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Scams affecting the Canadian floral industry |
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Written by Amanda Ryder
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In our last e-newsletter, we asked
you to send us examples of fraudulent orders that you received at your
shop so we can work to compile a Canadian list of scams.
Here are two responses we received. Feel free to send us more examples so we can continue to inform Canadians florists about scams occurring in the industry.
EH Florist Inc of South Surrey, B.C. wrote:
The first email came just weeks before mothers day for 60 dozen roses – I thought the same thing… sounds to go to be true, but called the wholesaler anyway and they said that several shops had called & got the same email! I even had the person call the shop, but the phone connection was really bad, so I just hung up.
I had another email similar to the first, come through just last week. I just deleted it.
Christine’s Creations Floral Design Studio of Victoria, B.C. wrote:
When first contacted by email the man asked for a quote on 1 dozen roses wrapped. Then the subsequent email indicated he actually wanted 15 dozen roses and when could I have them available for shipping. He then called, this man was very pushy on the phone and was quite insistent that he would arrange a freight truck to come and pick the roses up. I was to charge his credit card the shipping amount so this would have been a further loss to my company I asked for his mailing address and phone numbers. I intended to use these to verify with the credit card company if the information I was provided matched the credit card account information. It was not surprising to me when I was told this information did not match the card. The processing company informed me the card was issued by a bank in England and gave me the phone number to call England and report this incident. To follow up, I called the bank in England and reported the credit card fraud. At first they were confused about what I was asking them to do; they thought I wanted their client’s information. When I clarified that I was asking them to inform their card holder of the risk to their credit card security and suggested they put a hold on the card to prevent any further fraudulent use they understood what I was trying to do. It upset me that without my vigilance this scammer could have gone on to scam others.
The two more recent scams that I have experienced were quite similar. The first involved a Reverend that was asking if I sold fiberglass pedestals. He wanted a quote which I provided and then he indicated that he would need them shipped to an African country and provided me with the shipping company contact information. He told me that the company he wished me to use was one that his wife at the Embassy used. I played the game and made a call to enquire about the cost of shipping and was quoted more than the value of the items, it would cost $2800.00 to ship. I was to pay shipping and be reimbursed via my client’s credit card. I declined being involved in this as my suspicions were alerted from the beginning.
The third scam was quite similar to the previous one. Again it was a Reverend, but this time he was asking for a quote on 15 casket sprays and wanted them shipped to West Africa. Needless to say I didn’t even waste my time with it other than to decline being involved at all.
All florists should be vigilant about getting mailing addresses for the credit card information they take over the phone or internet and do a reverse look up on the internet through Canada411 or other similar websites to ensure their client’s information matches what was provided. They can also make an enquiry with their credit card provider to verify the information matches as well. They should not assume that they are in the clear even if the credit card is authorized. Each shop needs to have procedures in place to protect them from credit card fraud.
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