12/03/2025
Your safety depends on who you hire!
We want to make our community aware of an increase in fraudulent companies posing as legitimate chimney professionals (online AND alarmingly in person in our communities) to scam homeowners. We can only assume this extends into other industries as well. We also ask that you please share this post to help protect friends and family from falling victim to the increase in these types of scams.
We’ve seen a number of instances over the past couple of weeks, and figured we’d give you examples so you can see how sneaky these scams can be!
Last week, we met a new customer who had paid another company for what she believed was a full chimney sweep. The company only cleaned a small portion of her chimney, then attempted to charge her additional fees to finish the job. She believed she was receiving a professional sweep at the quoted rate, yet she was intentionally misled into a partial cleanup designed to upsell her afterward.
These practices are not only unethical, they can create serious safety risks for homeowners. A partially cleaned chimney can still lead to chimney fires and dangerous structural issues, while fraudulent inspections often leave hazards unreported. The picture attached is everything we cleaned out of her chimney after the other company left.
Unfortunately, this incident is not isolated. Last week, a homeowner contacted our office to follow up on when we would be arriving to perform their work. The problem: they had never scheduled service with Leonard & Sons. After an internet search, she reached out to another “chimney company” who provided her with a verbal estimate. They went out to her home, and told her they would “subcontract the work” to us. Then they took her deposit. This scammer even spoofed our business phone number to make their scam appear legitimate.
After explaining to this homeowner that we do not subcontract for any chimney or masonry companies, we urged her to immediately contact her bank to stop payment, and file a police report. She reported that the individuals who came to her home were driving unmarked vehicles with no business signage, and there was no written contract of any kind. These are major red flags.
We found the website for their “business”, and there is no such entity registered with the state of Illinois. These illegitimate websites can look very realistic. This one happens to be called “Ash and Flames Chimney Sweep”.
We don’t know if it’s the same people, but a number of weeks ago our office was getting repeated calls, and when we called the number back they answered “Leonard and Sons” and then hung up when they found out it was us calling. That number has since been disconnected.
It’s no surprise that someone would want to use us as a cover for their scam. We are a small family business, with a reputable and trustworthy name in the industry, and we are so disappointed to have our good name used in an attempt to scam homeowners in our community.
Caleb is a 3rd generation chimney sweep who is nationally recognized in his industry, a National Chimney Sweep Guild instructor, and the President of the North Central Chimney Guild. Safety and integrity mean everything to us, and our family owned business. It’s what has kept our business running strong for nearly 60 years.
If you ever get the sense that something feels off, please hang up and call our number directly to confirm you’re actually speaking to Leonard and Sons. We have two amazing women who work in our office to answer your questions. All of our trucks are clearly marked, and our sweep technicians are CSIA certified!
Sadly, there are plenty of people out there who are willing to take advantage of you and your family, especially around the holidays. Please share this message with friends and family, especially older family members who are far too often the main targets of these types of scams.
Thank you for reading. We hope you have a safe and peaceful holiday season!
