IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT MAY BE!

Allow us to remind each of you about dealing with contractors.

Whether you are looking to hire someone to clean your windows, gutters or to plow your driveways please understand the following:

You should be suspicious of the contractor if any of these apply.

• Does not list a number in the phone book, which may indicate a fly-by-night operation. They may seem legitimate in the beginning, but as soon as you make your first payment for the job they may vanish.
• Asks you to get required building permits. Contractors should provide all necessary permits. If they don’t, they may not be licensed or registered properly under the requirements of your state or locality.
• Only accepts cash. A legitimate business should have the appropriate financial accounts and should accept a variety of payment options from clients, including personal checks and credit cards.
• Solicits door-to-door. Most legitimate contractors find enough work through word of mouth referrals or a service.

If you give partial payment to a contractor and that person does partial work for you, the POLICE DEPARTMENT CANNOT help. By sending partial payment and some of the work being completed you have created a civil agreement! It is always a good idea to check references and check the Better Business Bureau with the name of the contractor you are thinking about. For further information visit the Ohio Attorney General’s web page at www.ag.state.oh.gov. As always, feel free to contact Detective Mike Debeljak with any questions or suspicions. He can be reached at 440-287-5219 or

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Every spring we receive complaints about people soliciting magazines door to door. The Orange Village Hall will not allow permission for this type of activity. If you want a magazine subscription we advise you to obtain it through more proven methods, like at the news stand.

One of the favorite lines used by these scammers will be delivered to you on your front porch by a young person that will say – “Hi I’m a student at Orange High School and we are selling magazines for a class trip”.

Don’t fall for this. Often, the person lives out of state and has dropped out of school or is a drifter.

If you decide you must subscribe, please consider the following:

• Decide to subscribe. The cost may be described as “pennies a month” but you need to know the length of the subscription commitment and the total cost. Legitimate companies will give you all the details upfront and never insist that you act immediately.
• Be cautious about unsolicited emails. They are often fraudulent. If you are familiar with the company that sent you the email and you don’t want to receive further messages, send a reply asking to be removed from the email list. However, responding to unknown senders may simply verify that yours is a working email address and result in even more unwanted messages from strangers. The best approach may simply be to delete the email.
• Be wary of “free prizes.” They’re not free if you have to buy magazines to get them.
• Know the cancellation policy. Some subscription services don’t allow cancellations once they have placed the orders with the publishers.
• Watch out for imposters. Crooks may pretend to be acting on behalf of well-known magazine publishers, when they have absolutely no connection with them at all and will simply pocket your money.
• Don’t give your credit card or bank account information unless you’re making a payment. There is no reason why the company would need that information for any other purpose.

Check the prices. It might be cheaper to buy the magazines directly from the publishers than through a subscription service.

As always fell free to call the Orange Village Police Department with any concerns or suspicions.