Senior citizen loses $15,000 to alleged landscaping scam in San Diego
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- čas přidán 18. 06. 2024
- A 79-year-old Poway man is out $15,000 dollars, all because of an alleged landscaping scam.
“I wrote the check, I transferred the money because I felt intimidated," said Robert Guillot.
Guillot takes a lot of pride in his yard. So, when the Navy veteran was approached last month by a crew of landscapers offering to make some improvements for a good price, he took advantage of the opportunity.
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Never do business with anyone who comes to your house claiming they will do work…..always find your own workers through businesses that you call yourself. Most of these people who come to you first are scammers….always say NO.
When he was threatened, he should have called the police. Or, write the checks, then "stop payment" on those 2 checks immediately afterwards.
Yeah let them take him to court instead of the other way around.
yup, as soon as they left he should have called the bank and had them cancelled.
Exactly.... I feel for this guy but common sense is important to have.
Wow! Are you all that nieve? If he didn't pay, his house would be vandalized, vehicle vandalized or stolen.
Technically illegal to write a check knowing you are going to immediately stop payment. Don’t want to get yourself in trouble for check fraud. Don’t pay, fight it out in court. I would never let someone do work thst shows up to my door and whoever I hire I want a contract spelling out exactly what will be done, how many bags of mulch at what price and a total cost that I’m responsible for before I agree to anything. Then if it ends up in court you have a contract to show what you agreed to.
The script always starts that way: "oh, we were just in the area, doing work on your neighbor's house..."
💯
I’ve heard that quote lots of times someone claiming they’ve done work for the neighbors. I asked one time what neighbors & he didn’t have an answer. They get really pushy and obnoxious. They’re very threatening. Thank God I have security doors. I fear not answering the door because you hear of break ins when they think no one’s home. When I’ve said NO THANK YOU, they won’t accept that as an answer. Something needs to be done about this.
He should have called the cops immediately.
He didn’t get scammed because he could have refused paying them and had them take him to court. He actually was extorted as it seems they made him feel like his safety was in jeopardy.
Another liberal scared to look racist
This is why I unplugged my doorbell 10 years ago and got cameras. Sometimes they start knocking on the door after they realize that the bell doesn’t ring. I just sit here and watch them knock.
😂
Bastards.
Same here
That is exactly what I need to do . thanks
Same they can see a doorbell , but cant ring it. So if you jump gated area🤯👀👀
Never ever agree to any work when you didn't contact the company first. and why the heck did he not call the bank immediately and stop those checks!!!
why would he cover his lawn with mulch anyway? this whole story basically makes no sense
I can understand writing the checks to get the guy out of his house but should have immediately canceled the checks with the bank. Then he wouldn’t be out the money
There u go .. Exactly what I was thinking..
Thats why you ask for the total price up front.
That’s the scam. They won’t tell you. They just say 1.99 a bag. But won’t tell you many bags. You think 6-10 bags. But they come back with we used 100 bags or in this story 1900 bags of mulch.
@@djemcee if someone dumped 1500 bags of mulch on my lawn they would be picking them right back up. not gonna kill my grass.
It’s a scam. It doesn’t matter what you ask, you’re getting scammed.
@@user-ln7of9gs4s If you asked them the full amount that you would be charged at the end of service and signed a agreement this couldn't happen I am a contractor only dumb people get scammed.
@@djemcee If you asked them the full amount that you would be charged at the end of service and signed a agreement this couldn't happen I am a contractor only dumb people get scammed.
He could have put a stop payment on the checks.
It still amazes me that so many people are so gullible. Foolish folks still throw their money at phone scammers and people who show up at their door. NO sympathy.
It's the people that don't watch the news that are easily scammed.
I feel sorry for people that are gullible. I’m not gullible at all & thankful I’m not. I have found some of the nicest people can be so trusting. They’re usually so trusting because they’ve never had anyone before try to scam them. I’m real experienced with scammers. I can’t be fooled.
@@chrischamberlain7628 I don't think there would have to be an attempted scan in order for smarter people to be wary. It's just a fact that common sense just isn't that common.
Gullible people encourage bullies to bully more.
@@JeffC-fq1be I know, it’s very sad how some people really have no common sense. These fools know that & keep doing it until they find another one.
The same thing happened to me. I was scammed out of $4000 dollars. They left my lawn worse than before they started. I’m so frustrated that I fell victim to this scam. Lesson learned, don’t do business with someone knocking at your front door.
You’ve learned the lesson now, so be grateful for that. It won’t happen again to you.
I never do business with folks knocking on my door.
I’m sorry, I would not have written a 15k check to anyone that you knew at that time was scamming you especially getting in your face demanding payment. I would have called the police right then and there.
Put a NO SOLICITING sign on your door. I always say... don't call us, we'll call you if I need your service
They still try. I just smile and point to the sign.
I am a lot less polite.
@@user-dw1ls3rp1lpoint to the 2nd amendment and they wont be back
That looks like the free mulch the City of SD has the Miramar dump site. He really got taken for a ride.
Well who ever he wrote the check to when they cashed the check can't it be tracked down therefore tracking the scammer down ???????? C'mon people ..
Yup. If something is off. Don’t pay and get trusted people involved to help you. If you fear for your safety call the cops.
I am a 67 year old ex-bartender /bouncer of thirty five years. The other morning I was at the convenience store, and saw a twenty something predator on the broken payphone, assessing my vulnerability, based simply on my senior citizen status. It was the first time I ever noticed it, and was enlightening, to say the least...
1900 sandwich bags of mulch.
Lol I came here to say this. They never said how big the bags are. 😅
Do not do business with people who randomly come to your house, or friends or family, I learned my lesson the hard way. The man should have asked for the price upfront before he agreed to anything.
i don't let anybody SELL me anything I buy what i want ! in other words don't let anybody sell you something you were not looking to buy ! its like buying $20 bills that are only printed on one side for $10
So sorry for his loss, we seniors are prime targets for all manner of financial abuse. Many great comments here, it is unfortunate that at each step that he missed opportunities to put a stop to the monetary loss. In a past career I worked in insurance and with my senior clients I found many who were ill equipped to deal with scam artists - where possible I suggested they always have another family member involved in any kind or larger purchase of anything or for any service.
Makes me so angry when vulnerable people are taken advantage of, laws should be extra tough against anyone who does.
This sucks.
He should have known that it was bogus. 1900 bags of mulch is overkill
Real contractors don’t use bags-that’s for some homeowners.
I know they will get caught 🙌🙌🙌
I would have said “I never agreed to this many bags and you never gave me an estimate, go ahead and bag up your mulch and take it back, I’ll pay for you time but not for the product”
sorry, but i would never allow a thief to push me around in my home. Mr Kimber would come and address the situation.
So what is the difference between this and a person saying, give me your wallet.
Out of $15k, he doesn’t seem upset.
I would've closed the door and called the cops.
Next time hire a real company, instead of trying to get good work cheap. Good work isn't cheap and cheap work isn't good 🤦 scam artists got scammed... boo hoo 😢
I must live in a poor enough neighborhood that we don’t get this. Only scam I had was an incompetent handyman who dumped sand and cement bags in our yard to do a concrete walk instead of pouring it professionally. We had to pay for materials and donate them to the real contractor who came and did a proper pour. A contractor brings BAGS of mulch instead of a decent truck load-beware.
Window cleaners will be able to case out every window for easy access. SO. BE. AWARE !!!
Since this is a fraudulent scam going on the bank should issus a refund on both checks. And then the bank can file a federal claim against them. That would be calling in the FBI right?
find out where the checks were deposited and you can find out who did it
Always search a contractors license number on contractors license board
That’s why pay with credit card. You will have their protection
I got scammed for a 121ft(20k) reraining wall and claimed no drainrock backfill for drainage after the job was done.
Cali does a lot of "2-dimensional" work cutting corners in the things underneath.
I know you guys are pushovers, just don’t fucking pay them if they are ripping you off. That becomes a civil issue for court, if they don’t leave call the cops, if they threaten you pull out your 9 and get to work
You’re an idiot
exactly, they worked for their money and at 78 i got almost no time left to worry about going in the dirt or in prison.
@@LygerTheCLaw really? 15k is worth dying in prison? I doubt 15k means much to a guy retired in San Diego. He spends that on a day at the golf course.
The problem is that these types of scumbags will just put a lien on your home if you refuse to pay.
@@Omar_Zazzle haha. Do you think they are the government? That’s not how it works Jack ass
What in the world???!! Are people really this dumb? Jeeze. Then why didn't he stop payment on the checks and call the police?? Holy cow!
Don’t answer the door !!!
Wow, 15 grand for spreading mulch, completely completely screwed
Not all land scapers are a scam sorry you went through that .
let him take care of his health for this money because the grass is worth nothing anyway
Not sure why people do not have cameras.set up. They are so cheap. They knocked on his door because he didn't have any.
Cops want do nothing
I'm so glad i'm poor. Poverty protects me from these scams, Lol.
What? 15K. 😂
Years ago, they came and tried the same scam on me, different crew of course. I told them I’ll try one bag. I wanted to see how much the one bag would covered. Even to that, they put half a bag, and said they used a whole bag. This covered less than a 3’x3’ area. I figured at $75 bucks a so called bag. It would cost a ton of money to do the whole front yard. I told them no more, and they got upset and intimidating too. Now since they only put one bag I gave them $75 bucks cash and told them to get lost. I knew it was a scam from the start, like this gentleman knew. His mistake was agreeing to the work and going in the house. I stayed and watched them, even to that they scammed me with only half a bag of mulch. But 15K, geez, this guy has money to burn. No one I know has that kind of money in their checking account. 😢
If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.
My question is what if he didn’t have $15k after they’d completed the work?
He most likely was targeted beforehand....not many can write you a 15k check.
Plus they played on his greed of thinking he was “great deal” for $10 abag and free labor.
Shame ..they threatened him though
I will let Ring do the answering when these people come around from now on. I had some characters that came to my door a few weekends ago.
Ooo pops you got scammed
Esta mario martinez el gato martinez tony martinez osa martinez se llama claudia esposa de danilo martinez el cautor principal del robo genara la mama de claudia hijos hay no
😮😮😮
Que investiguen
Exactamente que investiguen que vergüenza robarle a ese señor
This old man scammed himself. Nothing about this entire story made sense, and he still handed over the money. You dont get what you want in this life, you get what you deserve.
Wtf
What a hero, he talked them down to 15000.00. Ha ha ha they were like “yah old man, you got us. We will make it 15k just this one time for you”
Martinez? SI SE PUEDE!
Como que si se puede no
Ellos son de guatemala y viven en inglewood
Hay que denunciarlos
Ellos son los hermanos martinez alias los tucos
Joe Biden’s America
Probably illegals...😂
This guy saw all those Hispanics and heard their low offers and decided he'd take advantage of these illegals and get his yard taken care of cheaper than a legal American landscaper could do it. I say he deserves what he got! So many times I've had homeowners choose an illegal's bid on a repair job over my bid. The illegal could bid lower because he hired only other illegals at dirt wages, carried no insurance and paid no taxes. Then when he either quit showing up or the homeowner was mad about the quality of the work, they'd call me and ask if I could finish or fix what they did. I said sure...at twice the cost of my original bid!
Victim blaming - I suppose you think its a woman's fault for being attacked because she wore a short skirt. I don't think there was any racial component to his accepting the offer, this type of scam of having left over materials from a nearby job that they can sell for cheap is an old one. They often involve senior home owners who may want to improve their home in some way but were thinking they couldn't afford it until this seemingly great offer comes along. If you are a good contractor most of your new customers should be from referrals. Many small contractors do almost no advertising and are successful on word of mouth. I think that your angry punitive response when you get a call back from a prospect trying to recover from a mistake is costing you business and potentially good referrals. If I were you my response would be: I'm so sorry the other contractor didn't work out, there may be additional charges depending on what has been done - may I come out and revisit your property? Your job when making bids is to overcome objections, I would suggest that you have a portfolio of your work either in a notebook format or online, so that prospective customers can see what kind of work you do. Best wishes.
I would say in this case he looked at it as an attack of opportunity. He wasn't actively looking for anything. So he wasn't getting bids. He def doesn't deserve this, in fact he seems like a real wholesome dude. The fact that he trusted the people means he shows not much racial prejudice. But at the end of the day he's TOO trusting and needs to cover his ass in this hostile world of today.
@@Thomas63r2 In my 50+ years in construction I owned 3 successful businesses. I had to compete against illegals almost my whole career! I call it like I see it and I have no sympathy for people who hire illegals and then get ripped off! I'm retired now, so I don't have to put up with the illegals or the people that hire them anymore! And your statement about women is totally inappropriate!
Hola si son ilegales hispanos que vergüenza que vengan hacer eso