Okay, I confess. I love to shop! I do practice “
safe shopping” but I have been known to even pay full price for something I truly desire. And, apparently, it runs in my family. When my daughter set off for college, my advice was simple, “Get a degree
and employment doing something you love, something in which you have passion.” So, she gets a degree in Fashion Merchandising, so she can actually shop for a living!
Now, let's say you get the check in the mail (totally
unsolicited by the way) and an offer to actually get paid to “shop”, well wow, isn’t that a dream come true? More of us are looking for ways to bring in extra cash to make ends meet. According to the letter, not only do you get to pocket a portion of the check for your trouble, but you get discounts on your shopping experience, just by reporting back to your new employer – a ‘marketing research firm’ – on the quality of your shopping experience, the way you were treated, the cleanliness of the store, etc. Who wouldn’t jump at the chance?
Heed my advice (by the way, my daughter is glad she did) – DON’T DO IT!
Mystery Shopping
is a legit business. But, you are NOT going to receive a check out of the blue without having had training through a reputable organization. Visit the
Mystery Shopping Providers Association and learn how you can become a certified/registered mystery shopper, receive the proper training to increase the likelihood of being selected and reape some (but probably very limited) financial rewards. They’ll also help to match you up with legitimate marketing companies and businesses that really do use mystery shoppers. There are probably 150-200 companies of this sort in the US.
For example, when I visited one of Maryland’s secret shopper businesses, I was informed that one of their customers was BWI! They hired secret shoppers to use the shuttle bus services from the terminals to parking lots to get first hand accounts of the traveler’s experience and ideas on how to improve the service. The business is indeed quite legit.
Still wondering how you get stung by the phony offer? So, you receive a check in the mail (usually in the range of $4,000 - $5,000) with an invitation to shop and rate your customer experience at highly recognizable stores such as Wal-Mart and Gap. Lastly, they direct you to “shop” Western Union and rate that experience. This is the Mystery Shopping Scam! That check you got and deposited is guaranteed to bounce. The checks are always counterfeit or stolen – so they either are or appear to be real.
Now guess what happens? You’re on the hook for all that shopping! You spent YOUR money after all. Do I also need to remind you how quickly those overdraft fees build? And, to add insult to injury, unlike that check you got in the mail, the money you wired – usually to the tune of $2,000 and almost always to Canada - when you “shopped” Western Union – was as good as cash, straight from your account. Guess what? As BBB’s own Ms. Dottie recites over and over again to the chagrin of ever-hopeful, law-abiding citizens, your money is gone. Don’t have the money to cover it? That’s a bummer, because legally you’re responsible – not the crook.
Mystery Shopping Scams are one of our country’s most prolific rip-offs and the scam artists just don’t get caught. Their letters now often claim to be from legitimate mystery shopping companies. The tip-off is always THE CHECK. When the check shows up in your mail box unsolicited, with no previous contact, totally out of the blue, that’s the red flag (not the blue light special) so please, just toss it. Using the words of another great sage in our BBB world, “We’ve been harping on not accepting checks (or candy) from strangers,” so don’t let the thought of easy money or the thrill of paid shopping be the rip-off that rips your bank account apart!
Been ripped-off or trying to figure out if a deal is a scam or the real thing? Contact your BBB today (
abarnett@greatermd.bbb.org)! And comment on our blog – we really want to talk to you! Until then, wishing you well on this Friday the 13
th and I’ll see you next week – Angie
