BATTLEFORDS – Battlefords RCMP are offering some tips to the public to help them avoid being the victim of a scam.
Corporal Steve Bell, with the Battlefords RCMP Crime Prevention Victim Services Unit, spoke about the issue in an interview with SaskToday.
The City of North Battleford recently issued an alert about a scam involving people fraudulently posing as city representatives, asking residents to purchase a security camera.
Bell said to help prevent scams, residents should always follow their gut feeling.
“The biggest thing is just trust your gut,” he said. “A lot of people when we talk to them about this [a scam] after the fact, they say they felt something was off. The offer sounded too good to be true. You know, there was something about the interaction with the person that felt off. Just trust that feeling, right?”
If a resident is trying to sell or purchase something, to protect themselves, they always have the option to complete the transaction in a secure public space.
“The RCMP doesn’t have a designated specific set up. But our parking lot is well-trafficked, a high volume area where there’s lots of people around,” Bell said. “But the city actually has a Buy-and-Sell Exchange Zone set up over at the fire hall, on the south side of the fire hall, the corner of 104th [Street] and 8th Avenue.”
The fire hall is located at 902-104 Street in North Battleford
Bell noted a 24-hour video recording is set up at the location.
“People can go and meet there to exchange the item they bought or sold,” Bell said. “It’s kind of a safe location advertised there.”
“We’re not going to go out there and monitor the exchange taking place, but it’s a safe place; it’s a high volume kind of spot.”
People might want to use the Buy and Sell Exchange Zone if they are selling a vehicle or a cellphone, for example.
To be safe, if someone is selling something items door to door, Bell recommends residents ask for the person’s credentials first.
“Technically, to be a door-to-door kind of salesman, you would have to have a licence through the City,” he said. “So, you could ask to see that or see their credentials. If somebody is not providing you with that, some kind of ID of the company they are with [or a seller’s licence] then that would probably raise your suspicion a little bit more.”
Phone scams are also a concern in the Battlefords, like other communities.
“The big thing, especially with these phone scams, is not giving out your personal information, your banking information, anything like that,” Bell said. “A lot of them are looking for payments.”
He said the scammer may ask for payment in gift cards, which is not the normal way of a business.
“Another common one is they say you’ve won a prize, and in order to claim the prize, they [the residents] need to provide some money to claim the prize,” he added. “That’s not a normal [offer].”
Bell also noted scammers often use pressure tactics, making people feel they need to deal with a situation or purchase an item in a hurry.
That is another red flag to look out for.
