Police are warning Central Albertans not to get taken in by paving scammers.
Local residents may find a person on their doorstep who is offering to do some paving work on their path or driveway.
Typically these scammers say they have extra materials from a paving job nearby — but their equipment, company vehicles, and even business cards have limited, or no details.
Paving scammers in places such as Beaverlodge, have asked people for money in advance and then skipped out on doing the paving job — or demanded payment that’s well in excess of the original quote and then threatened legal action.
Some of these fraudsters are misrepresented themselves as being from Mainroad Operations, the company that’s contracted by the Alberta government to fix highways in and around the Counties of Lacombe, Ponoka, Red Deer, and Wetaskiwin.
On Wednesday, Mainroad Operations issued a public warning saying that a Ponoka-area resident had reported a group of workers who were supposedly representing Mainroad and had offered to fill potholes and pave his driveway.
“These workers are soliciting business from residents in a fraudulent manner. Residents are strongly advised to report any suspicious activity to the local RCMP,” states the release from Mainroad Operations.
RCMP state that to prevent falling victim to this type of scam, citizens or businesses should hire known and reputable businesses, check credentials, and do not offer full payment until the work is completed.
Anyone with information about any illegal activity should please call their own RCMP detachment, or Red Deer RCMP at 403-406-2200. To remain anonymous, people can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, online at www.P3Tips.com or by using the “P3 Tips” app.
