New Scam, But This One's Aimed at Shop Owners

I talk a lot about the scamsters and their relentless ways, but it's usually a place of business that is perpetrating the fraud. This time it's auto repair shops who are the victims. True to form, the scam artists have managed to create an odd scenario with enough compelling elements to make some shop owners fall victim. The scam apparently goes like this: A shop gets a phone call from a man or woman who claims to be a teletype translator for the hearing impaired. If you're unfamiliar, teletype services simply translate typed messages to voice so the hearing impaired can make a phone call. They're legit, most of the time. In this case the translator informs the shop owner they are calling for a stranded motorist. They can actually be heard typing in the background. They need their car towed in but "for some reason" the towing company can't run their credit card. The translator asks the shop owner to run $3500 on the credit card for them, and take a $1000 deposit on the repairs for his trouble. He will then send the remaining $2500 by wire to the potential customer who will be there in the morning with the car. I'm sure you know what's next. The credit card company declines the charges and the shop is out $2500. It won't always work because some shops run the charge right through, but older systems will have a lag time and that's who gets nailed. Ouch.

_{Read more in the Ventura County Star.}