Plumbing Repair Scam Costs Sunnyvale Senior Time, Money and Peace of Mind

Even a savvy Sunnyvale senior can fall for a scam. It happened to Judi Pogue last summer, but it still weighs on her mind, and she wants to share her story as a cautionary tale. It was a new type of scam—at least to her. She confided to friends, perturbed that she had opened the door to an unexpected stranger.

It began with a water leak Pogue discovered under the kitchen sink of her home. She immediately called her long-time plumber, who sent out two workers the same day. They located and replaced a leaking water pipe under the sink and one under the house, connected to the refrigerator ice maker.

The next day, Pogue was surprised when a different man knocked on her door, indicating he was from the same plumbing company. He said that she needed to have her kitchen counter and some cabinets removed to access water pipes and mold inside the kitchen wall.

“I was very concerned. I wanted to be sure about it, so I called a kitchen repair company. And then a couple more,” said Pogue.

Before she knew it, she had spent $2,000 for differing diagnostic opinions and price quotes on how to correct the alleged problem of toxic mold in the wall.

“But whose opinion could I trust? I felt very stressed and moved in with a friend because of the mold,” said Pogue.

Then, at a Board meeting for her homeowners association, a member told her that the water pipes were underneath the homes, not inside the walls.

At that point, with help from her out-of-area granddaughter, they convinced a home insurance adjuster to come out. He said the only remaining problem was surface mold underneath the sink. Through yet another Internet search, Pogue found a mold mitigation company. They removed the mold, including replacing the end wall of the kitchen counter, all covered by her insurance.

“I feel so annoyed that I spent all that time and money needlessly to try and figure out the best way to solve a non-existent problem. Plus, the inconvenience of moving out of my home,” said Pogue. “I feel like I was taken advantage of by multiple companies.”

When she later contacted her long-time plumber about a different issue, he said that no one else from his company had visited her after the initial repair of the two water leaks. So, the mystery remains: Who was the stranger that knocked on Pogue’s door the day after she got the kitchen water leaks fixed? How did he know she had a plumbing issue?

“I feel like I was taken advantage of, perhaps because of my age, but I learned a lesson,” said Pogue. “Always make sure the person coming to your door telling you they represent a company shows you ID and proof that they are legitimately from that company. Call the company to confirm.”

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