Fraudsters selling online puppies that were not present during coronavirus infections

Americans are duped into buying puppies that are not online during coronavirus infections.

Better Business Bureau warns of pet adoption rising during COVID-19 outbreak Receive complaints From people who claim to have been cheated by fake pets online.

The Consumer Surveillance Committee has issued more reports of fraudulent puppy sales in April than in the first three months of the year, usually including complaints involving pet offerings, which are not available or never sent to the owner.

“Scammers often use news to find new ways to target victims,” ​​the PPP said in a recent fraud alert. “The uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 epidemic, with some isolated families, the decision to adopt an unseen pet has created fertile ground for fraudsters.”

Pet fraudsters rely on “fake, often sophisticated advertising,” according to the PPP. A 2017 PPP study on fake pet sales found that 80 percent of ad sales for pet sales are fraudulent.

One woman told the PPP that she lost $ 1,000 in two different puppy scams this April. In the first plan, he said a fraudster had agreed to sell his pug puppy for $ 500 – but advised him to buy it at Walmart to pay for a prepaid gift card.

The seller told her that the infection had delayed her puppy order and that she would not be refunded. He then tracked down the gift card and saw it was spent on a Texas destination.

The girl reached an agreement with a so-called Buck Butcher, who agreed to sell her a puppy for 20 620. After she paid half the price, another man who claimed to be a third-party shipper approached her for $ 750 in a fancy climate control nest.

He sent the shipper $ 300, but the puppy never arrived.

“This vendor was completely devoid of my emotions and vulnerability,” the woman told BBB. “I’m a very educated person, but I’ve never felt so stupid in my entire life.”

The PPP advises pet owners not to buy pets in person and to avoid paying for wire transfers, cash applications or gift cards.

The committee recommends buyers to check local animal shelters where breeders are required during infection.