with a lot. You’re giving them access to your home and trusting them to put their best efforts into restoring it after a disaster. Chances are, a company which has been in the area for several years will have built up a reputation (hopefully a positive one). If a company has a history in the area, they may be able to send you before-and-after photos from a variety of jobs, showcasing their work and their abilities. 

Go With Your Gut

This might sound like an obvious tip, but if your gut tells you that something isn’t right with a certain company, listen to it. You need (and deserve!) a company that you trust and feel good about working with at the end of the day. If there’s something that bothers you about a company and continues to bother you after you do some research and chat with the company, then that could be a sign to seek out someone different. 

Looking for a Cleveland Restoration Company?

Contact Americon Restoration! With over 100 years of experience serving the Cleveland area, we pride ourselves on being reliable and fast. We bring you maximum results with minimal disruption. We know you may have concerns about COVID-19 and we want to assure you that we are doing everything in our power to keep our employees and our customers healthy and safe. Americon Restoration is taking all necessary precautions before entering our customers’ homes and closely following CDC guidelines. We want you and your family to feel safe and stay healthy! Please contact us through our website or by phone at (216) 221-5200.