In summer as in winter, seasonal rentals are a hit.

And in this market, properties rented between individuals hold their own. Often more affordable, spacious, with charm and offering the necessary comfort for a stay, apartments and houses rented - or even sometimes exchanged between families - have advantages … Except when the dream turns into a nightmare.

Because scams abound on the Internet.

Pigeoned tenants

Property that does not exist, house described as sumptuous and which turns out to be a dump, bank details diverted for identity theft... the examples are numerous.

The only solution to avoid falling into this type of trap: be prudent and reasonable.

Forget ads offering a vacation rental at an unbeatable price.

Start by checking that it does not exist elsewhere and compare prices in the same geographical area.

A deal that's too good to be true is most often a scam.

Once a property has been spotted, contact the rental company – by email or, better still, by phone – to obtain more information and additional photos.

Via Google Maps, we also don't forget to do a little check with the address, just to make sure that the accommodation really exists, but also to look around to provide yourself with a setting conducive to a good holiday.

Finally, careful reading of the rental contract is essential before committing.

Similarly, never pay more than 30% before you go on site.

Finally, money order and other requests for payment abroad should alert you.

Donors targeted

Much less publicized than the disappointments of tenants, owners offering their accommodation for the holidays are also sometimes victims of scams.

The problem is that these frauds are difficult for individuals to detect.

“It happens that the advertiser never realizes that his advertisement has been copied and that his identity has been usurped.

In other cases, the victim is well aware of the fraud, but is unable to make the link with his activity as an advertiser on the Internet.

As a result, these frauds are the subject of very little publicity, unlike those that target tenants,” explains Hervé Paccard, author of the blog Arnaques-location-vacances.com and CEO of the MediaVacances group.

Scammers can, for example, contact landlords in order to hack into their account and divert their rents or hack into their mailbox to intercept exchanges with holidaymakers.

Identity theft and fraudulent ad copying are also on the rise, while a signature copy and RIB can allow scammers to request transfers or direct debits from the bank of the victim.

Finally, let's not forget the technique of the NSF, stolen or falsified check for an amount higher than that of the rent in order to extract a refund.

To avoid trouble, individuals must first post their rental ads on sites offering secure messaging and payment services, not to mention a double authentication system to prevent account hacking.

In addition, never communicate an identity document or deed of ownership, do not transmit the signed contract before having obtained payment of the deposit and beware of phishing attempts which aim to steal your personal information.

Economy

Holidays: How do you know if you are well insured for winter sports?

Economy

Holidays: With the Alentour site, local tourism makes its com

  • Scam

  • Tourism

  • Economy

  • Rental

  • Summer holidays

  • 0 comment

  • 0 share

    • Share on Messenger

    • Share on Facebook

    • Share on Twitter

    • Share on Flipboard

    • Share on Pinterest

    • Share on Linkedin

    • Send by Mail

  • To safeguard

  • A fault ?

  • To print