BEAUMONT, Texas — The Better Business Bureau is sending a message out to Southeast Texans to beware as contractors come into your neighborhood offering repair work after severe storms.
Marshall Stone and his wife Kay, plan to re-build their Orange County home.
"Everybody in here flooded. He thought I left the garage door up and I said the garage door was down and then we walked out here and saw that there was no garage door. It was inside."
The Stone's aren't alone in having to re-build.
Orange County Judge John Gothia says at least 100 homes need repairs and about 15-20 homes need major re-builds.
"A lot of those trees end up on houses, and on garages and then a lot structural damage to homes a lot of roofs they get torn off. Depending on what level that damage is, whether they get rained inside the house after the roof is gone," Gothia said.
The BBB wants everyone to avoid scams as criminals look to take advantage of the most vulnerable in the community as they clean up and re-build.
The first thing the BBB advises is that you report damages to your insurance.
When looking for a contractor, there are certain factors to keep in mind.
"Resist those high pressure sales tactics. Um, just because they say they're a legitimate business does not mean that they are," BBB Southeast Texas President Darren Erwin said. "We call those storm chasers in the area and that happens all across the country."
Erwin warns that just because they try to convince you it's a good deal, you need to verify where that storm chaser is from.
It's also important to not pay cash upfront.
"Better Business Bureau does is accredit businesses and we cover businesses across all industries, but specifically contractors those that are going out and in your home. So, one thing we encourage victims of natural disasters to do is to use accredited businesses," Erwin said.
This isn't the first natural disaster to happen in Southeast Texas, and it won't be the last.
Orange County leaders want to remind you to protect yourself.
"You know I've had to rebuild my house a couple of of times as well through storms and you get, you learn to have really good conversations with whoever your looking at doing work with you," Gothia said. "And make sure that you do your homework, you know look at those reviews."
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