ON GUARD – Fraud Spotter #40
Personal Contact Scams – Pt. 2
by Laura Quarantiello
© 2004 Tiare Publications Group
Door-To-Door Scams
"Show me your worst stain," she said, red-topped squeeze bottle in
hand. I had seen this one before and I knew that whatever this
swindler had in her magic bottle would only eliminate the stain
until the chemical dried, at which point my stained carpet would
probably end up worse off than before. My cash, of course, would be
long gone. I said no thanks and avoided being ripped off, but others
haven't been so lucky. There are dozens of variations on this theme.
Most of the time the fabulous wonder spray withers your carpet or
paint within hours. Often, the entire contact is just an excuse to
for a con artist to enter your home.
Door-to-door salesmen sometimes work in pairs. While one is keeping
you busy with the magic stain remover or the wonder vac, the other
asks to use the phone or the restroom, but instead rifles your
cabinets and closets. Some claim to have a wonder wax for your
automobile, requiring that you open your garage so they can
demonstrate. The wax works great so you disappear into the house to
get your checkbook and the swindlers grab a few power tools and
hightail it down the street before you return. The wax finish is
guaranteed to dull in sunlight, of course.
A vile twist on the door-to-door scam is the swindler who peruses
the funeral notices and then shows up delivering an engraved Bible,
pen or other product that he claims your late deceased
relative ordered before passing away. In your grief, you get out
your checkbook. The product was never ordered and may indeed be
cheap merchandise, worth far less than what you paid.
Heads up when genealogy experts knock, claiming to have discovered a
long lost heritage. They may display a fancy family tree and coat of
arms on parchment. Stunned and pleased to learn that you are
descended from royalty, you make out a check or hand over cash in
exchange for a fake (but frameable!) family tree. Won't you be
surprised to find out that your neighbors down the block bought the
same piece of parchment with the same relatives listed, only with
their last name on it.
Most everyone has had a doorbell rung by someone selling magazines.
The oft-used pitch is that they are raising money for college or
some worthwhile project. They will take your order for a magazine
subscription; you may even get a receipt, but the entire transaction
will be bogus. You may never receive the magazine. Others charge
twice the amount a normal subscription would cost. Listen for words
and phrases that are often tip-offs to trouble. "Free" is one of
them. Nothing is free in this world. "I'm taking a survey,"
or "You've been selected to hear a special offer" are other phrases
used. Direct sellers know the keys to your heart: "You can help me
by purchasing this," is a commonly used line. They may also make you
believe that your child needs to purchase the product for school or
that the city is requiring or endorsing the product. Always check
before you buy. Of course, this won't be popular with the salesman,
who may then insist it is a limited time offer, your final chance at
this price, only have one left, etc. You can tell how desperate he
is by how fast he talks. Say no thanks.
Home improvement scams peddled door to door are legion. Beware of
the guys in the pickup who pull up and offer you a great deal on a
new roof or asphalt for your driveway. They say they have materials
left over from a job in the area and would be more than happy to
give you a discount so that they can "unload" these supplies. Don't
bet on that new roof never leaking or that
driveway ever drying! Often the asphalt is simply a mix of sand and
motor oil. Landscapers pull a version of the same scheme. They
just "happen to be in the neighborhood" with topsoil or sod and
offer you a great deal. You'll probably be overcharged for less-than-
quality materials. Watch those traveling gardeners, too. They'll
offer to spray your trees for insects or apply a plant feeding
application. What they use might be nothing more than soap and
water.
Be extremely careful of the salesman who returns after selling you
something, saying he has lost your check. Chances are he has already
cashed your first check and will do the same with the second that
you give him. He gets double the money and you get double the
trouble trying to track him down.
Be wary of the repairmen in the overalls who appear at your door to
inform you that a gas leak is suspected in your area. They will ask
to check your basement and then proceed to create a fake gas leak by
spraying a pipe with lighter fluid, running a match under it and
igniting it. Who wouldn't pay to get that fixed? Even if you
accompany them on their check, it only takes a second to do the deed
and you may not catch them at it.
Never let repairmen in without first verifying identities and
checking with the company's main office. Con men have been known to
monitor utility and repair company radio calls and then show up to
impersonate the actual repairman. They'll probably rip you off, or
at the very least scope out your home's security for a later
burglary.
Laura Quarantiello hates criminals and the crimes they commit. Her
book "On Guard" can help you minimize the risk you family faces from
criminal elements. Get more information at:
www.tiare.com/onguard.htm
*The pages on Lady PP's Heart of the Home are being re-formatted. Page designs may vary until this process is completed. The newly formatted pages
will contain links to additional information in the right hand column that you will find useful.
No right click
