SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – San Diego Police are investigating a reported scam that seems to be targeting the elderly.
Frank Dabalack says someone knocked on his door Monday at noon, claiming they could fix a dent on the back of his car for $275.
“I’ve wanted it fixed for a long time and here’s a guy who came over, it looked like he knew what he was doing,” Dabalack said.
But once he agreed and the man and his crew began work the price kept jumping to nearly $800.
“I was angry with myself,” Dabalack said, “because I knew it was scam, and I’d been scammed.”
He found out with the help of his neighbor, who he asked to come over. She took a closer look at the men’s repair work. She says they were damaging the car instead of fixing it. They covered the back of the car with some gooey residue but never touched the dent. One of the men also took pliers to the grill and started bending it out of shape.
When she started asking them questions, they took off. Dabalack says he wrote them a check for $775 but was able to cancel it with his bank.
Martinez said when police arrived, they said they were familiar with the scam. The men look for handicapped plates on cars in driveways and try to trick the owners into paying large amounts of money.
“Frank is from a generation where people kept their word, not scammed the elderly,” Martinez said. “Frank is like a dad to me. I don’t like anyone doing that to him or any senior.”