A man desperate to put a roof over his family’s head says he has been swindled by a Wendy house company promising low prices.
Police confirm they’ve received a number of complaints about the scam in the Boland region, where con artists use the name of a reputable company to dupe mense into handing over their hard-earned cash.
Shane Titus, 36, of Worcester says he approached Classic Home Improvement after seeing a pamphlet advertising cheap Wendy houses earlier this month.
“I contacted them and paid a R1000 deposit,” the dad of two says.
“The arrangement was that I would pay the outstanding R800 of the deposit when they came to put up the Wendy house the next day.”
But Shane waited in vain for the company who didn’t stiek uit as promised.
When he called back, they told him the deal had been cancelled.
The worried father immediately went to the USave in Worcester to enquire about his deposit, but he was told that someone by the name of Riaan Karriem had withdrawn the cash in Kimberley.
He said the company’s contact person, who only identified himself as Kobus, indicated that they would pay back his money, but later said they won’t do it as the deal had been cancelled.
“This shows they’re busy with nonsense,” says an angry Shane.
Shane, who lives with his wife’s parents, says Kobus no longer answers or returns his calls.
The Daily Voice tried to contact all the numbers supplied on the pamphlet without any success.
Shane has since opened a case of fraud and theft at Worcester SAPS.
Police spokesperson Constable Noloyiso Rwexana confirms that a number of fraud cases have been registered against the company.
“According to reports since the beginning of September until October 14, cases were reported with the same modus operandi,” says Rwexana.
“We urge the community to refrain from paying people before they deliver on what they are selling.”
She adds that no one has been arrested.
Meanwhile, Denise van der Poll, the owner of Cape Town-based Classic Home Improvements, confirmed to the Daily Voice that a con artist was using her company’s name to bamboozle mense.
“It has happened before, we’ve had complaints from people in Vredenberg, Vredendal and Worcester,” the Cape Flats businesswoman says.
“This is not our company, we do not have an employee called Kobus, we are a registered company and only use bank accounts for deposits.”