How Do You Avoid The Nigerian Fraud Con That Is Hitting Vacation Rentals?
Just recently there’s been some publicity concerning the practice carried out by some fraudsters of listing homes for rental that actually aren’t for rent or worse, don’t even exist. One recent case in Maryland saw one man’s home being listed on a vacation rental site along with photographs and a description even though this was his place of residence. Talk about getting new neighbors! This problem has now come about as people have largely become aware of other scams that the Nigerian teams pull off; typically through email and promises of large amounts of money. Instead the crooks have now turned their attention to new ways of conning the public and it seems the vacation rental market is now one of the targets. What happens is this: Someone posts a property on a rental web site, posing as the owner, and then collects deposits for future rentals on the property. If the renter then fails to check out the property or the owner via other sources and simply sends off a check, then the scam
