What is a storm chaser contractor and how do I avoid one?

Storm-chaser fraud is the highest-dollar, highest-victim contractor scam pattern in the US. After every major hail, wind, or hurricane event, dozens of out-of-state crews drive into the affected region, register temporary LLCs in the target state, and canvass neighborhoods door-to-door. The pattern is highly documented — state attorneys general in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Florida, and Georgia have all run major storm-fraud prosecutions.

The mechanics:

1. Damage event. Hailstorm in Dallas, hurricane in Tampa, derecho in Iowa. Insurance claims spike.

2. Out-of-state crews arrive. Typically from Texas, Louisiana, or Florida (states with established roofing labor pools). They drive into the affected region within 48-72 hours.

3. Hasty LLC formation. The crew registers a Texas/Florida/etc. LLC, or operates under a previously dormant LLC, just before canvassing. Secretary of State filing date is days or weeks before the work.

4. Door-to-door canvassing. "We noticed your roof has hail damage — we're working in the neighborhood, can we take a look?" They offer to "handle the entire insurance claim for you" and may even offer to "cover your deductible" (this is insurance fraud and may void your claim entirely).

5. Insurance check assignment. They have you sign an "Assignment of Benefits" or simply endorse the insurance check over to them. Now they have your money.

6. Partial work. They tear off the old roof and may install some underlayment or partial decking. Just enough that the homeowner cannot easily reverse the job.

7. Disappearance. They leave town. Phone numbers stop working. The LLC dissolves or just becomes uncontactable.

8. Homeowner exposure. You have an unfinished roof, an exhausted insurance claim, and a contractor whose LLC has no assets. Recovery is rare.

Defenses:

- Never sign anything in the first meeting. Legitimate roofers will give you time. - Refuse door-to-door solicitation in the days after a storm. Find your own contractor via local referrals, established platforms (BuildZoom, Angi, neighborhood Facebook groups), or your insurance company's preferred-contractor program. - Verify the LLC's formation date at the Secretary of State. If it was registered in your state less than 6 months ago, treat as high risk. - Verify physical in-state business address. UPS Store box and P.O. box are storm-chaser signatures. - Never endorse your insurance check to the contractor. Pay on milestones from your own funds and then submit for reimbursement to your insurer. - Refuse "deductible absorption" — illegal in most states (it's insurance fraud), and may void your entire claim. - Run Groundcheck (earthmove.io/trust) on the contractor BEFORE signing. The phoenix-pattern check is specifically tuned to catch recently formed LLCs operating in storm-affected regions; cross-state license check catches out-of-state operators with prior judgments in other states.

State-level resources: most state AGs publish post-storm fraud advisories. The Texas AG, Florida CFO, Oklahoma AG, and Colorado AG all maintain hotlines for storm-fraud reporting. File complaints if you have been victimized — pattern data drives criminal prosecutions.