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Scam alert

Storm Repairs Offered at the Door? Check the License First

Updated · First posted

Florida Panhandle · wjhg.com · Arrives by a knock at the door, or a call that looks official

The short answer

A crew that turns up after a storm and wants money before you have checked its license and permit is the sign to stop. In October 2026, ahead of Hurricane Isaias, Georgia's attorney general urged homeowners to know their rights before signing post-disaster repair contracts. In September 2026, federal prosecutors, the FBI and the Bay County Sheriff's Office in Florida described unlicensed crews offering cleanup and repairs with documents that do not hold up. In Florida, check a company on Sunbiz, its license with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, and the permit with the county building department.

What is happening

On October 9, 2026, as Georgians prepared for Hurricane Isaias, Attorney General Chris Carr warned of storm-related scams and encouraged homeowners to understand their rights under Georgia law before signing contracts with contractors for repairs after a natural disaster, as FOX 5 Atlanta also reported. On September 15, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida, the FBI, and the Bay County Sheriff's Office warned at a joint briefing, reported by WJHG, that crews move into storm-hit communities offering cleanup and repairs, sometimes without required licenses or permits and with fake documents, while fraudsters spoof agency phone numbers and create counterfeit charity websites. In September 2026, Florida's attorney general sued construction companies over door-to-door repairs after Hurricanes Ian and Milton, where at least 80 consumers reported paying more than $1 million for roof and mold work left unfinished or not started; Connecticut's attorney general warned before a nor'easter that people claiming to work for utility companies have gone door to door offering to reconnect power for cash; and Indiana's attorney general sued storm contractors accused of working without a license after storms in August.

How to recognize it

  • The crew arrived without being called, and is working a long way from where it is based.
  • Payment is asked for in full up front, or in cash, or the price moves once the work has started.
  • There is always a reason the license or the permit cannot be shown right now.
  • The paperwork looks official, but the company is hard to find in any state register.
  • The quote covers something hard to compare, such as clearing debris, rather than a defined job.
  • A separate caller claims to be a federal agency or the sheriff's office, and the number on the screen looks genuine.

What to do instead

  1. Check the company on your state's own register before money moves. In Florida that means Sunbiz for the business and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation for the license.
  2. Confirm the permit with your county building department, which is the step the briefing named.
  3. Search the company name together with the word scam or complaint, which is the FTC's suggestion, and ask people you already trust who they have used.
  4. Get the scope and the price in writing, and avoid paying the whole amount before any work happens.
  5. End any call claiming to be the FBI or the sheriff about a warrant, then ring that agency on a number you look up yourself.
  6. Tell your insurer before committing if the work is part of a claim. They see these arrangements often.
  7. In Georgia, read the Attorney General's storms and fraud guidance before you sign. State law gives homeowners added protections when they contract for repairs after a natural disaster.
  8. If you want to tell someone, the rule is: check the license and the permit before any money changes hands.

If it already happened

Responding to one of these is common and understandable. These steps are what people usually take next.

  1. Paying a crew after storm damage is common and understandable. There is a lot to fix, and the offer arrives when help is needed most.
  2. Call your bank or card issuer if you paid by card or transfer, and ask what can still be stopped or disputed.
  3. Report it to your local law enforcement and to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov, both of which the briefing pointed to.
  4. Tell your insurer, particularly if the work was part of a claim.
  5. In Georgia, report a suspected scam to the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division at 404-651-8600 or 1-800-869-1123, and suspected insurance fraud by a roofer or other contractor to the Insurance Commissioner's Office at 404-656-2070 or 1-800-656-2298.
  6. Keep the contract, the receipts, photographs of whatever was done, and any vehicle or company details you noted at the time.
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Common questions

They showed me a license and a written contract. Wasn't that enough?
Documents are the easiest part of this to produce, which is why the officials at that briefing pointed at registers rather than paperwork. A license number can be looked up in your state's own records in a couple of minutes, and that check is the one a fake cannot pass.
Does anyone legitimate knock on doors after a storm?
Yes, plenty of real firms do, and turning them all away is not the point. The doorstep is not what tells you either way — the license and the permit are. A genuine contractor expects to be looked up and is not troubled by the wait.
The number that called me matched the sheriff's office. How can that not be them?
Caller ID displays whatever the calling system sends, so a real agency number can be made to appear on your screen. The officials at that briefing described exactly this, with the plain rule that the FBI is not calling you and the Sheriff's Office is not calling about a warrant.

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Storm Repairs Offered at the Door? Check the License First

A crew that turns up after a storm and wants money before you have checked its license and permit is the sign to stop. In October 2026, ahead of Hurricane Isaias, Georgia's attorney general urged homeowners to know their rights before signing post-disaster repair contracts. In September 2026, federal prosecutors, the FBI and the Bay County Sheriff's Office in Florida described unlicensed crews offering cleanup and repairs with documents that do not hold up. In Florida, check a company on Sunbiz, its license with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, and the permit with the county building department.

Read the full alert: https://endscamsproject.com/latest-scams/storm-repair-contractor-scams

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