Andorra la VellaThe police are warning of possible scams in the rental of flats that can occur through false advertisements on the internet after two complaints have been received over the last few weeks. This is a form of fraud that tends to increase at times of the year when there is more movement of workers and, therefore, increases the search for housing.
The first of the complaints would have occurred as a result of an advertisement on a platform or network for buying and selling products, while the second would have taken place from a false advertisement on a specialized page.
Fraudsters usually use photographs of real apartments to create fake ads with below-market prices that they publish, both on specialized and well-known pages, on platforms for buying and selling products or on social networks. For this reason, people interested in the flats are asked to contact the alleged owner directly via WhatsApp, social media or email.
Once the person who wants to rent the property establishes contact, the fraudsters give them a series of excuses to justify that at that moment they cannot show the apartment, or because they are in another country and cannot travel immediately , or because the property is still rented.
Then, they ask for a transfer as payment and signal, usually to a foreign bank or telephone, to reserve the property for them, ensuring that other people are interested in it. A modus operandi designed to buy time so that the transfer cannot be pushed back.
Once the payment is made and signaled, the scammers stop responding to the messages and disappear. That’s when the victim realizes that the whole thing has been a fraud.
If cheating is detected, it should be reported to the police immediately.
When to suspect
To avoid being a victim of scams like these, the police recommend being suspicious whenever the price seems to be below market, when the photographs only show interiors and never exteriors, and when the alleged owner says he cannot show the flat, ask for a payment and sign and hurry so that the whole transaction is done quickly. In this case, it is advisable to check if the same flat is being advertised on other platforms and make the relevant contacts to compare the information.