July 09, 2009
Thursday

Anchorage, Alaska - Businesses offered more money than they are asking for a product or service should be weary. Alaska, Oregon and Washington businesses are reporting overpayment scams.

"Businesses who think they are simply doing a favor for a good customer can get their money swiped in this scam." said Robert W.G. Andrew, CEO of Better Business Bureau serving Alaska, Oregon and Western Washington.

Identifying Overpayment Scams

Businesses are contacted, usually though an e-mail, by a buyer often from another country. Only after setting up the details of their purchase does the scam appear:

The buyer asks the business to help make their purchase easier. The buyer says they'll overpay for the product or service and asks the business to forward the extra money to another business or person to handle shipping or another service. In recent cases, it appears scam artists used stolen credit card numbers. However, fake or stolen checks are also used.

Businesses discover, usually after they've transferred funds to the scam artist, that the money never comes or the money arrives but is stolen from another person or business' account. This can put a freeze on the business' account and requires the business to pay back the money to the rightful owner, including the funds sent to the scam artist.

An Alaska bed and breakfast recently was asked to forward an overpayment of $10,000 to a "car hiring agent," so the buyer wouldn't have to share credit card information with a third party.

Scam artists do their best to sound legitimate. They may refer to themselves as a doctor or another distinguished title. Some also sound very interested in the product or service by asking questions and giving specific details. Those who don't fall for the scam, still lose valuable time to what they thought would be a good business deal.

Overpayment schemes also target consumers:

The Better Business Bureau warned in April 2009 that consumers were receiving fake or stolen checks in the mail. Depositing these checks usually resulted in the consumer's money being swiped - not funded.

In this "overpayment scheme", the check arrived in the mail with a letter stating why the money was received. The letter went on to say that a portion of the money needs to be returned to the sender or sent to another source via money wire, check or cash to pay for taxes, shipping, fees, etc.

People who tried to deposit the scam check get stopped by a bank teller. However, with better printing and computer technologies, consumers are often able to deposit these scam checks. They normally find out after they've transferred funds to the scam artist that the money never comes or the money arrives but is stolen from another person or business' account. This can put a freeze on the consumer's account and requires the consumer to pay back the money to the rightful owner, including the funds sent to the scam artist.

Reporting Scams

File complaints regarding suspicious e-mails at www.ic3.gov <http://www.ic3.gov/> . Report scams to the Alaska Attorney General, 269-5200. Get a BBB Reliability Report on businesses and organizations before working with them at www.bbb.org or 562-0704.

Source of News:

Better Business Bureau
www.bbb.org

Note: The Better Business Bureau is a not-for-profit organization funded by Better Business Bureau Accredited Businesses. The BBB's mission is to be the leader in advancing marketplace trust. For more information about the services and products provided by your BBB, call 907-562-0704 in Alaska, or visit the BBB Web site at www.bbb.org

 

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