Jury scams

Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.

It's a beautiful winter day. You're at the grocery store, shopping with your kids, and you hear the twinkling chime of your cell ringtone: you've got a phone call. Amidst the hustle and bustle of your busy errands, you answer the phone, and are met with a stern voice of authority on the other end of the line. Your heart sinks. The individual says they are from the local Clerk of Court office, and informs you that you have missed your scheduled Jury Duty court date and must now pay a fine or risk possible incarceration.
You start to panic; after all, you didn't even know you had jury duty, and you're usually so good about keeping on top of your calendar obligations! The notice must have been lost in the mail! You obviously can't afford to go to jail over this, so you desperately ask the person on the phone what you can do to make it right.
The person on the other end of the phone will assure you that as long as you pay your penalty, you can easily avoid jail time, and they are willing to accept payment straight away over the phone, and are able to accept check, card or even gift card! (Which, as a rule, is a good hint that the call is a scam).
Clerk of Court offices across Florida are being alerted to an increase in calls like this, and are attempting to spread the word on the scam in an effort to prevent residents from falling victim to it.
Accounts of this scam have been reported in nearby Madison County, and Madison County Clerk of Court Billy Washington has made a statement.
“There is a scam ongoing in Florida concerning jury duty. Please be aware that no one from my office will call you to inform you of missed jury service. We also will not ask for, nor do we take payments via PayPal.”
Residents all across Florida are warned to hang up immediately when they receive a call that matches this description, and are heavily advised not to give away any personal information to the scammer. If you receive a call like the one above and are uncertain of whether or not it is a scam, hang up and call your local Clerk of Court office, and they will be happy to let you know if you have any obligations or concerns regarding their office. A clerk will never ask a resident to pay a fee with a gift card.

Pinestraw/landscaping scams

Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.

With the recent bout of harsh weather, everyone's garden is guaranteed to be looking a little lack-luster right now. While we anxiously await the opportunity to do some much-needed landscaping this spring, residents must be on the watch for potential landscaping scammers. These scams usually involve mulching or pine straw installation services. Here's what to look for:
A knock on your door will reveal an individual claiming to work for a landscaping company that you've likely never heard of. They may tell you that they just finished up a nearby landscaping job and have several bales of pine straw or bags of mulch left over. They will offer this excess to you for an incredible deal, giving you a discount that seems a little too good to be true.
Once you agree and pay for the straw or mulch, they will promptly get to work. This is where the scam comes in. The landscaper will sneakily lay down less straw than he said he would, and then, leaving the job unfinished, will approach the resident again, demanding more money for more straw in order to get the job done. If the resident refuses, the scammer is likely to get highly agitated, even becoming confrontational and aggressive, in an attempt to intimidate the resident. Often, a resident will give in and pay the extra amount just to end the altercation or get the landscaper to leave.
Officials recommend that any individual who feels pressured into accepting unsolicited lawn services, or is suspicious about a door-to-door landscaping offer, should limit contact with the individual, and call law enforcement.
On occasion, a landscaping company may go door to door to sell a special promotion, and not every individual who does this is a scammer or should be treated like one.
According to Chapter 501 of the Florida Statute, individuals who engage in certain door-to-door solicitation activities that sell, lease or rent consumer goods or services with a purchase price in excess of $25.00 are required to obtain a Home Solicitation Permit. A legitimate company should have no issue with providing this to you if requested. If they don't have their permit on them, ask to see a business card, and browse any websites, social media and reviews to check the validity of the business.
Before any individual begins working on your property, get the terms of the agreement in writing. This should include the scope of the job, the quantity of the materials and the price to be paid. When the company brings in supplies, pay attention to ensure the appropriate amount of supplies have been brought.
If you feel you are being harassed by a door-to-door salesperson, call 911. Remember, it a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.