Every major hurricane that hits South Florida brings two waves of damage. The first is the storm itself. The second is the wave of out-of-state contractors, fly-by-night roofers, and predatory operators who flood Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, and Palm Beach in the days after, trying to extract money from homeowners who are stressed, displaced, and trying to make their homes livable again.
Storm chaser contractors aren't a small problem. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, the Florida Attorney General's office received thousands of complaints about post-storm contractor scams. The Department of Business and Professional Regulation issued cease-and-desist orders against unlicensed crews. Homeowners lost millions in deposits to operators who disappeared.
This guide is what we wish every South Florida homeowner knew before they had a storm event. It walks through the patterns these scams follow, the specific red flags to recognize, and how to protect both your home and your insurance position.
Why post-storm scams work
The homeowner is overwhelmed: their home is damaged, they don't know what's covered, they want to make decisions fast. There's a real shortage of legitimate contractors after a major event. Verifying credentials is harder at midnight in a hotel with a dying phone. The insurance process is complicated, so operators who claim to "handle everything with insurance" sound appealing. And Florida's Assignment of Benefits (AOB) laws have historically been weak. HB 7065 in 2019 tightened things significantly, but the scams adapt.
The 8 most common post-storm scam patterns
1. The door-to-door roof "inspection." A crew shows up offering a free roof inspection. They climb up, come down, and tell you they found damage that wasn't there before (or that they caused themselves). They want you to sign a contract and an AOB.
2. The "we'll handle insurance" pitch. They want you to sign over your insurance rights via AOB. They then inflate the claim, take whatever the insurer pays, and either disappear or do partial work.
3. The deposit-and-vanish. They ask for 50% down. They take the deposit. They never come back.
4. The cash-only quick fix. Quick repairs for cash, no contract. The work is substandard or undone within months, and you have no recourse.
5. The "deductible waiver" offer. They offer to "pay your deductible" or "make it disappear." This is insurance fraud (a felony in Florida) and you become a party to it.
6. The unlicensed mold remediation. They start "mold treatment" without the required Florida Mold Remediator license, often spraying bleach or fogging chemicals that don't address the underlying problem.
7. The unsolicited tarping. They tarp your roof "for free" then claim they have an emergency repair contract and demand thousands.
8. The "FEMA approved" lie. They claim to be FEMA-approved or insurance-approved. FEMA doesn't approve contractors. Insurance companies don't either.
The 12 red flags that should end the conversation
Walk away if you see any of these: unsolicited contact (door-knocks, cold calls, flyers); out-of-state license plates or company name; no physical local office; pressure to sign immediately; demand for a large deposit (more than 10% of expected total); cash-only requests; a request to sign an Assignment of Benefits; offers to "pay your deductible"; refusal or inability to show a Florida license; no local references for similar work in the last 6 months; scare tactics ("your roof will fail tomorrow," "mold will be everywhere by next week"); and showing up before you've called anyone (how did they know you needed help?).
Any one of these is a yellow flag. Two or more means walk away immediately.
What to verify before hiring any contractor
In order: Florida license number — verify at MyFloridaLicense.com that it's active and unrestricted, issued for the right type of work, issued to the company name, with no recent disciplinary actions. Local business presence — address, phone, website; drive by if you can. Bonded and insured — ask for proof and verify with the listed insurance company. IICRC certifications if water/fire/mold work. Local references — three names of customers in your area from the last 6 months. Online presence — Google reviews, BBB, Florida AG complaints database. Written, detailed scope of work. Insurance handling — will they work with your carrier directly under your direction (no AOB), or do they require AOB?
A reputable contractor should hand you everything above without flinching. If they hesitate at any step, the conversation is over.
The Assignment of Benefits (AOB) trap
When you sign an AOB, you transfer your rights under your insurance policy to the contractor. They become the policyholder for purposes of the claim. They can then file whatever scope they want (often inflated), sue your insurance company in your name, settle for whatever they're willing to settle for, make you a defendant if the insurer counter-sues, and refuse to do additional work after getting paid.
Florida law (HB 7065 in 2019, and further changes since) has restricted AOB abuse significantly. But the practice still happens, and a homeowner who signs one in the chaos of post-hurricane recovery often regrets it. The simple rule: never sign over your insurance rights to anyone. A reputable restoration company will work directly with your carrier under your direction without an AOB. If a contractor tells you "we need the AOB to work with insurance," they're either misinformed or running the AOB game. Either way, find someone else.
If you've already been scammed
If you've already signed a contract, paid a deposit, or signed an AOB to a suspicious contractor: stop further payments; document everything (save all communications, contracts, photos, receipts); contact your insurance carrier (they may be able to void or contest the AOB); file a complaint with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation for licensure issues; file a complaint with the Florida Attorney General for fraud or deceptive practice; contact a Florida property insurance attorney (many offer free consultations on contingency); and consider stop-payment on checks that haven't cleared. Florida has consumer protection laws specifically targeting post-storm contractor fraud. You have rights.
What a clean engagement looks like
A legitimate post-storm restoration engagement: you call a local, licensed, IICRC-certified restoration company you've researched; they arrive within 24–48 hours during peak demand; they walk the property with you, document everything, provide a written scope; they coordinate directly with your insurance carrier under your direction, no AOB; they start immediate mitigation (drying, securing) under "reasonable steps" language in your policy; they give you regular updates throughout the project; they bill against the insurance settlement, not via large up-front cash; and they warranty their work.
That's what reputable looks like. Anything materially different is a warning sign.
When to call RestoFlo
If you've had storm damage in South Florida and want to engage with a local, licensed, IICRC-certified team without AOBs or deposits, call us. We work directly with your insurance carrier, document everything, and stay with the project through reconstruction. 24/7 emergency line: (754) 289-4815.
