Scam Warning

Over Pay Bill and Ask for Refund or Balance Sent to Third Party.
Or Identity Theft

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Summary

The end goal is to get the B&B owner to send money to the scammer. Typically, the scammer will make a booking and overpay for it with either a credit card or forged check. The scammer will request the balance sent somewhere, usually by Western Union. Remember, these scammers are creative and there are many variations on the scam.

The scam works like this:

The scammer will book a room(s) and claim to have no credit card to hold the room or will have a credit card. They will ask to send a bank draft/certified check/money order to pay for the room in advance or pay for it with a credit card. When the check arrives it will be for an amount greater than the value of the stay or they will ask you to charge the credit card for an amount greater than the value of the stay. The scammer will then request the balance sent to a third party (i.e. a car rental agency) or returned to the scammer.

Since the bank draft/certified check/money order is drawn on a foreign bank it may take up to 3 months to learn it is fraudulent. The B&B owner is now short the amount of the check/wire they sent the scammer and probably lost bookings since they held a room for the scammer. If the scammer paid by a credit card it is surely to be disputed by the actual card owner.

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Some of the Tells:

Overseas/International: Typically the guest/agent/scammer will be overseas or out of country (UK, France...). The reason is authorities rarely pursue this kind of international crime.
Urgent: Often the scammer will be acting in an urgent manner and making bookings with short notice.
Long stays or lots of rooms: They will also want long stays and a lot of rooms. The scammer will also be very vague about the actual number of guest. The reason is they want to get the booking charge high.
No rate resistance: They will show little or no rate resistance.
Flexible on dates: They will be flexible on dates of arrival/ departure and the number of nights booked.
No interest in location: They don’t care about your location, they will express little or no interest in area attractions, nearby airports or other facilities.
Will not address your B&B by name in the first e-mail: The first e-mail you receive will likely not address your B&B specifically. It will be a general e-mail and may not even mention your town or state.
Grammar, Spelling, and choice of words: The scammer's grammar, spelling and use of punctuation will be off. When you see the sample e-mails below you'll notice the spacing is off.

"Agency,London"
instead of
"Agency, London"
Doctor's acting as travel agents: Often the scammer making the booking will present themselves as a doctor. There are two red flags associated with this. 1) Doctor's generally don't act as travel agents. 2) Doctor's, especially from England, should have a better command of the English language.
Free e-mail account: Often the e-mail will come from a free e-mail service like Yahoo! or Hotmail. Legitimate travel agents rarely use free e-mail accounts. Note: One scammer has created a front called Varsatile Vincent Travel Agency and sends e-mails from hotel@varsatilevincent.info or reservations@varsatilevincent.info see Elvis Borrow.
Send money: They want you to send them cash, usually by wire. Ultimate tip off!

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Suggestion:
If you get one of these remember if it is too good to be true, it probably is. If you feel it is a legit booking request a deposit by bank transfer or credit card and insist on the balance being paid in person. Whatever happens, do not send them a check, a money gram, a wire, or bank transfer!!!

If you feel it could be legit it is rely on your instinct. Make sure you chat them up. Ask them about the attractions they plan to see or are interested in. What airport they are flying to. Who are they flying with. Will they be renting a car. But it is probably best to just ignore them.

Here is a list of known scammers. If you have any to add (scams or aliases) read the Actions you can take first.

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IMPORTANT PLEASE READ:

The scammers do not use their own real name. For the most part they use made up names and made up or wrong addresses. In some cases they may assume the identity of another real legitimate person. They may also claim associations with well know organizations. It is has been brought to our attention that we could be defaming a legitimate person or business and suggested we give out general non-specific information. We have decided to continue supplying details v. general information. If a legitimate person or business is found listed on this page then please read that as notification of identity theft. If you are that person/business please contact us to discuss how we should proceed. If you believe we have listed someone incorrectly please take the time to notify us.

Names/Aliases

Scammer

Notes

Franklin Williams
Redwings Tours Agency, London, UK
infofrank@globalum.com
44 7040111 307

Active around November 23rd, 2005

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Dr. Watson Gordon of Christian Agency London
mrhgordon221@yahoo.com
w_gordon22@yahoo.com

Active around November 25th, 2005 & March 2006
Sample E-mail

Scam Warning

New Names/Aliases are being added to the forum from now on.

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