Hiring Vendors After the Storm
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Callan Group has worked with hundreds of vendors by having them as clients or by working with them through our clients.
Unfortunately, after a storm, many vendors take advantage of consumers. We’ve seen it too many times.
Before hiring a vendor, be sure to:
Read their Google Reviews
Put the business name in the search bar with Google reviews for example:
Callan Group Communications Google Reviews
Read as many as you can starting with one star.
Look the Business up on Yelp
Even though Yelp is notoriously known for very disgruntled customer reviews, you may get a better picture of the business practices of the vendors by reading those reviews. Google sometimes makes it easy to remove a review while Yelp does not.
Sunbiz.org Search
Click below and type the business name in to see who all the principals of the business are. I recently had a bad actor of a client whose name wasn’t even really their name and when I looked them up I found judgements against them for over a million dollars. You want to know who you’re doing business with so be sure to look this up.
https://dos.fl.gov/sunbiz/search/
DBPR
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation will show you if they’re a licensed contractor. Here is the link: https://www.myfloridalicense.com/wl11.asp?mode=0&SID= . You may also report bad actors to the state on this site.
License Boards
Be sure to look up the licensing board in the vendor’s industry to see if there are any complaints on them or to file a complaint.
https://floridacontractor.com/state-licensing-boards/
Simple Google Search
Type in the name of the owner into Google along with any Board Members and see what comes up. I also look up the business name in Google and put the city in which they’re located.
Management Companies
Most management companies work with hundreds of vendors. If you know a Community Association Manager (CAM), shoot them an email or give them a call to see if they know anything about your vendor. Often, they can steer you right based on the reputation of the business internally.
Public Records
I recommend seeing if the business owner or principals have a public record. If the principals of the business have a history of judgements or liens where they owe people – chances are, even if their marketing says they’re a reputable business, the facts are the facts.
https://ccms.clerk.org/ – or simply type in Public Records and your County and then search by case inquiry then by name.
Marketing
Remember just because they have a strong digital presence doesn’t mean they’re a good business. We have witnessed first-hand, clients who turn out to be businesses that take advantage of people, including us! Even if the picture looks good online – still do your research to see what’s underneath the fluff.
Do Your Due Diligence
I haven’t in so many cases and have been burned and lost a lot of money. Too often these bad actors have inexpensive lawyers that send threatening letters that scare people into not taking action. This is an old tactic that unfortunately works. Getting into litigation is time consuming, costly and stressful. So do your due diligence before going down the road with untrustworthy vendors.
We hope this helps! Be good to one another…it’s the only way.
