Have you seen ads promising easy money if you shrink-wrap your car — with ads for brands like Monster Energy, Red Bull, or Pepsi? The “company” behind the ads says all you have to do is deposit a check, use part of it to pay a specified shrink-wrap vendor, and drive around like you normally would. But don’t jump onto the bandwagon. It’s only easy money for the scammer who placed the ads.
How you spot the “offer”
You might see an ad on a job board or on social media. Or someone might send you a message — maybe because they saw your profile or resume on a job site.
How the scam works
The message says you’ll make a couple hundred bucks. But when the “company” sends you a check, it’s for much more than that — a couple thousand dollars. They tell you to deposit the check, keep part of it as your share, and wire the rest to another company that will wrap your car.
Weeks after you wire the money, the check bounces and your bank tells you it was a fake. The money you kept as “your share” disappears, and the money you wired is long gone — no getting it back. On top of that, you’re on the hook for paying your bank back for the fake check. And, of course, no one’s wrapping your car.
How you can tell it’s a scam
If you get a message urging you to deposit a check and wire money back, it’s a scam. Every time. No matter the story. And if this were a legitimate car wrap opportunity, wouldn’t the company directly pay the car-wrapping vendor, instead of asking you to do it?
Has this happened to you? File a complaint. Want to know more? Read our articles to learn how to spot variations on fake checks and money wiring scams.
It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC’s computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC’s Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.
The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.
We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.
Question: I have 2 phone lines available. Why don't YOU have a phone # that goes DIRECT to a person?? That way, when I get a robo-call, I could call YOU direct so you could trace the call while I played along with the robocaller. Maybe that way some of these clowns could be caught & prosecuted. TX
In reply to Question: I have 2 phone by wizard75
In reply to I'm with you-what can we do - by Tmike
In reply to I contacted monster drinks by Coolcarl46
In reply to Hello Coolcar46 my question by Asmalls7
In reply to Bull light are currently by raizen31
In reply to I just got the same message by Angry32
In reply to I just got the same message by Angry32
In reply to Bull light are currently by raizen31
In reply to I got the same response. Did by Jena.b
In reply to It’s a scam. Bud light isn’t by Samiasmom
In reply to I kust received a check for by Littlemannc
In reply to It’s a scam. Bud light isn’t by Samiasmom
In reply to I just received the check by Myname
In reply to Be very careful with these by enlightn1
In reply to The same thing happened to me by Karen1
In reply to I received oa chk for1587 for by Lum&lock
In reply to I just received the check by Myname
In reply to It’s a scam. Bud light isn’t by Samiasmom
In reply to I'm in the middle of that by Crux8375
In reply to I got the same response. Did by Jena.b
In reply to Bull light are currently by raizen31
In reply to I’m hard on money an by G
In reply to this is happening to me as we by djreynolds23
Weeks after you wire the money, the check bounces and your bank tells you it was a fake. The money you kept as “your share” disappears, and the money you wired is long gone — no getting it back. On top of that, you’re on the hook for paying your bank back for the fake check. And, of course, no one’s wrapping your car.
In reply to Weeks after you wire the by FTC Staff
In reply to What I don’t understand is by cat
Under federal law, banks generally must make funds available to you from U.S. Treasury checks, most other governmental checks, and cashier’s checks, certified checks, and teller’s checks, a business day after you deposit the check.
For other checks, banks must make the first $200 available the day after you deposit the check. The remaining funds must be made available on the second business day after the deposit.
However, just because funds are available on a check you deposited does not mean the check is good. It’s best not to rely on money from any type of check (cashier, business or personal check, or money order) until the bank confirms that the check has cleared. It can take weeks to discover and untangle a forgery. Until the bank confirms that the funds from the check have been deposited into your account, you are responsible for any funds you withdraw against that check.
In reply to Under federal law, banks by FTC Staff
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to I had a check sent to me for by Joy
In reply to What I don’t understand is by cat
In reply to Whenever you cash or deposit by jfab
In reply to What I don’t understand is by cat
In reply to What I don’t understand is by cat
In reply to What I don’t understand is by cat
In reply to I to have been mailed a check by jcslickscam61
In reply to I recieved a check for 3650 by BH1
In reply to I recieved a check for 3650 by BH1
In reply to I to have been mailed a check by jcslickscam61
In reply to I to have been mailed a check by jcslickscam61
In reply to I to have been mailed a check by jcslickscam61
In reply to this is happening to me as we by djreynolds23
In reply to If they ask youbtobkeep part by NBJob2A
In reply to If they ask youbtobkeep part by NBJob2A
In reply to this is happening to me as we by djreynolds23
In reply to this is happening to me as we by djreynolds23
In reply to I would not trust it. You by Surrealist
Pagination