SCAM ALERT!
CLIA has apprised members of this same type of scam in the past, and "they" are at it again. Beware!
The scammers are making email contact with California lodging properties, asking for room rates for a large block of rooms over an extended period. They claim to be representatives of a legitimate Canadian industrial company with business interests in "your area". They negotiate a rate, agree to the terms, and then send a check -- usually in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, drawn on a Canadian bank. And while the industrial corporation shown on the check is a REAL company, and the bank is real, the checks are not real and the account(s) do not exist. The checks are fraudulent!
In the past, these scammers have sent these large checks, and then after a few days or even weeks, ask for some of the money to be returned to them or sent to another company. So while the hotel waits for the check to clear the Canadian bank -- a process that can take up to 4 or 5 weeks -- the hotelier is duped into returning perhaps $50,000 or $100,000 -- never to be seen again.
PLEASE beware of any international company wanting a large block of rooms and sending full payment via check, in advance. Require payment be electronically transferred to your account. And remember the old adage -- IF IT SEEMS TO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT PROBABLY IS! And make sure that all appropriate staff members are made aware of this scam.
If you have received contact from a company with an offer and deal similar to this one described here, please call 916/925-2915 or email info@clia.org.
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