Awefully bad renting scam

Soldato
Joined
17 Mar 2009
Posts
6,684
Location
Nottingham
So I'm looking to rent a property re my thread here

The advert as follows.
£350 PCM with bills part furnished with white good inc dishwasher, and has own parking space in the middle of the city!

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wowzers nice flat....... so i emailed the person advertising. Ann Parker... and get an email from Alvina Parker as follows
Thanks for your interest. Our flat is still available for rent. As you see on the advert our flat is Recently refurbished throughout, and presented in the highest order a wonderfully bright one bed roomed flat set within a handsome period building and there is a garage and a off street parking in our flat

Rent include Utility bills inclusive ( water, gas, council tax, TV license and wireless Internet) Utility Cost : £300 PCM. £75 PW. Security Deposit: £500.00 will be returned back to you at the end of 2 weeks stay in our flat.

You have to assure me you are a clean and tidy person, because my flat was just recently refurbished throughout, Do you have references in Nottingham? Get back to me for terms and conditions before we can proceed for the viewing or make a reservation for you.

Regards
Mr/Mrs Parker

So i probe a bit deeper and get this response.

Thanks for the sincere interest you have in our flat. You can stay in our flat as long as you pay your rent at when due. As I stated on my previous mail to you. Rent include Utility bills inclusive ( water, gas, council tax, TV license and wireless Internet) Utility Cost :£300 PCM : Security Deposit: £ 500.00 Returnable. I would have love to schedule the viewing without hesitate but,it is unfortunate that our past bitter experience of making reservation for people without any form of confirmation of their financial ability and not keeping up to time as at when scheduled, has brought about great loss to us. We have made a reservation for interested candidate to make sure our flat is available when we agreed on but unfortunately they will refused to turn up,they will later tell us they have find a good location close to their office or school. Did that sound well to you? After all our preparation and turning other interested candidate down to make sure we don't fail. That as really brought about great loss to us. My husband have also traveled all the way from where he work to take some interested candidates round our flat. Some outside tenants do not have the money to pay the rent and yet they disturb for reservation, and viewing of the flat also some do not meet up with the appointments which we are not happy about. .

Henceforth my husband and i have decided to setup a simple test on financial ability before coming for viewing or before making a reservation for any interested candidate. Bank statement is not also allowed because they do provide fake of it. What we required from you is for you to locate any money gram post office or western union money transfer around you and transfer the 1 month rent which is £300 PCM and security deposit £ 500.00 to your friend or partner, you can make the transfer with your name as a sender name and your friend or partner in UK premises as a receiver. After the transfer do forward me the scan copy of the receipt as i will forward it to my husband for confirmation if truly is valid and available in your friend or partner custody. After verification by my husband the transfer is valid and available in your friend or partner custody, that will tell us you are a serious candidate, then we can proceed for the viewing or make a reservation to make sure the flat is available when we shall agreed on. Note you're not sending the transfer to me neither to my husband, because it will be inappropriate for us to collect any money from you before viewing our flat or before making reservation. You're to transfer it to your closest and trusted friend or partner in UK. After the transfer do forward me the scan copy of the receipt as i will forward it to my husband for confirmation if truly is valid and available in your friend or partner custody and will also be use as a reference for you. Note my husband as to confirm your transfer valid before the receiver pick it up. We are sorry for any inconvenience we must have cost you is due to our bad experience with bad tenant.

My husband will refund back to you the cost of transfer when we meet for the viewing.

Thanks for your cooperation,
Regards
Mr/Mrs Parker

Would seem after a bit of reading the scammer can claim the funds via the receipt for the WU moneygram.

Really poor yet in some aspects clever scam
 
I'm having some fun with them now :) Said i cant do WU money gram so asked if they can give me their sort code and account number then I'll BT the money to them on a 2hr faster payment.

If they are stupid enough to provide the details then quick call to their bank and the police :)
 
seems like a very odd way of doing things... would assume most people wouldn't go along with it - assuming you did though, how does the scammer get the money?

I've not used moneygram etc.. so am not entirely sure how this scam works... supposing you send some cash to your friend... your friend collects the cash & gives it back to you... you send the receipt to the scammer guy - how does he then rob you? Surely the moneygram has already been collected by your friend or are the scammers just relying on people who send them the receipt before their friend collects the cash?
 
seems like a very odd way of doing things... would assume most people wouldn't go along with it - assuming you did though, how does the scammer get the money?

I've not used moneygram etc.. so am not entirely sure how this scam works... supposing you send some cash to your friend... your friend collects the cash & gives it back to you... you send the receipt to the scammer guy - how does he then rob you? Surely the moneygram has already been collected by your friend or are the scammers just relying on people who send them the receipt before their friend collects the cash?

see below, apparently via can claim the funds through the receipt

When renting, particularly where the Internet is involved where there is no initial face contact, its important to beware of fraudsters using theb moneygram scam to to steal your cash. Fraudsters target potential tenants, just like they target landlords.
This is where adverts are placed on popular community websites such as the gumtree, craigslist, or spare room for what looks like a legitimate accommodation for rental.
The ads are well written just like most genuine adverts. However, the accommodation on offer tends to be going for what looks like a lower amount then market value. To get people to think they have a bargain so more people would show an interest.
Pictures of the adverts tend to be glossy giving an impression of a plush place of rent. Also these adverts tend not to have a contact telephone number. The user is required to contact the advertiser through email link shown on the website. This is part of the moneygram scam.
When contact is made with the criminal, an email is sent to the victim providing more descriptions of the residence. The house is put in a very positive light, what is available tends to seems quite grand. The victim is told the landlord is not around in the area. For whatever reason, work, family or whatever excuse the landlord is in another part of the country or indeed overseas, would have to arrive at an agreed time to show the property.
The victim is asked if he is able to look after the place well, if he is able to keep the property tidy as perhaps bad encounters were experienced previously. Thinking this is all a good deal the potential tenant replies back to the landlord with satisfactory answers. The scammer then tells him he has had bad experiences with tenants previously with people unable to pay rent so he needs to ensure this potential tenant has the means to do so. Again this all part of the moneygram scam.
After all he does want to come all the way from Newcastle or Denmark to deal with an unsuitable tenant. To prove he has the funds a Moneygram transfer is requested. He states the transfer does not need to paid to him directly, after all its not advisable to transfer funds to unknown people but a movement of funds to a relative or friend of the tennent. After this is done the receipt is required to be sent to the scammer providing proof that funds are available, and so it will not be a long and wasted journey from far flung areas.
If the victim does agree to this course of action, their receipt is asked to be faxed or scanned and sent. With the receipt in the hands of the fraudster he is able to withdraw the money. To withdraw funds from Moneygram, a tracking number on the receipt together with the senders name is all thats required.
This is a common scam seen on websites. If someone asks for a transfer of some sorts through Moneygram, its a criminal weaving his spell. And if something looks too good to be true then it probably is.
If a house is advertised at what appears to be a lower value, there is likelihood something is not right. Leave it well alone. If you do come across this type of moneygram scam best to report it to the website so the ad can be withdrawn.
 
Well, from the pictures it is clearly far to nice a flat for £350 pcm inc bills! (though, i live in Surrey so maybe that is attainable in some less expensive locations)

Still looks too good to be true .
 
I've reported the article to the website.

I'm now Phishing for the advertisers details to report them to the police/their bank
 
Already reported to the letting agent on zoopla, and the site where the scam is hosted.

I'm trying to phish the Scammers details but they're playing hard ball but still biting.

Fail all else... they're email is going to get registered up for newsletters/subs for some really nasty *** websites :)
 
see below, apparently via can claim the funds through the receipt

how does that cause the victim to lose money... other than the initial moneygram fee

I go to the post office - handover 300 cash + a fee... my friend collects the 300

I then mail the receipt to the scammers.... they're then somehow able to claim money for a money gram that's already paid out? Even if they can - I've still got my 300 back before I've sent the receipt and am just down the fee...

its got to rely on people who not only are silly enough to go through with the charade but who also mail the moneygram reciept before their friend has collected it
 
Fail all else... they're email is going to get registered up for newsletters/subs for some really nasty *** websites :)

nice :D

if you can find a copy of a moneygram receipt mebbe a 2 minute photoshop job can cause them to waste an hour or so going to the post office and faffing about trying to collect a non existing moneygram.
 
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