Gardaí warn B&B’s to beware of cheque scams

BED & BREAKFAST owners are being warned by gardaí about a scam which has cost some proprietors thousands of euro.

Con artists are using forged Western Union and Swedbank cheques, and untraceable hotmail e-mail addresses to con B&Bs.

A garda spokesman said the criminals e-mail a B&B asking to book four rooms for ten nights.

The delighted owner emails back a price which is then agreed. However, they receive a cheque which is invariably for €2,000 or €2,500 more than the cost.

The owner is then informed that the cheque was wrongly filled in and is asked to take their cash from it and send back the balance.

“The B&B lodges the cheque and when they don’t hear back from the bank within three or four days they presume everything is fine and send off the balance. Unfortunately, they receive a letter about a week later telling them the cheque has bounced. This has happened a number of times.”

It is believed that Nigerian gangs may be behind the scam and as Christmas and New Year approaches B&B owners might be caught out by the audacious scam.

“We advise people not to hand back any money until the cheque clears,” the garda spokesman said.

He added that it is virtually impossible for the gardaí to catch the culprits.

“People using hotmail don’t have to register their proper details and that’s the problem.”