Based on the facts from Fair-tradings QLD, hosts in Gold Coast often become victims of the online scams. Followings are some of the most common red flags that would help you in identifying a scam inquiry before falling victim.
1Watch the Language: If the inquirer demonstrates a poor grasp of basic language ie spelling, punctuation, and grammar, then they could be scammers.
2Emails: Is the email coming from an email provider you’ve never heard of? Does the email address correspond with the name in your inbox? If the two don’t match, watch out! It could be a fake email.
3Too Much Information: Have they written above and beyond what normally be expected? Are they provided you with a life story? This is a big red flag when it comes to scams. The rule is: don’t believe everything you read.
4Occupations: Be a aware that, any potential guests that make a point in declaring their profession for one reason or another. Especially if they say they are a religious figure, sea captain, doctor or member of the armed forces etc.
5Surprises and Gift: If the traveler mentions that they are arranging a surprise trip for someone else - it can be an alarm bell. Surprise trips often can fall through at any time.
6Payments: Be careful if they offer to pay outside of AirBnB / HomeAway, e.g. by bank cheques or by Western Union transfer. These payments are not secured and won’t be guaranteed under the AirBnB or HomeAway policies.
Additionally, if they offer to pay more than your listed rate, this can be another warning sign. A classic 'overpay scam' involves guests sending more money than stated via cheque or money order, and likely enough, it turns out to be stolen. Before you can realize this, they’ll be sending you messages asking for the overpayment to be returned to them (many will use the excuse of travel departments making a mistake). Recently, this scam has come into play using credit cards, too: the scammer reserves a property, and (over)pays by card. They will then ask for the extra amount back via bank transfer, making up an excuse why it can’t go back on the card. Only once funds have been sent will it come to light that scammers had been using stolen credit card details.
Finally, if a guest provides you with unsolicited payment information in their initial inquiry, you should be immediately alarmed that this could be a potential scamer.
7Missing Profile: When it comes to inquiries, if something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Trust your gut feelings! If the traveler doesn’t send any inquiry questions or have any phone number listed on their profile, raise your suspicions!
8Incorrect Property Details: Receiving an inquiry from someone who refers to your penthouse apartment in Surfers Paradise as a “cute cottage” should raise a few red flags. This could likely be a 'blanket message' they’ve sent to multiple owners, waiting for one unsuspecting host to fall victim to this scam.
9Date Inconsistencies: If you have a potential inquire about specific dates, then tell you their dates to rent your property are flexible, this could also be a scam too.
10General Perception: A lot of scams could be avoided if hosts truly go with their instinct. If it sounds too good to be true (ie. paying you extra money for a low-season period), it probably is!
