Five Money Scams You Should Watch Out for on Craigslist La Crosse
La Crosse, Wisconsin locals use Craigslist to advertise a variety of different items that they want to sell. It’s a great resource for reaching interested parties in the local area with your ads. You can find cars, trucks, furniture, event tickets, appliances, boats, books and much more for reasonable prices on the site. It’s also a good resource for finding home rentals and an occasional home for sale, but having said that, the number of scams appearing on the site. While most transactions that take place on Craigslist go off without a hitch, reports of victims who lose hundreds and thousands of dollars to scams are being reported to local law enforcement agencies. Here are five money scams that you need to watch out for on Craigslist Lacrosse.
1. Paypal scam warning for Craigslist users
A warning has been issued for everyone who is planning to sell items on Craigslist. It seems that sophisticated scammers have found a way to use this legitimate payment system to scam people out of their hard earned money. The Better Business Bureau has become involved and joins in issuing the warning. Scammers posing as potential buyers contact Craigslist sellers. They refuse to make personal contact and come up with excuses why.They offer to pay through PayPal. They claim that they are going to have a shipping agent pick up and deliver the product. They ask if you have a PayPal account. If you don’t they send you a link that looks legitimate. This is so they can gain access to your personal information. They also use another tactic to scam you. They use an authentic looking site that is really a fake and claim to have paid you too much. After you remit the balance for the so called over payment, they disappear and you learn a few days later that you’ve been scammed.
2. Craigslist rental scams
Local police are warning about a rental scam on Craigslist. One victim narrowly escaped losing money after a fake landlord posted a home for rent in the area. An Eau Claire resident found the home listed on the Lacrosse Craigslist. The ad looked authentic but it was when the seller asked her to send the deposit online only that she smelled a rat. After checking further into the situation it was discovered that the person who placed the ad wasn’t the owner of the home and had she wired the deposit and rent money she would have lost it all to a scammer and not had a place to live on top of that.
3. Overpayment scam on Craigslist La Crosse
Nancy Oliver put an old china hutch for sale on Craigslist. It was advertised for $250. A potential buyer emailed her with interest in the item. He offered to send a cashier’s check for the item. The very next day the check arrived but it was for $1,520 instead of for $250. The buyer wanted her to cash the check and arrange for movers to come and pick it up, then send the balance of the money after her cut to them. She immediately knew that this was a scam, but there have been several other victims who have fallen for the scam. When you cash the check in your bank account, it takes a few days for it to clear or not clear. In the meantime, victims wire the balance to the so called movers who are really just scammers. The check bounces and you’re left with responsibility of paying the bank back and the scammers get your money.
4. Sophisticated boat scam
Here’s another money scam that the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture officials are warning everyone about. Scammers have posted a nice boat for sale on Craigslist. They offer to sell it through a fake law firm that appears to be legitimate. They tell the buyers that this is to protect everyone involved in the transaction. After the boat is paid for, they say that the boat will be shipped. After the deposit on the boat is made, the scammers disappear with the money and you never hear from them again. Most of the time they use a stolen picture of a boat and there’s never a real boat for sale to begin with.
5. Google Checkout Scam
Scammers are becoming more sophisticated with their money stealing tactics. One of the latest scams to hit the La Crosse Craigslist is that a scammer lists a vehicle for sale on the site. When you contact them to show interest, they tell you that the vehicle is already in storage and ready to be shipped. They come up with a million reasons why you can’t see it in person. they offer the item for a really low price. They insist on completing the transaction through Google Checkout saying it will protect both of you. They instruct the buyer to supply their name and shipping address. Once the money is submitted through Google Checkout, they disappear with your money and you never hear from them again.