BSO Sweep Nets Numerous Unlicensed Contractors
They went online to Craigslist to find South Florida contractors willing to do the work.
As the parade of would-be contractors showed up to bid on the renovations, none of them walked out with a contract.
Instead, each man walked out with a notice to appear in court.
The operation was part of a Broward Sheriff’s Office crackdown on unlicensed contractors.
Detective Danny Belyeu played the role of homeowner in the two-day undercover sting.
“This has become a huge problem,” Det. Belyeu told CBS4′s Carey Codd. “It’s large now mainly because, I think, it’s economy driven.”
Belyeu said with so many people out of work, there’s even more of a need to make sure the people being hired to do home improvement jobs are licensed. Belyeu said homeowners need to do their homework and make sure whoever they hire to do renovations on their home is properly licensed.
“They need to be aware that there are a lot of people out here who are not qualified,” Belyeu said. “There are people out here who will take money and not do anything. They need to be very cautious when they hire people to come out and do the work.
“They need to do a little bit of diligence and not look for the low price.”
One of the workers who showed up at the house is Manuel Escoto. He offered to install doors and windows at the home and after he was arrested, he admitted to CBS4 that he did not have a license to do the work.
He said he did it, “Because I needed a job.”
Escoto and the other 10 people arrested face a misdemeanor charge of operating as an unlicensed contractor. They could face a fine and be forced to pay court costs.
If someone is caught operating as an unlicensed contractor during a state of emergency, such as a hurricane, the charge is enhanced to a felony.
The workers who showed up at the 4-bedroom home in Southwest Broward offered to do just about everything — install a pool pump, install impact-resistant doors and windows, put in ceiling fans. Each renovation required a license and state investigators said each worker that showed up did not have the proper license.
Cheryl Biesky is the regional program administrator for the Department of Business and Professional Regulations. She said the unlicensed contractors make life difficult for licensed workers.
“The licensed contractors that put so much time and effort and are reputable they’re getting the short end of the stick because they’re always being underbid by the unlicensed contractor,” Biesky said.
Some of the men caught in the BSO sting claimed to work under someone else’s license. But investigators say that doesn’t cut it.
“The same thing would [be] true if somebody said, I have a friend who is a dentist but I want to do some dentistry work in my garage and if I show up and say, by the way, are you licensed and you can’t say I work under my friend’s license and he’s a dentist,” Belyeu said.
Belyeu said there are other reasons why homeowners need to be careful — the work performed by unlicensed contractors might be substandard and not up to code.
He also said that during a prior sting operation half of the people they arrested had serious criminal backgrounds.
“These people are coming into your homes,” he said. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with and potentially you’re bringing in criminals and negotiating and giving them your money.”
Several of the people arrested also received county citations for not having proper business markings on their vehicles. A contractor’s vehicle is supposed to have the business name, telephone number and license number on it.
Investigators said there are many steps homeowners can take to make sure a contractor is licensed.
You can go to www.myfloridalicense.com or call 1(850) 487-1395 to check on a licensee.
Investigators also warned consumers not to pay large deposits for work up front and never make out a check to an individual.
“A reputable company will always want the check made out to the company and not to an individual,” Biesky said.