| Warning
about cheque deposit scam
24 October 2004 - Personal Finance
The Ombudsman for Banking Services
(OBS) has warned consumers about scams involving fraudulent cheque deposits.
Advocate John Simpson, the manager of investigations for the OBS, says
deposit scams can take place in numerous ways. Two of them are as follows:
A seller advertises the he or she has goods for sale. A thief contacts
the seller and offers to buy the goods. the thief promises to deposit
the cash amount into the seller's account and to fax the deposit slip
to the seller as proof of payment. the thief deposits a stolen or forged
cheque, and then forges a deposit slip to indicate that the deposit was
made in cash. The thief faxes the forged deposit slip to the seller, who
hands over the advertised goods. the seller only realises that he or she
has been conned when his or her bank reverses the bogus deposit.
The thief, posing as a legitimate buyer, "accidentally" deposits
a larger sum than the selling price, and asks the seller to refund the
balance. the thief makes the deposit using a stolen or forged cheque,
and then forges a deposit slip to reflect that the deposit was made using
cash. The seller, thinking the deposit was in cash, refunds the money,
discovering only later that the deposit was fraudulent.
Here are some tips to protect yourself from cheque fraud:
Do not accept a deposit slip
alone as proof of payment. Obtain a written verification from you bank
that cash has been deposited into your account before handing over goods
or refunding money.
It is better not to accept cheque deposits. However, if you do, ask your
bank for special clearance on the deposit. this way the cheque is sent
to the drawer's bank for verification before it is paid. Remember that
even a special clearance is not a guarantee that a cheque payment cannot
be reversed, if, for instance, the bank discovers that the cheque was
forged.
Be wary of buyers who offer to pay you without having seen the goods,
or who say they will send someone else to pick up the goods.
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