Possible Scam ALERT!!! ANN ARBOR

Jun 3 23:16 UTC 2002

Possible scam alert


Young man just offered me 12 free oil changes from MAIN STREET MOTORS  He is
giving a laminated punch card to you that is good for the 12 free oil changes
plus discounts on other automotive services.  Says it is a tax related
promotion.  Only thing is you have to give them a check for $60.00 dollars
that will be refunded after first punch.

Several things rang my alarm bell.

1.  It is after main street motors is closed.
2.  I have never heard of  tax related promotion.
3.  I have never heard odf what amounts to over $600 in give aways.
4.  The kid had sveral deposits in checks folded in his pocket

If I am wrong adn it isn't a scam, it is one heck of a deal as he explained
it.

response 2 of 42:

Jun 3 23:57 UTC 2002

No main street motors Closes at 5:30, thus there is no way to verify the offer
until AFTER you wright a check.

response 4 of 42:

Jun 4 06:20 UTC 2002

To whom did he ask the check be made payable? If to an individual
its obvious scam, if to 'main street motors' is probably a 'murphy'
scam.  Starting in the spring and lasting until late fall is
the Murphy season.  Recently they have gone more hi-tech.  The way
this particular scam usually works is a DBA is registered with a
common name and a bank account is opened in that name at a small
town branch where sometimes a sign is put up on a dormant property
saying 'coming soon' and the name.  After the checks with high
starting numbers and ATM card arrives then the coupon books or discount
cards are sold and the checks diposited daily and funds withdrawn 
daily until the ATM eats the card and its on to the next area 
usually after having 'papered' the area with the company checks.   
This scam, as do most, relies on people's greed.  It works well 
because usually the people scammed first blame the business for 
which the coupon or discount card is directed at who will often 
as not accept the first couple presented especially if it is a 
major chain before their management realizes they are being 
scammed as well.

response 6 of 42:

Jun 4 16:24 UTC 2002

You wright checks on demand, bru? I have my bank print a whole bunch of them
up and send them to me. It's much more convenient. ;}

response 8 of 42:

Jun 4 17:28 UTC 2002

(Good point. Either way, it's more convenient to have someone else wright them
them to wright them yourself. Writing them, of course, is a separate matter.)

response 10 of 42:

Jun 4 18:53 UTC 2002

No. Wrighting checks and writing checks are two different things.

response 12 of 42:

Jun 4 19:42 UTC 2002

You get a blank piece of paper, you trim it to a pleasant size, you carefully
write in the name of your bank, your account number, a unique identifier like
a check number, and so forth. Make sure to leave blanks for the date, the
amount, the recipient, and your signature!

response 14 of 42:

Jun 4 19:56 UTC 2002

So has anyone called Main Street Motors to ask about/inform them of a
scam?

response 16 of 42:

Jun 5 05:09 UTC 2002

   Sorry.  You and Rane can go back to squabbling now.  ;)

response 18 of 42:

Jun 5 06:38 UTC 2002

Really!?!  Hmm.  Interesting.  Lets say the jobber cost of a
quart of oil is a buck (it is in fact less) so at 12 changes
at 5 quarts each thats yer 60 bucks right there.  It would be
a deal even if the 60 bucks weren't 'refunded' on first use.
So lets look at that.  You don't use the card right away since
you don't need an oil change.  You get your first oil change
in the first quarter and get 60$US back.  Net cost to you 0$US.
The corporation books the entire 60$US as revenue the moment it
is diposited.  At least two quarters later the refund check to
you shows up as an expense chargable against income reducing 
taxable profit plus the earned interest income profit minus the 
amortized long term debt.  Lets assume a 50% redemption rate
(actual practice for whatever reason is far lower) so now you
are at 30$US cost for 60$US debt. (The car is sold, the card is
lost, the oil is changed someplace else, whatever.)  Plus you have
a constant stream of customers at retail for the cost of oil
filter plus whatever other suggested retail cost maintenance needs
to be done - tires, tranny fluid, cooling fluid, brakes, etc.

I can see how this might work.  I might even take advantage of
such an offer.  But I wouldn't invest in a company offering such.

response 20 of 42:

Jun 6 01:58 UTC 2002

Called them and they said it is indeed legitimate, but that they hired an
outside business to handle the promotion.

response 22 of 42:

Jun 6 21:20 UTC 2002

Cool.

response 24 of 42:

Jun 7 01:21 UTC 2002

That's 3000 miles, I'm guessing?