Police warn public to be wary of home maintenance cold call scam

At this stage, police believe the offending may be occurring in parts of Auckland however it could not rule out other areas as well. Photo / 123RF

Police have warned the public to be wary of scammers offering maintenance work, often roofing, who are overcharging for incomplete or poor work.

They are appealing to the public to contact police if they have been victim of a home maintenance scam in recent weeks.

Acting Superintendent Dave Glossop, the Tāmaki Makaurau deployment manager, said police had recently been made aware that there may be small groups of individuals committing these sorts of scams.

Police had received information that a group of men have been in the Auckland area carrying out behaviour which is very similar to the roofing scam last year.

That scam was perpetrated by a group, infamously dubbed the 'unruly tourists', who hoodwinked victims into paying thousands of dollars after convincing them they required roof repairs.

At this stage, while police believe the offending may be occurring in parts of Auckland they could not rule out other areas as well.

"Typically in these sorts of scams these individuals will cold call homeowners offering to do maintenance work on parts of the house, often roofing," Glossop said.

"In some cases, victims could be overcharged for work that is either never completed or is poorly executed."

Glossop said reporting these sorts of incidents were important so that police can investigate and hold any offenders to account.

"Falling victim to these sorts of scams can be upsetting and potentially embarrassing for those involved, however reporting them is crucial so others don't fall victim too," he said.

"As the saying goes: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

"Our advice in these sorts of situations is to be vigilant; don't engage with these sort of cold calls and never hand over any money."

Police are encouraging anyone who may have been a victim to report it through the 105 number. Residents can also report suspicious activity in their neighbourhood by calling Police on 111 immediately.