Benton County Sheriff's Office warns public about tornado scams

BENTON COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — As communities continue to clean up after Memorial Day weekend tornadoes, the Benton County Sheriff's Office is warning storm victims about scammers who may try to take advantage of people in need.

If someone offers you a paid service like tree cleaning or roof repair, Lt. Shannon Jenkins and Sheriff Shawn Holloway advise you to be careful, as scammers could use these services to target people. vulnerable people.

One way to confirm that a paid service is legitimate is to make sure it's a credible company by visiting the company's website and searching for its credentials.

“You have to use word of mouth for some of the small businesses because obviously we want to be able to support all of our local businesses, especially during this time,” Jenkins said. “…I'm just looking for some of that credibility, word of mouth, some of them have social media pages, look for that.”

Jenkins and Holloway say one of the telltale signs of a scam is the person asking for an upfront payment.

“Don’t pay for a service until it’s been done for you,” Holloway said. “That’s how a lot of people get scammed.”

He added that most companies will provide the service before sending an invoice or invoice.

If you think a service might be a scam, Jenkins and Holloway encourage you to call the sheriff's office and they will look into it.

They also encourage anyone who experienced storm damage to report it on the county website so they can get the help they need.

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