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December 22, 2017 - There is a new holiday delivery scam making its way around the country that you need to be aware of. It usually starts with a phone call from a well-known delivery company, saying that they have a package for you but that there is an address problem. Once the caller confirms your address, a deliver person will show up in relatively short order. By the time that person leaves, you'll probably have a smile on your face. But within 30 days, you'll find out that you're a victim of fraud. Happy holidays!
The delivery person who appears at your door will likely be wearing a uniform and looking very official. That's when you'll be informed that there is still an outstanding delivery charge, probably for just a few dollars. The charge will have to be paid for you to get your delivery, and the only acceptable method of payment is a credit card. It is now time to close the door on the person making the delivery and to then call the police.
When you ship a package with UPS, FedEx, or just about any other delivery company on the planet, you have to pay for the shipping costs right then and there or they won't take the package from you. As far as I know, only the post office will still ship packages "postage due" and that is usually due to a mistake made by the sender.
If you don't close the door, or if you want a little more verification that you have a scam artist in front of you, you can ask who sent the package. They won't be able to tell you. Instead, they may say that information isn't on the package or that a card was sent separately, but you won't have clue.
One variation of this scam that may be a little tougher to resist is when the delivery person shows up with a bouquet of flowers. When you pay the delivery charge, you'll get a nice bouquet.
Regardless of the version of the scam, as soon as you hand over your credit card, you've given the thief at your door everything needed to commit fraud. He can run your card through a skimmer, get the cards numbers, expiration date and security code. And because he's making a delivery, he already has your address information.
Anyone who thinks they may have already been victimized by this scam should contact their credit card company immediately. And if there are unauthorized charges on your account you should also contact the police and file a report.
byJim Malmberg
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Fraud and Scams 
