The following is a brief summary of important requirements applicable to home improvement contractors. It should not be considered a substitute for a contractor's responsibility to be familiar with all applicable legal requirements.
- All contracts must contain the complete exact legal name, address and telephone number of the licensee.
- The licensee must provide the home improvement contractor's license number in all advertisements, and on all contracts, invoices, proposals and stationery.
- Any home improvement contract, including change orders and amendments, must be in writing and signed by all parties to the agreement(s).
- All contracts must contain a date to commence work and a date to complete work under the home improvement contract.
- All contracts must state in writing the consumer may cancel the contract at any time prior to midnight of the third business day after the contract is signed.
- All contracts must contain the Lien Notification as required by New York State General Business Law.
- All deposits taken in anticipation of doing work under a home improvement contract shall be deposited in a designated escrow account.
- This office must be notified in writing of any change in business status, name or address, change in applicant's home address and/or change in personnel within ten days of the change.
- The Environmental Protection Agency requires any contractor performing renovation, repair and/or painting projects that disturb lead-based paint in homes built before 1978 must be certified and must follow lead-safe work practices to prevent lead contamination. For additional information, contact the EPA at 1-800-424-lead (5323).
- Bumper stickers must be displayed on driver's side, rear bumper of the vehicle.
- For any business engaging in landscape and/or gardening work: All motor vehicles used for business purposes must display the name and address of the company on both sides of the vehicle.
- For any business engaging in landscape and/or gardening work: You must comply with the regulations concerning the use and application of lawn fertilizer as specified in New York State Law.
- All leaf blowers used in the course of business must meet EPA Phase 2, 2007 exhaust emission standards.
- If this company arranges or facilitates financing of home improvement contracts, you must present the consumer with a copy of the "Consumer's Bill of Rights" and Payment Disclosure Form. Copies of the signed disclosure form and contract must be forwarded to this office within five business days. Disclosure Forms and "Consumer's Bill of Rights" are available from this office.
- All contracts must also be in compliance with any additional regulations and requirements set forth in the New York State General Business Law and all other applicable New York State Laws.
- Failure to comply with any of these instructions is a violation of the laws of Westchester County and/or New York State and may result in legal action being taken.
Spills of home heating oil can result in devastating damage to private property and the environment and can be extremely expensive to clean up. The county has been working with representatives of the home heating oil industry to examine the causes of spills and to help prevent spills from occurring.
One cause of spills is the overfilling of oil tanks during deliveries. This type of spill is easily preventable by using a device called a “vent alarm." Older oil tanks which have no such mechanism or a mechanism not working correctly present the greatest risk of a damaging overfill incident during delivery.
If you need assistance in determining whether your system has (or needs) an overfill prevention device, the following home heating oil companies will provide a free inspection, as well as a free estimate as to what they would charge for installation of the device. Participating Home Heating Oil Dealers are listed below.
| #2 Fuel Oil Dollar | Savings Discount Fuel | Norco Fuel Service |
| Adelphi Brothers Fuel Corp. | Dorchester Fuel | North County Oil Co. |
| Albano Fuel Oil | Dura Fuel Petroleum | On Site Oil Corp. |
| All County Fuel | Eastern Oil | Palisades Fuel |
| Almeida Oil | Fish Oil Corp. | Premium Petroleum |
| Arnolds Fuel Service | Flow Fuel Oil | Pro Fuel Oil |
| Ashby Fuel Oil Corp. | Friendly Fuel | Quality Fuel Oil |
| Barrier Oil | FX Meixner | Quick Silver Oil |
| Baychester Colombo Fuel | H. T. Purdy Fuel | Reliable Oil |
| Besson Oil Inc. | Heritage Fuel | Remington Fuel |
| Best Oil Corp Inc. | Home Fuel | Robison Oil Corp. |
| Buchanan Petroleum | Kensico Fuel | Tarricone Fuel Service |
| Burke Heat | King Petroleum | Tarry Fuel Oil |
| Buy Rite Fuel | Lanuk/Interstate Oil Inc. | Tech Energy Systems |
| Castle Oil Corp. | Lorusso Fuel | Telesco Oil Company |
| Century Star Fuel Corp. | M Frango Fuel | Total Energy |
| Check Oil Company | Maio Fuel | Town And Country Oil |
| Clickable Oil | Marshall Oil Company | Verplanck Fuel and Service |
| Comfort Heating Inc. | Murtha And Irons | Vinton Fuel Oil Inc. |
| Community Fuel | N And S Fuel | Wilco Energy Corp. |
| Costello Brothers | N Troiano | Yorktown Fuel |
| Danson Heating and Air Conditioning | N.A. Fuel Oil Inc. |
The Department of Consumer Protection maintains a list of unlicensed problematic home improvement contractors, plumbers and electricians. These contractors have been and continue to be the source of many consumer complaints. The department is continuing to pursue these contractors and consumers are strongly advised to avoid using these contractors. If you wish to obtain additional information about the names listed below, contact us at .
Consumers should never use unlicensed contractors and should always check license status and complaint histories with the department before entering into a contract to have work performed.
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Brad - AAA Chimney Technicians, Inc. |
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Tom Antonucci |
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William Becker |
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Marc Bertenthal Alexander G. Biagioni |
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Anthony Blasi |
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Russell Bohringer |
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John Kot/Nathaniel Manapat/George Burkhardt/Gabriel Dasilva |
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Capital 1 Construction |
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Elaine Cappello |
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Joseph Chilelli |
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Gerardo Cicchillo |
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John Clarke |
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Robert Comblo |
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Anthony Congello - AKA: Anthony Congello Jr. Jim Connor |
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James Connors a.k.a. Larry Connors,John Delaney, William Delaney |
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Ellen Cullom |
| Thomas Cuparo Proline Chimney Service |
| Victor Dedvukaj Dedvukaj Builders, Inc. |
| Joseph J. Dekrell Joseph J. Dekrell General Contracting |
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Helios Demoraes/Helio Demoraes/ Fabio DePasquale |
| David DeSilva Jr. Nu-Way Fuel and Service Corporation/ Nu Way Services of New York Inc. |
| Rocco DiNardo U.S.A. Roofing Inc. |
| Gaetano DiPaola/Guy DiPaola/ Gaetano DiPaolo/Guy DiPaolo Guy Dipaola Contracting, LLC. |
| Benito DiZenzo DiZenzo Contracting/R.B.D. Inc. |
| Tracy Downes/Angelo Cassarino Steel River Home Maintenance Inc./Steel River Chimney |
| Firas Emachah Zaza Corp./Dream House Windows/Dream House Windows, Siding & Doors |
| John Faiola All Star Window & Siding Corp./All Star Exteriors |
| Salik Farber Kitchen Design by Choice Hardwood Flooring by Choice Choice Granite |
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Jaime Fernandez JLF Construction Corp. Joseph Fienga |
| Leon Fino Jonathan Weiss & David Foley All Season(s) Chimney/All Season Maintenance |
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Artemio Fuerte Mike Della Gala |
| Carlos Garcia Custom Cabinetry & Home Improvements/ Kitchen Cabinets & Custom Closets |
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Juan Carlos Garcia |
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Gjon Gazivoda Mark Germinaro |
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Roy Henry Joseph Indiviglio |
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Richard Jankowski |
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Patricio Jimenez |
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Terri Ketcham & Jason Hernandez, AKA: Jay Hernandez |
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Kevin Lennox John Lindsay |
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Lou Lombardo |
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Jose Lopez |
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Christopher Lyon/Michael Lyon Charles (Charlie) McGuire |
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John "J.P" Maguire |
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James Marcella |
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Stephen Marotta |
| Chris Martinez All Phases Home Improvement and Alliance Painting & Contracting Alcino Meireles AM General Contractor |
| Brian Merritt Classic Creations Merritt Renovations |
| Denise Messina aka Diane Winters Jason Tierney aka Pat Brown All Season Maintenance/ Unique Chimney Inc. Marco Mezzetta Top Notch Overhead Door |
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Shlomo Michtavy a.k.a. Steve Michtavy Hernan A. Elvir-Montoya |
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William A. Morris |
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Ronald Niebuhr Jr. Ainsley O’Connor |
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Ron Okon Angelo Ortega/Angel Ortega/Ernesto Angelo Ortega A.G.C Builders Contractors Inc. |
| Andrew Opgaard American Cabinet Door Replacement Inc. |
| Daniel Porteous Reliable Chimney Service |
| John Porter Porter's PMB/Westrock Electric |
| David Rabius David Rabius Roofing |
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Ray Rauso Ray Rauso Builders Vincent Ricciardelli CVC Contracting Inc. |
| Charles Robinson CNS Heating & Cooling Inc. |
| Joe Rodriguez a.k.a. Jose Rodriguez, Jr. Joseph Ella Valerio Restoration Properties Construction Company Wise Builders |
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James Romero Raymond Russo |
| Paul W. Schettini d/b/a/ Closing Construction PS Contracting Group PS Home Services P.S. Plumbing & Heating |
| Peter Schoembs, Nicole Auffarth Frontier Fence Company Inc. |
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Michael Scoca |
| Jay A. Servidio Salvator Servidio, Jr. Rusal Construction, LLC |
| Christian Sisti Mighty Joe Young's Contracting |
| Carsten Skov/Carston Skog/Carsten Gyldenstierne Skov Clickakitchen.com/Kitchen Bath City |
| Herman Smith Hartford Services & Hartford Services Ltd. |
| Elan T. Sober Metro Creations of NY |
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Don Soranno |
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Gerald (Gerry) Sullivan Angelica Tavarez |
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Patrick Terminello Rigoberto Valenzuela Jorge Villa |
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Darrell Wassil |
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Oswald Wells Matt Willimann |
Landscapers are required by law to use low emission leaf blowers as of January 2009. Landscapers who purchase new leaf blowers should be sure to buy machines that meet the new requirements.
In April 2007, the Board of Legislators passed a bill that requires all licensed home improvement contractors who are engaged in landscaping, gardening, arboriculture and similar outdoor vocations to use low emission leaf blowers as of Jan. 1, 2009. The leaf blowers must meet Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Phase 2, 2007 exhaust standards.
All leaf blowers manufactured on or after Jan. 1, 2007 meet those standards. Some leaf blowers manufactured prior to Jan. 1, 2007 may also meet the standards - - check with the manufacturer.
When the law was passed in 2007, the department sent a letter to all licensed contractors informing them of the upcoming requirement. Since then, the department has included information about the law in the packet that is provided to all new and renewal license applicants. In addition, the license and renewal application forms require contractors to certify that they are now in compliance or will be as of January 2009.
Landscapers who are found to be using non-compliant leaf blowers after Jan. 1, 2009 face a potential fine of $1,000, as well as the denial or revocation of their license. The law does not apply to landscapers who only work on commercial properties or who work exclusively in Yonkers (which has a separate licensing procedure).
Many municipalities in Westchester have ordinances regulating the noise level and hours of operation for leaf blowers. The county law, which deals exclusively with emissions, does not pre-empt those local ordinances.