Better Business Bureau Warns Customers of Online Bourbon Scams in These States
The Better Business Bureau issued a warning about the rise in online bourbon scams within the Kentucky area. (Photo: GDA via AP Images)
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) issued a warning to those residing in Kentucky over a rise in online bourbon scams on Thursday. WDRB, a local news outlet, reported on Wednesday the scam warnings were directed at those residing in Indiana as well.
According to the warning, victims of the scams in both states have been losing “hundreds of dollars,” to “bogus bourbon sites” and social media accounts.
These fake bourbon scam sites appear to offer prestige-level bourbons, wines and spirits at suspiciously low prices. Each time a customer purchased the spirit, they did not receive it and received fake tracking information. When they tried to get their money back, they couldn’t get a refund.
“I tracked the shipment over a day or so, and then got a notice saying it was ‘on hold’ pending an additional $180 insurance payment I needed to make.” a customer informed the BBB. “This payment would supposedly be refunded after delivery. I inquired about the need for insurance (which was news to me) with both the shipper and seller, via email, and was told by both of them to just pay it.”
The release shared that other individuals within the Kentucky area reported bourbon scams in Facebook groups, where users claimed to sell rare bourbons.
The BBB’s advice to avoid getting scammed is to know the company by doing research and making sure the company’s website is legitimate. If the contact information is missing, BBB claims that is a red flag, and suggests using the BBB to check the business’s profile.
The organization also advises checking security settings, reading the fine print, looking for return policies and protecting personal information. If a deal appears to be too good to be true, that’s because it probably is.
The organization also encourages shopping with a credit card, as it is easier to dispute charges if the transaction is fraudulent.
Are bourbon scams really on the rise?
Unfortunately, it appears that bourbon scams might just be on the rise. Specific counterfeit scams often involve rare whiskeys from Sazerac, like Eagle Rare and Van Winkle expressions from Buffalo Trace.
VinePair reported in October on the issue, particularly on Instagram, when a writer named Dylan Ettinger reported that a fake account was created, using his likeness to scam individuals out of bottles of Van Winkle Family Reserve, E.H. Taylor Jr. and more.
It was a disturbing account of how far a scammer would be willing to go which included stealing the identity of the Freelance Beverage and Travel Journalist and posting photos of a set of kittens the writer fostered, to lend an air of legitimacy to the fake account.
It appears more Americans are falling to scams in general, even outside the world of bourbon.
Tuesday’s piece in The Atlantic shared that “Americans are losing more money to fraud than ever.” The question is, why?
The article shared that Americans lost approximately $10 billion to fraud, according to the Federal Trade Commission. The Atlantic reports that scammers use social isolation to their advantage when targeting their victims.
“Scammers often bring up sensitive topics such as romance, immigration and finances to rile victims into a state of heightened emotion,” Lora Kelley wrote for The Atlantic. “The simple, devastating approach can make people less rational than they would otherwise.”
Though many individuals believe they would never fall for scams, it seems like people are more susceptible to scams than they’d like to admit.
The article claims that isolated young people who spend a lot of time online and older people are particularly vulnerable to scams.
With the added use of AI, it is even harder to identify suspicious companies and requests, according to The Atlantic.
Though $10 billion seems like an incredibly huge number, The Atlantic reports that it “is likely an underestimate,” because most individuals feel too ashamed to admit they have been scammed and keep those stories private.
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