Sandy victims throughout South Queens and Rockaway have, after being devastated by the hurricane, faced fraudulent contractors not finishing work on their homes – or running off with their money before the contractors even begin construction. In light of this, Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder has asked New York’s attorney general to conduct an investigation. File Photo
A South Queens legislator and residents have a message for fraudulent Sandy contractors: Beware. Your time is up.
After numerous reports of fraudulent contractors exploiting residents in Howard and Hamilton Beach, Broad Channel, and Rockaway, who were trying to piece together the pieces of their lives after Hurricane Sandy devastated the area, Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder (D-Howard Beach) has called on state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to launch an investigation for the victims who have been plagued by contractors’ shoddy and unfinished work.
“Sandy has left many of our families vulnerable to fraud and abuse by unscrupulous contractors who have taken advantage of our community during our most difficult time,” Goldfeder said. “I am asking [Schneiderman] to work with the appropriate city and state agencies to immediately investigate and hold all contractors accountable for their work in our Sandy-damaged communities.”
More than a year after Sandy destroyed much of South Queens and Rockaway, thousands of people are still struggling to complete repairs on their homes damaged in the storm. Many of those individuals, after losing an untold amount of money because of Sandy, have one more woe to add to a seemingly never-ending list: Unscrupulous contractors – both out-of-state and local – have left hurricane victims reeling further after promising to rebuild homes but bailing before completing the job – or running off with the victims’ checks without conducting any of the repair work.
“It’s worse than we ever imagined,” said Dolores Nisbett, a Broad Channel resident. “I made deposits to a licensed contractor for $29,000 to fix the interior of my home, and $18,000 for the exterior, and he left us with unfinished tiling and poorly installed sheetrock. He destroyed our home, and now I have to pay more to hire a new contractor to finish his mess.”
Goldfeder detailed concerns he has heard from numerous constituents in his recent letter to Schneiderman.
“Sandy was an unfortunate disaster, but we need to stay vigilant now more than ever to ensure we make a full recovery,” Goldfeder said. “[Schneiderman] has done a tremendous job holding organizations accountable in the aftermath of Sandy, and now we need him to stop these con artists before they come into our homes and take off with our families’ hard-earned money and savings.”
By Anna Gustafson
