Eastern Ontario roofing company warns of door-to-door scam using its name

Joanne Baptiste says three young men recently came to the door of her Ottawa home, saying they were with Sunrise Roofing doing emergency repairs down the street and noticed issues on her roof. 

“They went up on the roof and came back with their cell with pictures of damaged boards and said if I didn’t get it done I’d have water filtration,” Baptiste said. "They were looking to do the job for $1,500."

Baptiste was suspicious, so she looked up the company name and called the owner, Bill Onion. His answer confirmed her fears. 

"These people are posing as me and my company," Onion told CTV News Ottawa. "I don’t have men who work in the winter."

Onion’s company is based out of Franktown, about an hour outside of Ottawa. While Baptiste managed to dodge this scam, others in the area weren’t so lucky.

One resident in Old Ottawa South says workers knocked on his door and offered to have a look and fix it on the spot. He paid $2,500 in cash. 

That owner, who declined an on-camera interview, says he called Onion after looking up the company name online. 

"Three calls in one day," Onion said. "Those are the calls I got. How many people got scammed and didn’t call me?"

A closer look at the receipt, the address on the roofing contract is from a separate company in Toronto. That company says they’ve been having problems.

"We are aware of the issue that there are people portraying themselves as being from our company, that are not and we are encouraging people to contact police if they run in contact with these people," said Brian Salveira, the VP of Sunrise Roofing Contractors in Toronto. 

Baptiste says she’s filed a report with police and is waiting to hear back. Meanwhile, Onion says homeowners need to do their homework, ask for references from their previous clients and be wary of those looking for immediate payment.

"If they ask for cash before any work takes place, you’re about to be scammed," he said.