How To Avoid Business Scams And Protect Your Assets
BUSINESS SCAMS
So, I’ve been fairly conservative with my blogs up to this point. It’s time to get a little more personal. I will start with a little background knowledge on some of the crap I have been dealing with over the past several months and then will get to what prompted me to write this blog.
A Little Background
In a previous blog I have mentioned that my daughters have a fairly passionate interest in equestrian riding. Also, I have shared with you that my career had somewhat taken a nose dive with the demise of my marriage. So,I guess you could say that I have had to pursue other forms of income. Somehow, I have become a business owner.
One of the small business endeavours that I have pursued over the past couple of years has been with a lady who had decided to take over the lease of one of our local horse arenas. It was the arena where my daughters had chosen for many years to board and train some of their horses. The business I took part in was in the investment of a selection of horses of different calibers. They would then undergo some training if required, and when the time was right, they would then be resold to different riders of all different skill levels.
A Little Bit About The Equine Business
For the most part, the business overall was a great idea. It was a legitimate business by all intents and purposes. It was quite successful in the beginning and ran without any problems.
The number of employees was 2, myself and this other lady who had the lease on the arena. It was fairly informal, no official website on the internet. The odd add about one of our sale horses would be posted here and there on her Facebook site, but most of our contacts and buyers knew us. We would generally be contacted for sales via text message, email address, or phone number. There really was no need for a directory listing or to be listed in the yellow pages. If someone had an interest in one of our horses, they would either already have our personal Information to pursue contact or would leave their own contact information at the arena.
Always, Always Have A Contract!!!
I had done up a contract, which I thank my lucky stars for now. The contract outlined all of the terms in detail. I was to purchase the horses in full as an initial investment. The training and care for the horses was to be left as a term and condition in the contract to my business partner in exchange for her payment when the horses would sell, as her end of the deal. In the end, when the horses would sell, my initial investment would be paid back first and foremost and then the balance made would be split between the two of us. Of course there were other stipulations added here and there, but nothing really to concern ourselves over pertaining to this matter.
We would purchase numerous horses and before long they always seemed to find a home. This went on for months. Everything seemed to be running well. Everyone was happy. We were making a profit, and there were no complaints. My oldest daughter even had the opportunity to help with some of the training of these sale horses as a part time job.
Running a Business Remotely
When this past summer came around, I had the misfortune of having to be out of town quite a lot off and on. I was dealing with a very sick friend who needed my help. While I had been doing my best to pay close attention to all of the financial aspects of the business at this point, some of that became a little more difficult to keep track of remotely. Subsequently, my business partner began to run the business as if to ignore my financial shares in my absence. While I was only a phone call away, I was never included in any decision making on sales of horses I had purchased, nor was I asked to sign off on one invoice, or any bill of sales.
However, upon my every return to the arena, numerous horses had been sold and zero dollars had been allocated to my bank account via wire transfer or e-transfer. I had not required or so much as requested for her to take on any administrative roles in these sales while I was away, but somehow she had taken it upon herself to take the initiative in doing so. It will become clear to everyone why in a moment.
When the horses would be purchased, for the most part, I preferred to buy them directly from their owners. That way, I knew exactly what I was buying and for exactly how much I was paying for the horses. I would also receive a bill of sale, (no fake invoices), from the owners with my name on it upon payment. With this, horses’ papers would always be required to be provided to me.
Honour Systems Just Don’t Work
If I left the payment for our horse purchases up to my business partner, it generally turned into a crapshoot. I would be given a random price by her for a particular horse, be asked for an e-transfer to be deposited into her account and would rarely see any paperwork. No real financial information would be reported to myself. (bill of sale or horse papers) This transaction would essentially be done solely on an honours system with my trusting that this money was in fact the truthful asking price of the horses I had invested in. I would then also be trusting that this money that I had transferred to my business partner had been in fact going to the owners to whom these horses had been purchased through.
This created problems for me on multiple levels. First off, I had no paperwork to file for my accountant to do my taxes with. Government agencies definitely likes to know that legitimate companies are paying their proper share of taxes. This is very difficult to do without proper billing documents.
I really had no idea what she had actually paid for the horses and I did not have any paperwork on the horses to give to the next owners, which was sensitive information to someone purchasing a horse. These people who would eventually be purchasing the horses from us would want this information on their new, not so small purchases. These red flags were just a few of the alerts I should have seen a long time ago. This lack in her ability to produce these documents I was told is a common scam, one of the most common scams in fact. Her deception grew and I began to see the type of con artist she really was.
Do Everything By The Book… It’s Just Better That Way
It is truly unfortunate that in this day and age, you simply cannot trust anyone. You very much need to cover all grounds when it comes to business endeavours. Money has the ability to persuade many people into behaving very unethically and without reason. Money is so very powerful. In saying that, it truly can turn your life upside down if you let it. Keep reading…
Lies, Lies, and More Lies
It was time for my business partner to settle up with me on a few horses that had sold while I had been away. I had contacted her multiple times to meet up in order to collect the bill of sales, work out the commissions, and finalize everything that had happened while I had been gone. I literally had gotten every excuse in the book as to why she couldn’t meet up one day to the next. It persisted for well over a month.
She finally wrote me a cheque that ended up in non sufficient funds.(bouncing) I was now extremely sceptical. She was now technically a fraudster. What other types of scams was she up to? All I could think of in my mind was…”thank goodness I hadn’t given her my credit card number or password to anything else she could have gotten into.” I had no idea what type of scam she was capable of at this point.
I had a lawyer friend of mine draw up a demand letter insisting that she provided me with full payment by a certain date or that I would be filing a civil claim against her. The date came and went. She begged for one more day and I finally had to say no.
It’s Go Time
The claim was submitted into the courts for the full amount owed to me for the horses that had been sold. When you are dealing with small claims court, I have learned that our system makes it extremely difficult for the plaintiff. I plan to write a separate blog on the process of filing a civil claim in hopes that it will help others simplify their experience when dealing with an already stressful situation. Stay tuned.
My business partner was then served with my claim and was given 20 days to contest it. She failed to enter any dispute notice with the court, and on day 20, I was given a court date in order to meet with a judge for my default judgement. I had won the claim by default. Most times when this happens, the clerks are capable of deciding on the amount owed to the plaintiff. (who in this case was myself). Unfortunately, in this situation, the defendant (my business partner) owed me a fairly large sum of money. I was given a court date where I would be required to present my proof of evidence and receipts to a judge to account for the total sum of the amount I had claimed owing. Soooo…. I did, and it was approved.
Now, just because you have been awarded a default judgement, doesn’t mean that BAM… you’re going to get your money! Nope! It is now up to you to figure out how you are going to acquire payment from your debtor. So… You now have a multitude of further steps to pursue for this to happen.
Collecting Your Money
A Writ of Enforcement needs to be approved with the courts which is then to be filed with the registrars offices in town. This is the first step in the process to collecting what your debtor owes to you. Next, you can also try to garnishee all of the banks that you think your debtor may have accounts with. Another option available is to have a lawyer or court approve a form for the defendant to fill out. This form requires the debtor to list in detail all of their possessions. (I suggest this option, as it is the most effective of the three). And often times, in the end, a collections service may need to become involved.
In an attempt at being an organized and keen business lady, who had just been screwed over by her business partner, I opted to do all three of the above. Yup, I spent days filling out forms… photocopying, visiting the courts, calling lawyers, you name it… Cause I have ALL of the time in the world to do ALL of this fun stuff. Delivered garnishee notices to every major bank in town. (Oh, and by the way, those cost $30 each). Felt like I was finally getting somewhere. Silly, silly, me.
Round Two…
I arrived home one evening, about a month and a half after I had been awarded my default judgement to my doorbell ringing. My son yelled to me to come to the door. I had been SERVED. It was a claim brought to me requesting a set aside judgement to my default claim. Now, essentially what a set aside judgement is, is a plea to contest the claim that the defendant (in this case, my business partner) had not bothered to dispute the first time around. HMMM.. how convenient.
On the page, was a court date for both of us to attend where the judge would make a decision on whether or not she would be approved for this second chance. Essentially, I was at risk to loosing my already successful judgement and all of the work I had done thus far in an attempt to acquire my debt back. Months and months of work, down the drain. Such CRAP!!
The court date arrived and I was ready. I had every piece of evidence I could possibly find to dispute anything they threw my way. Another SHOCKER…my business partner had decided NOT to show up to the hearing. I couldn’t believe it. How could she simply disregard her own court claim. This is where sh*t got really mind boggling. “That’s OK criminal… we will just call you from the court phone and have you contest your charge over our speakerphone. We wouldn’t want to have to put you out now would we?” Are you fu*king kidding me???? And sure as sh*t, her voice appeared over the loud speaker for everyone in that courtroom to hear.
System More Focused On Helping The Criminals
The next problem I faced was that the judge did not provide me with one moment to speak and had approved her application with no evidence required. I was horrified. I was back to square one. Why was this system allowing this person who couldn’t even make the time to show up for her own court hearing, had stolen from me, refused to acknowledge my original claim, had committed fraud with a non-sufficient funds cheque, and had absolutely no evidence to provide against my claim so many chances?
Broken System??? I Think So…
That same day, I had my second claim ready to file against that same individual. This claim was for the sale horses that I had purchased that she still had in her possession. I had been told by the first judge who had awarded me the default judgement that this claim would have to be addressed separately. So, I had hoped to have served her that same day at the court house, but she had not shown up. Nevertheless, the claim was filed with the courts for round two and a friend had gone to serve her.
Mediation
All of this ended up having to go to a mandatory mediation. I had hired a lawyer to help me out with some of the paperwork. The whole thing had simply been taking up too much of my life. It had been overwhelming and I had invested so much time already into all of it. It was nice to finally have some much needed help and support.
I knew that I couldn’t let this whole thing go. Throughout the entire ordeal, I had learned of many many others who had been taken advantage of by this same individual. I had learned that she had been stealing from many people and had been bullying most of them into keeping their mouths closed. This had been going on for quite some time and she had become somewhat of an expert at it. There had been multiple calls into the RCMP, but nothing had been accomplished.
My mediation has recently been concluded. I did end up coming to an agreement with my ex-business thief of a partner. I definitely did let some things slide in the end out of frustration and pure desire to be done with this whole situation. However, she has been ordered to pay me a fairly large sum of money over a period of four months. To no surprise, she has already failed to meet the terms of the agreement on the first payment, which will mean further action will be pursued.
Reason For This Long-winded Blog
What prompted me to write this blog though was something that happened to me the other day. I was coming home from dropping my children off to school and received a very confusing message from a great friend of mine. This friend has also been a victim of some trickery courtesy of my ex-business partner.
The message was of a FaceBook posting that a lady had posted about being scammed by again, this same individual. The lady had written about her experience in previously sending this thief some money for a saddle that had been listed for sale by her. First of all, it was discovered that this particular saddle was not even hers to be selling. The saddle was owned by a completely different person who came forward after recognizing its listing. Secondly, the thief had no intention on ever sending the saddle to this lady even after the full payment had been e-transferred to her over a week prior.
When the thief caught wind of this social media posting, she threatened anything she could to have her take it down, but this lady stood her ground and outright refused. The thief finally agreed to pay her money back, but in very small increments, expecting that the post would then disappear. However, it did not. Since then, there has been over 140 other victims come forward with complaints against this same individual. There also has been other social media postings addressing other scams that have targeted other innocent victims, again by this same scammer.
So Many People impacted by This One Person
I have now been contacted by several of them, being one of the only people who have been known to taken action against her. I have had numerous conversations with people who have been victims of extortion, threats, and fraud. Some had experienced perjury, been written fake checks, or had been victims to stolen merchandise. People who’s lives and horses’ lives have been hugely impacted by this individual. Some of the most traumatizing stories sadly involved the mistreatment of horses that had been in her care. I knew that con artists existed, but this was next level.
People Need To Take Action
My heart is literally broken for each and every one of these people who have felt the need to stay quiet and let this person run a muck. This type of thing can happen to anyone. The most frustrating part is that you never know who is capable of such horrible betrayal. In this case it was one of my coworkers/ business partner. Luckily I had no personal attachment to her, but nonetheless no one deserves to be deceived, stolen from, and lied to. These situations are intimidating and most times are simpler, less stressful, and definitely less time consuming if ignored. But, I promise you that if someone is doing this to you, you aren’t the only victim. This will not stop until someone takes a stand. People will follow, and with support, it will becomes less scary.
To file a small claims action against someone who has wrongfully taken from you takes some patience and some paperwork. It does not require legal representation. There is a small fee to file the claim with the courthouse. This fee will be reimbursed if you are successful in your judgement by the defendant.
Each province in Canada operates a little differently. The legal system in the united states would also follow its own set of rules and guidelines. In Canada, we report crimes separately to our RCMP facility. In the US, it would likely be the FBI. This situation was specific to Alberta, Canada. Having been through this process a couple of times now, I am aware that there is plenty of information available online. There is information with regards to every area in civil law. Also, most courthouses are very helpful with civil claims. They can provide you with the correct forms and direct you down the right path.
Don’t Be Intimidated
The point of this blog was that there are people out there who are intimidating. They will go to any lengths to steal, hurt, commit fraud, lie, betray, and convince themselves that they are not wrong in what they are doing. They get away with this for decades because people are scared. People are scared, our system does not make it easy for victims, it certainly doesn’t make it difficult for criminals, and until one or two people take a stand, these people will not stop. Sometimes, it takes a village though. Everyone needs to stand together on this. Please be there for one another and put this horrific trail of continual harm against innocent people to rest.
What are the most common business scams?
The most common business scams involve false billing, phishing, email spoofing, identity theft, credit card fraud, and pyramid schemes. False billing scams involve sending out invoices for products or services that were not ordered or received. Phishing scams use deceptive emails to solicit personal information from unsuspecting victims. Email spoofing involves sending out malicious emails that appear to be from a legitimate sender. Identity theft is the act of stealing another person’s identity in order to commit fraud. Credit card fraud includes using stolen credit cards or creating fake ones in order to make purchases without authorization. Pyramid schemes are fraudulent investment programs where participants make money by recruiting new members into the scheme. It is important for businesses to be aware of these common scams and take steps to protect themselves against them.
How can I protect myself from business scams?
Protecting yourself from business scams is an important part of any entrepreneur’s journey. Here are some tips to keep in mind when you’re doing business online:
1. Do your research – Make sure you thoroughly research any company or individual you plan to do business with, and check their reputation and reviews online.
2. Don’t pay up-front – Never pay for anything before receiving a product or service. If someone asks for payment upfront, it should be a red flag.
3. Watch out for red flags – Be wary of promises that sound too good to be true, requests for personal or financial information, or offers that require an immediate decision.
4. Use secure payment methods – Whenever possible, use secure payment methods such as PayPal or credit/debit cards rather than wire transfers or cash payments.
By following these tips, you can protect yourself from falling victim to business scams and ensure that you only do business with legitimate companies and individuals.
What are the latest scams out there?
The latest scams to be aware of include phishing emails and text messages, malware attacks, romance scams, investment frauds, fake job offers, tech support scams, and fake charity solicitations. Phishing emails are designed to look like legitimate messages. Looking like they come from trusted sources, they try to get you to click on malicious links or provide confidential information. Malware attacks involve malicious software that is intended to gain access to your computer and steal personal data. Romance scams involve criminals posing as potential romantic partners online and asking for money or personal information.
Investment frauds are schemes that promise high returns on investments with little or no risk. Fake job offers attempt to collect personal information or money upfront with the promise of a job that does not exist. Tech support scams involve criminals posing as tech support staff. The attempt then is to gain access to your computer and steal information or money. Fake charity solicitations attempt to exploit people’s generosity by using fake charities as a front for collecting money. It is important to be aware of these scams and take steps to protect yourself from them.
Thanks for taking the time to read this blog!
