New Jersey home improvement fraud is one of the most common frauds in the State of New Jersey.  There are extensive statutory requirements and administrative code requirements with which home improvement contractors must comply.  These are commonly ignored.  There are numerous preventative measures that homeowners need to make sure they are not victim of home improvement fraud.  The first step to avoid home improvement fraud is to vigorously investigate each person who provides an estimate to do the work.  You need to do a judgment search, call all the relevant references and go to the contractor’s place of business.  Many times a visit to the place of business will be extremely revealing.  If the contractor is one who does not maintain a business office or maintains a business office with no staff, you should be careful.  In addition, you should demand to see all relevant insurance policies including liability and appropriate registration with the State of New Jersey as a home improvement contractor.  You should also review the rankings and complaints with the Better Business Bureau and/or the American Arbitration Association.  Never sign any blank documents, never pay for work before it is completed and get all promises in writing.
There is nothing more devastating than for a home improvement contractor to take a significant down payment and then not appear on the job.  Even worse is where a home improvement contractor takes the money and does an extraordinarily poor job which requires a homeowner to redo the work and hire another contractor to fix the first contractor’s mistakes.
Under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, any ascertainable loss attributable to a home contractor’s consumer fraud would be tripled.  The home owner would then be permitted to recover attorney’s fees and costs of the action.

Home improvement fraud is one of the most widespread types of consumer fraud in New Jersey.  There are extensive regulations with which contractors are forced to comply, as contained in the administrative code.

Home contractors are also required to register with the Department of Consumer Affairs.