House painting scams and bad practice to avoid in Pennsylvania

Updated November 10, 2026 · KeystoneProGuide editorial team

What do painting scams look like?

Mostly like any other home improvement scam. No consumer authority page read for these guides deals with painters as a separate trade; the Federal Trade Commission and Pennsylvania's Attorney General describe patterns that cut across the trades, and Pennsylvania's enforcement releases involve contractors who took money for work they did not do. What is specific to painting is lead: in an older house, cutting corners on lead-safe work is both a hazard and a violation.

What are the signs of a scam?

The FTC lists them plainly. A scammer knocks on your door because they are "in the area"; says they have materials left over from another job; pressures you for an immediate decision; wants everything paid up front or only in cash; asks you to get the permits; or suggests you borrow from a lender they know.

For painting, "materials left over" usually means paint. A low price for using up someone else's paint, on a job that starts today, combines three of the FTC's signs at once.

Why are large deposits the main risk?

Because most Pennsylvania enforcement in this area involves money paid in advance for work that never happened.

• In a lawsuit filed in 2025, the Attorney General alleged that a western Pennsylvania contractor abandoned projects after taking more than $56,000 in deposits and used non-compliant contracts. In one case, according to the suit, a homeowner paid a $28,000 deposit on a $48,000 job and was told the written contract would follow the next day; the contractor never came back.
• In 2026 the office reached a $200,000 settlement with a Philadelphia-area contractor who must stop owning and operating a home improvement business. The suit had alleged he took substantial payments and then failed to perform, abandoned projects or did unworkmanlike work. The release notes a settlement is not an admission of a violation.
• In 2025 a Montgomery County judge sentenced a contractor to three to six years in prison for failing to complete work for victims who lost more than $156,000. He had taken payments up front while giving homeowners another contractor's license information.

The law limits the exposure. Under the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act, no payment may be taken before the contract is signed, and on a contract over $5,000 the deposit may not exceed one-third of the price, plus any special order materials listed in it. On the $48,000 job above, one-third is $16,000; the deposit the suit describes was $12,000 more than that, and no special order materials are mentioned. The FTC adds that you should never make the final payment until the work is done and you are satisfied.

What does Pennsylvania law call home improvement fraud?

The Act makes it a crime to, among other things:

• make a false or misleading statement to get you to sign, or to justify raising the agreed price;
• take an advance payment and neither do the work by the contract date nor return the money;
• pose as an employee of a government agency or a utility;
• misrepresent an item as special order material.

Fraud is a third-degree felony when more than $2,000 is involved, and the grade goes one step higher when the victim is 60 or older. Separately, the Act makes it a prohibited act to abandon a job without justification, to depart from the plans without a signed change order, or to refuse a refund requested by certified mail within ten days when no substantial work has been done and more than 45 days have passed since the agreed start date.

What lead shortcuts should you watch for?

Three, in a house built before 1978.

• No certification. The Environmental Protection Agency says firms cannot advertise or perform covered work in pre-1978 homes without firm certification. Painting preparation is covered.
• "We'll just paint over it." The EPA says painting over lead paint hazards with regular paint will not permanently address them.
• Torches and bare sanders. Open-flame burning of painted surfaces is prohibited under the federal work practice rules, and power sanding is allowed only with a shroud and HEPA vacuum attachment.

Suspected violations can be reported to the National Lead Information Center on 1-800-424-5323.

Are there other shortcuts that cost you later?

Painting over mold is one. The EPA says not to paint or caulk moldy surfaces, because paint applied over mold is likely to peel, and the mold will most likely return if the water problem is not fixed. A quote that promises to cover water stains or mold without finding the leak is selling a repaint, not a repair.

Can you cancel a contract signed at your door?

Yes. Pennsylvania's Act gives you three business days to cancel a home improvement contract wherever you signed it. The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule also gives three days to cancel many sales made at your home, and says the seller must tell you about the right and give you two copies of a cancellation form.

Where do you report a painter?

The Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection takes complaints online, at 1-800-441-2555 or at scams@attorneygeneral.gov, and unregistered contractors can be reported on 1-888-520-6680. How to choose a painter and questions to ask cover the checks that prevent most of these problems, and what Pennsylvania requires sets out the contract terms. Painters are listed on the painters directory page.

Sources

1. How To Avoid a Home Improvement Scam, Federal Trade Commission
2. Buyer's Remorse: The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule May Help, Federal Trade Commission
3. 2008 Act 132 (Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act), Pennsylvania General Assembly
4. AG Sunday Sues Western Pa. Home Contractor for Failures to Complete Projects or Offer Refunds, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
5. AG Sunday's Bureau of Consumer Protection Secures $200K Settlement, Lifetime Ban Against Philadelphia-Area Home Improvement Contractor, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
6. Pottstown-Based Home Improvement Contractor Jailed at Least 3 Years for Taking More than $156K for Jobs he did not Complete, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
7. Renovation, Repair and Painting Program: Contractors, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
8. Lead Abatement, Inspection and Risk Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
9. Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
10. A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency