What is So Scary About Not Having a Professional Installer?
You may have heard the horror stories…a floor is ripped up, money has exchanged hands, and then…POOF! The installer disappears and is never to be heard from again! This is no ghost story though, or murder mystery. This is fraud, and it happens to people every day from fly by night installers who simply shouldn’t be in the business. What can you do about it? Well, here are a few items to put on your checklist when hiring an installer for your flooring:
- References Anyone who is reputable should have at least a few people for you to call and talk to. If they look at you like you are crazy or refuse to produce even one, you should tell them thanks, but no thanks.
- Are they insured and bonded? Insured means you are covered if something goes wrong, and bonded means they are LEGALLY obligated to finish once they have started, and you have recourse if they don’t. Make sure your installer is BOTH.
- Social Media and digital reviews Today everyone has a megaphone in their pocket..it is called a smartphone! With a few clicks, a person can tell thousands of people about the experience they had with you, and you should check them out online to see just how many people had something to say.
- How long have they been in business? Is this a new business? That might not be bad, especially if the above 4 have criteria check out ok, but if they are brand new and have no history at all, you might never see them again after the check clears! So take a few moments and make sure that you are dealing with a person of integrity. It might sound cliche, but you don’t want to be a statistic!