Other LanguagesAssistant Attorney General Jack Zurlini does windows. And roofs. And vinyl siding.
Zurlini is hammering home the importance of honest advertising to home remodelers. He’s negotiated eight settlements with Washington businesses in just over a year.
An industry magazine, Replacement Contractor, published an interview with Zurlini this week about how and why the Washington Attorney General’s Office brought the cases.
The alleged violations include using high-pressure pitches, deceiving consumers into thinking are buying at a discount, claiming sales reps are only going to perform a free home energy audit, fabricating endorsements and exaggerating the health risks of mold that may be found around residential windows. A few excerpts from the article:
Replacement Contractor: Why are you targeting home improvement companies at this time?
“…Our mission is to create a fair and non-deceptive marketplace, using the state Consumer Protection Act. … What we found is that a significant minority of companies [in the window replacement industry] had similar bad practices. These practices had been uncorrected for such a significant amount of time that it became accepted practice on the part of some companies, and then other companies mimicked them simply to remain competitive.”
RC: What's the procedure? You notify the company that it's under investigation, then what?
“…Our main task is to get the industry back in compliance. We are not out there to put people out of business. We are not there to punish the businesses. We recognize that there is a significant minority where these practices became so ingrained that they were second-nature and far too common and we want to get that righted.”
RC: Of the big drops, the claim of 40% energy savings that are not substantiated, of scaring clients with mold, etc., which in your view is or are the most egregious?
“ It's not so much the particular practice I find egregious. What I find is that some of these companies have preyed on people. There are horror stories involving seniors on fixed incomes being sold a home full of new windows that eat up over half of their fixed monthly income. I find that appalling. No good business does that. That's the thing that bothered me the most — where they create this false sense of urgency, use scare tactics, use the big drop, and victimize people who simply can't afford the windows. They're using emotion to sell windows.”
Companies we’ve settled with so far – listed alphabetically – and the dates we announced each case:
Energy Exteriors - July 2010
Evans Glass - Sept. 2009
Great Lakes Window - Sept. 2010
Harley Exteriors - May 2010
Northwest First Choice - Oct. 2010 (today)
Penguin Windows - March 2010
Seattle’s Best Home Improvements - July 2010
West Coast Vinyl - May 2010