Secret shopper or mystery shopper scams usually arrive disguised as genuine job offers; recently, Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona has been receiving inquiries from consumers who’ve received suspicious emails and letters from alleged “employers.”

With most mystery shopper job offer scams, cashiers’ checks and letters arrive in the mail.

“Congratulations! You have been selected as a mystery shopper for your area! Deposit the enclosed money order into your personal bank account and shop at the following stores … [large, well-known retailers] … rating your experience with customer service, product availability and cleanliness; wire-transfer the remaining balance back to company headquarters.”

A variation of overpayment scams, mystery shopper schemes leave depositors on the hook for the total amount when counterfeit checks ultimately bounce.

“When someone deposits a check, he or she is responsible for that check whether or not it is known that the check is a fake,” says Kim States, BBB President.

Employ caution when considering mystery shopper job opportunities and avoid offers that:

• Require upfront payments or money-wiring
• Lack verifiable contact information
• Contain unrealistic or unsubstantiated earnings claims

Visit www.tucson.bbb.org for more information on job scams

Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is alerting consumers to Southwest Airlines-branded mailers being sent out across Tucson, claiming the recipient has been “selected” to receive two round trip airfares on Southwest Airlines.

Consumers who call the number on the back of the card are told that in order to claim the airline vouchers they must own a timeshare, and they must attend a seminar this Saturday, Sunday or Monday at the Hilton Tucson East, located at 7600 E Broadway Blvd, in Tucson.

BBB advises consumers that the offer of airlines tickets in the mailer is not in any way affiliated with Southwest Airlines, despite the company’s logo appearing on the front of the card. In BBB’s experience “airline vouchers” given as incentives for attending presentations often include hidden fees and a numerous blackout dates for travel.

In the past two years BBB has seen a marked increase in timeshare related scams across the country. The scam usually involves a reseller that charges timeshare owners thousands of dollars upfront, promising to quickly sell the timeshare property. Victims of these scams tell BBB that a buyer for the timeshare never materializes, and the reseller often disappears, or points to fine print in the contract as a reason to not refund the upfront fee.

BBB offers the following advice to timeshare owners who are looking for help in selling their timeshare:

Use a Business You can Trust – Make sure the timeshare reseller you use is a BBB Accredited (more…)

Despite rising public awareness of problems in the nation’s vehicle service contract industry, consumers continue to tell Better Business Bureau they feel tricked by misleading advertising or duped into spending thousands of dollars for contracts with little or no value.

Typical is a complaint received last month from a Fort Lauderdale, Fla., consumer: “I pay on time and follow all terms of the policy but they won’t cover anything.”

Another consumer, from South Holland, Ill., made a similar claim last month: The company has “fraudulently taken my money with no thought of ever (paying for repairs).”

A consumer from Ladson, S.C., who said she received a misleading mailer from a vehicle service marketer in April, was more blunt: “These guys were slime.”

BBB suggests caution to consumers who may be considering purchasing a vehicle service contract.

In the past 12 months, the BBB has received nearly 800 complaints involving 24 auto service contract companies in the St. Louis area.  While now-defunct US Fidelis has received the biggest number of complaints – 200—three other firms have received at least 60 complaints during the 12 months. Those companies are:

• National Dealers Warranty, doing business under the name Stop Repair Bills, of St. Peters, Mo. Consumers have filed 187 complaints and reports about this company during the 12-month period and 523 in the past 36 months.
• Service Protection Direct or Protection Direct with headquarters in downtown St. Louis. Consumers have filed 76 complaints and reports about the company in the 12-month period and 298 in the past 36 months.
• Car Safe or Dealer Preferred Warranties, of St. Charles, Mo. The company has been the focus of 68 consumer complaints over the 12 months and 167 in the past 36 months.

Each of these businesses has an “F” grade with BBB, the lowest grade possible and all have been the (more…)