As the holiday season approaches, you may be thinking about picking up a side hustle to make a little extra money. But there’s a warning about side hustles that don’t require much work, especially ones where you get paid to drive around with your company’s logo on your car.
Darlene Henderson wants to make even more money this holiday season. When she received a reward offer in the mail from an energy drink company, she was ready to jump on it.
“From what I understand, they will wrap my door,” she said. “Then I drove around with that decal on for 12 weeks.”
“I see a lot of cars driving around with advertisements on them,” she added. “I don’t know much about it, so I thought maybe it was legal.”
Within a few days, a large packet arrived in her mail.
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“This is what I received. It said U.S. Mail, and inside it was a letter and a check for $4,000.15,” she said.
What is her mission?
“They’re going to send an installer and I’m going to pay him $3,000 and I’m going to keep $1,000,” she said.
That seemed doubtful to Henderson.
And her instincts were right: it was a scam.
How the scam works
“This is very similar to one of the basic job fraud schemes, where you send a check and then ask for a refund,” said Melanie McGovern of the Better Business Bureau.
She said by the time the victim realized what had happened, “the check didn’t clear and the money was gone.”
McGovern said legitimate work opportunities typically begin with an interview, paperwork and tax returns. She says if you want to get paid before starting a task, ask.
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We tried calling the so-called energy drink company at the number provided.
“Is that a real check you sent her for $4,000?” we asked.
The man who answered the phone hung up and then blocked our number.
According to the BBB, very few companies will pay you for advertising and won’t give you a large check upfront before doing the work.
Henderson says it’s sad that scammers are preying on people like her.
“Many of us just need an extra dollar to buy groceries or get our cars repaired,” she said.
Therefore, be wary of offers advertising on cars so as not to waste your money.
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