Scammers may call or use mail, texts, faxes or ads promising free or low-cost vacations. In reality, those vacation offers may end up charging poorly disclosed fees or may be fake, plain and simple. Here are some tell-tell signs that a travel offer or prize might be a scam:
-- You “won a free vacation” — but you have to pay some fees first
A legitimate company won’t ask you to pay for a prize. Any company trying to sell you on a “free” vacation will probably want something from you — taxes and fees, attendance at mandatory timeshare presentations, even pressure to buy “extras” or “add-ons” for the vacation, etc. Find out what your costs are before you agree to anything.
-- The prize company wants your credit card number
Especially if they say it’s to “verify” your identity or your prize, don’t give it to them.
-- They cold-call, cold-text, or email you out of the blue
Before you do business with any company you don’t know, call the Attorney General and local consumer protection agencies in the company’s home state to check on complaints; then, search online by entering the company name and the word “complaints” or “scam” and read what other people are saying.
-- They don’t — or can’t — give you specifics
They promise a stay at a “five-star” resort or a cruise on a “luxury” ship. The more vague the promises, the less likely they’ll be true. Ask for specifics, and get them in writing. Check out the resort’s address; look for photos of the ship.
-- You’re pressured to sign up for a travel club for great deals on future vacations
The pressure to sign up or miss out is a signal to walk away. Travel clubs often have high membership fees and limited choice of destinations or travel dates.
-- You get a robocall about it
Robocalls from companies trying to sell you something are almost always illegal if you haven’t given the company written permission to call you. That’s true even if you haven’t signed up for the national Do Not Call Registry.
The latest bunch of "Bahamas cruise" calls take a page from Fred Accuardi and cronies, who got spanked half a year ago for the same routine of using fake surveys as sales lead generating tools, thus confusing people about the need for compliance with the Do Not Call Registry and the Telemarketing Sales Rule.
FTC and Ten State Attorneys General Take Action Against Political Survey Robocallers Pitching Cruise Line Vacations to the Bahamas
Settling Defendants to Pay More Than $500,000 in Penalties for Billions of Illegal Robocalls
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-release ... ainst-political
From my own intel and months of relentless calls to my Dad, the new kids are using Verizon Wireless numbers about exclusively, either dead or spoofed ones, which is why everyone who returns calls hears a greeting from a "Verizon Wireless National Payment Center". Those who make keypress responses are subjected to the canned questioning of "Tim from Customer Service", trying too hard in a slurring manner to sound like an earnest Midwestern farm boy.
The very first question to "qualify" prods: "you still have a credit card or a debit card, correct?" Now, why is that needed up front if there is really a prize to be won? If you don't give an answer or one that Tim likes, he gets pushy about all travel companies needing your credit or debit card to do business and the question sound file repeats. I suspect the Echo System is in use, the same soundboard deployed by our pals at "Life Giving Moments".
That's as far as I've gone in the script. When I get serious time to work up a TCPA lawsuit I may press onward.
Idiots called Sunday morning asking for a "free" cruise line. These companies need to be exposed so that people would be able to shut them down for good.