Larimer County Sheriff warns of High Park Fire scams

In the aftermath of the High Park Fire, Sheriff Justin Smith reminds residents to be alert to possible scams. After any major disaster there are a number of people who try to take advantage of the victims or solicit money for organizations who never receive the donations.

Larimer County has established specific guidelines for contractors doing rebuilding, repairs or reconstruction in the High Park Fire area. Residents are cautioned and warned not to sign blank contracts, agree to have work performed without first seeing the contractor’s license and liability insurance, or allow work or alterations not authorized by the Larimer County Building Department.

If there are questions you should contact the Larimer County Building Department at 970-498-7700.

The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office has received a report of an inspection company trying to charge to tell someone whether their home was damaged, etc. That information is available at no charge from the county. Victims may contact the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office Victim’s Advocate Team to check on their property at 970-498-5149. (Note: This number is for victims only.)

The Red Cross has reported several robo-calls, email solicitations and fundraisers that are not affiliated with the Red Cross. The official means of giving to the American Red Cross is through redcross.org, 800-REDCROSS or texting REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. The Red Cross does not solicit money using pre-recorded robo-calls.

If you’re not sure whether a solicitation is legitimate you can contact 1-800-REDCROSS. By calling you can verify the legitimacy of the fundraiser and, if the request is not directly from the Red Cross, whether the Red Cross has a third-party agreement in place with that specific organization.

Residents are asked to be alert to anything suspicious and report it immediately to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office at 970-416-1985.