Driver Wanted Job Scam: How It Works
You come across a personal ad looking for somebody “serious and local” to drive a handicapped wife when her husband is out of town, or kids who are home alone for a day – there can be plenty of variations to this one.
You’ve been driving for a while and think you are a good driver – why not make some money out of it? You are not into work from home jobs, so you are eager to take this offer.
Upon contacting the person, they appear very generous. You agree on details and price and they say they’ll send you a money order or check in advance.
The day you receive it, they call you to say they’re coming back to town sooner than expected, so there is no need for your services anymore. The scammer will ask you to deposit the check right away and keep 10% for the inconvenience caused, only sending them back the balance.
If you do that, you will lose the whole amount from your own account, as the check will bounce in a few business days.
In a different variation of the scam, criminals might say that their company is importing new vehicles in your city and they need to be distributed throughout your province or state.
Your job will be to drive one of them (or more) to various destinations, but you need to deposit a few hundred dollars into the money market, in order to obtain a permit to get access into specific areas. Once you apply for that permit (and pay), you’ll never hear from the scammers again.
Driver Wanted Job Scam: How To Avoid
Don’t take checks, so you can avoid the Fake Check Scam. Ask the employer to wire you the money. If you do take a check, don’t send any money until that check has cleared. If they’re honest, this will not be an issue. Do your research and only work for legitimate companies. If you are really looking for a job and seek to make some money until you find the next ideal job, you could use Swagbucks.com, which is the world’s largest free online rewards program.
You get paid by doing things online which you might do anyway, such as searching the web, discover products, take surveys, watch videos, or play games. You can also get free iTunes and Amazon cards. The company has a A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. You can register for free HERE. They offer a $5 sign-up bonus.
Speaking of checks and driving, avoid the Bounced Check Scam as well.
Driver Job Scam: How To Report
Warn your family and friends about the Driver Job Scam by sharing it on social media using the buttons provided. You can also officially report the scammers to the Federal Trade Commission using the link below:
How To Prevent Identity Theft and More
If you want to be the first to find out the most notorious scams every week, feel free to subscribe to the Scam Detector newsletter here. You’ll receive periodic emails – we promise not to spam. Meanwhile, educate yourself with some other fraud-related articles right under this paragraph, so you can protect yourself in many other aspects and niches. Last but not least, use the Comments section below to expose other scammers.
Here are some must-reads for the end:
Car Accident Compensation Claim Scam
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I fell for it. Lost $1250. Sucks. Will never make that mistake again.
Ouch, I have responded to the exact add. Told they would send check ahead of time via UPS. and I could take my pay out and send the rest to the travel agent to make arrangements for the daughter(who I am supposed to driving)flight arrangements.
Sound a little fishy? Pay was $600. for 3 days and 3hrs each time!!!!