How to Stop a Steel Building Scam

Find a Trustworthy Steel Building Company

So you have started calling around to different steel building companies about your new warehouse, commercial building, or airplane hangar. You have had a few nice conversations, but you might be struggling to differentiate between them. Each salesman seems confident that they are the ones you can specifically deliver your building at the right price on schedule.

But how do you know if you can trust the salesman you have been talking to? How do you know that the company you choose isn’t going to put you through the ringer by acting suspiciously or fraudulently? Is there a way that you can separate the high-quality and honest companies from those with records of lawsuits and scams?

What a Steel Building Scam Often Looks Like

The first thing to know is that the steel building company wants your deposit, and it aims to keep it. Whatever the salesman has to do to get your money in his pocket, will be done. Once they have your deposit, they will delay your project, require extensive revisions to original drawings, and find more ways to keep asking for money without ever after providing you a building. In many cases, they will pitch you a “cancelled building,” to trick you into thinking you’re getting an exclusive can’t-miss type of deal. Numerous customers nationwide think they are ordering a steel building, only to end up in a frustrating legal battle to try to get their original deposit back.

How Can You Protect Yourself from a Steel Building Scam?

The first step is to check the internet. When a customer has been scammed, they don’t keep it a secret,
they shout it to the world online. They want everyone to know that a company tricked and scammed them out of thousands of dollars, and they want to protect you from the same fate.

To find these accounts of illicit behavior, you should start by performing an internet search of the salesman with which you have spoken. If they have a sketchy history, there is a good chance that it will show up online. Of course, this means that when you speak with someone, you should make sure to write down the name of the salesperson (don’t forget to double-check the spelling).

After you have searched for the salesman’s name, you should then perform a search of the company they work for. Even if that particular salesperson does not have a published record of illicit behavior, their company might have its own history of scamming customers, and is also a sign that you should stay away from them.

Websites for Consumer Protection

There are several websites that keep records of when customers have been ripped off for a variety of businesses, including steel buildings. Ripoffreport.com actually keeps extensive histories of complaints against companies that have scammed people, and investigations into those complaints. Even if some complaints have been resolved, a large amount of complaints should be a red flag to steer you away.

Head over to our Resource Section to more best practices on how to Find a Reliable Steel Building Company.