Be Aware of Check Fraud

I’m writing something a little different this week, but I think it’s worth discussing.

At the outset of establishing this blog, we said we wanted this to be a place for us to communicate with our customers as well as Tucson in general. We said we wanted to discuss our business honestly (Metro Car Wash), as well as our customers, our community, and the interesting stories that might come from a group of individuals that love to wash cars under the desert sun.

Unfortunately, not all those stories are good ones. This is one of the bad ones.

This past week, Metro Car Wash had the very unpleasant experience of being a victim of Check Fraud (we got robbed of over $4,000). Ugly as it was, I thought it might be good to share our story. Once you understand what these crooks are doing, you might be shocked to find out just how vulnerable all of us (businesses and individuals) actually are to this form of theft.

Our story started off when we got a call from our local bank letting us know that our Petty Cash Account was overdrawn. This was quite a surprise. In addition to being a good car wash, we’re pretty good at keeping our books clean too. You can imagine my shock, then, when I went on-line and saw a negative balance of $3,000 (I’ll let you imagine the words that were spoken/shouted while my heart rate exploded and I pounded my fists on the table).

After my eyes rolled back into focus and my breath became manageable again, I noticed that there were four checks debited from my account that I didn’t remember writing. I clicked “view” and discovered why I didn’t remember writing them: I didn’t.

The checks weren’t Metro’s actual checks. They were generic business checks with the name Metro Car Wash on the top, but the wrong address underneath. The banking information on the bottom of the checks (the routing and account numbers) were also ours, but the names of the individuals the checks were written to were no one we knew. Furthermore, the check was signed by Pete Carroll (yup, the same name as the current coach of the Seattle Seahawks … I doubted it was the actual guy); in other words: not an authorized signer. I looked on the back of the check copies; all of the checks had been cashed at approximately the same time.

Since then, I’ve spent my time closing bank accounts, reconciling accounts, filing police reports, and generally walking around in a lousy mood. Oh, and I’ve learned how easy it is for someone to do this.

Here’s the skinny:

All someone needs to rob you is a copy of your check, a computer, and a printer.

Do you write payroll checks? Do you write checks to vendors? The pizza delivery guy?

Then your account number and routing number are out there.

All someone has to do is write these numbers down and take them home. Then, in front of their computer, they can actually download Check Writing Software for free. They place business checks they purchased at an office supply store into their printer, they input their name and the dollar amount they believe they deserve (typically a reasonable paycheck amount so as to not draw attention), and press: PRINT.

The check is made out to them, so they don’t have a problem cashing it; they show their real ID, collect their money (your money) and take their sweetie out for a nice dinner courtesy of you (they at least hopefully toast you for your generosity).

It’s as simple as that. I wish I was kidding.

And here’s the really disturbing thing: my bank didn’t even bother to press charges. They actually told me not waste my time either (I didn’t listen to their advice). They said this happens all the time. It is what it is in the banking world I guess.

So, OK … what do you do now? How do you protect yourself?

The truth is, depending on your bank, you may not be able to. Larger banks, like Chase, have some interesting on-line Fraud Protection Tools they’ve just rolled out, but smaller banks still rely on the chance of noticing when signatures don’t match (you can see how well that worked for us).

My bank told me: you should review your accounts every day.

The detective I’m working with gave me this advice: Don’t write checks. He was serious.

We’re now looking at switching our payroll to debit cards (rather than cutting checks).

I guess I don’t have a happy ending to this story, but I do hope it helps some of you avoid what happened to us. It’s a scary world out there and I’d like to think we can use tools like this blog to help each other out.

Until next time, stay clean my friends (and keep an eye on your check balance). Oh, and if you see a suspicious looking thug toasting a glass of Champagne and thanking Metro for his bonus, please let us know!

-DJ DripDry

Metro Car Wash's Honor Roll

Sorry about the delay in posting, folks. Yours truly has been a bit busy wrapping up the year.

Now that things have settled down a bit, however, I’m happy to use our Metro Car Wash Blog to announce the recipients of our Annual Metro Honor Roll.

Every year, we ask our Community Partners (the organizations we raise money for), as well as our customers, to nominate individuals who are making selfless efforts to positively impact Tucson. As a local business involved in the community, we really value, not only our city’s charitable establishments, but the people inside of these organizations who donate their time and efforts to assure Tucson is a better place.

All Metro Honor Roll Recipients receive a Metro Honor Roll Card that entitles them to unlimited FREE Uptown washes for the entire 2011 calendar year. It may not be as prestigious as a heavy plaque, a picture in the paper, or keys to the city, but it is our way of saying Thank You to a group of people who deserve a little extra recognition.

This year’s Honor Roll Recipients include the following:

Lisa Antkow. Lisa works with Tu Nidito, a Tucson agency that provides individual and group support to children and their families as they deal with serious illness and death. Lisa’s coworkers nominated her because of her maturity, responsibility, and dedication in interacting positively with children who are going through one of the toughest times of their lives.

Sloan Boatman. Sloan has been a volunteer with The American Diabetes Association in Tucson for years, donating her time in both the back office and fundraising events. She is passionate in regards to educating the public about how to stop diabetes, as well as how to support those living with the disease.

Terri Smith. Terri has been involved with the American Lung Association for a year and half now. A lung cancer survivor herself, Terri single-handedly raised over $3000 in last year’s “Fight for Air” Walk, started a Lung Cancer Support Group to emotionally encourage those going through lung cancer treatment, and began speaking to community groups to increase awareness for lung cancer screening, prevention and research.

Jared Ross. Jared is a faithful TROT volunteer of more than 10 years. T.R.O.T. (Therapeutic Riding of Tucson) helps those with special needs by using therapeutic equine programs to improve physical, mental, and social well-being. Jared volunteers weekly; his commitment is immensely appreciated by both the TROT staff and those receiving the therapy.

Alexandra “Ally” Rae Pesqueira. Ally is a volunteer with Tucson’s Children’s Advocacy Center, an organization that works within the community to prevent child victimization and abuse. Ally began volunteering while she was a student at the University of Arizona and continued to volunteer after she graduated. Her dedication and compassion are second to none, and she is currently focused on a new project involving the supervision of infant/parent visits in conjunction with CPS.

Mary Garrison-Vincent. Mary is a volunteer with The Shyann Kindness Project, an organization whose mission it is to pass on kindness by educating, supporting and encouraging children in stressful economic, social and medical situations. Mary has been an instrumental factor in the charity’s fundraising efforts, donating countless hours of work to assure the success of their events.

Lluvia Creek. Lluvia is a Big Sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tucson, an organization that pairs adult mentors with children to provide underprivileged youth with better guidance and growth opportunities. Lluvia’s co-workers and co-volunteers believe that she embodies what it means to be a Big Sister, staying actively involved in the life of her Little Sister, Maria, dedicating time to fostering the relationship and assuring that the girl has improved life opportunities.

Danny Simone (and Hooch). Danny is a volunteer with Handi-Dogs, a service and therapy dog training organization whose mission is to promote independence, freedom, health and dignity for seniors and people with disabilities through the use of trained dogs. Danny and his dog Hooch are Community Ambassadors and a popular Demonstration Team for Handi-Dog. As well, Danny donates his time to Delta Society Pet Partners, Gabriel’s Angels, Pets for Vets, and does Animal Assisted Therapy at St. Joseph’s Hospital.

Diana Cordera. Diana is a Family Support Specialist at Parent Aid, a child abuse prevention center. Diana works personally with families in order to strengthen familial bonds and prevent child abuse. She is always on call and available for the individuals she works with, additionally, she leads the training of all Family Support Specialists.

Lois Weimuth. Lois has been a volunteer with the Southern Arizona Humane Society since 2003. To date, she has logged over 3,500 hours working as an Adoption Lobby Greeter, a customer support representative in both dog and cat rooms, and an assistant in off-site adoptions. She is dedicated to improving the lives of animals and alleviating their suffering by helping to rescue, shelter, heal, and adopt animals in need.

J. Scott McManus. Mr. McManus is a long-time volunteer at SAAF (an organization that provides case management and ancillary support services for people living with HIV/AIDS and their families); he volunteers at the food bank, on telephone help lines and with Care Services and Prevention Programs (within SAAF). His co-workers and co-volunteers claim that his courage and personal strength help to empower those around him and that he has been a tremendous encouragement to others.

Metro Car Wash wants to thank and recognize each of these individuals. We look forward to meeting them and getting to know them better over the upcoming year.

And who knows, maybe you’ll run into one of them on your next visit to Metro. If you do, hopefully this blog will have given you a little extra insight into just how generous some of our fellow citizens are.

Until next time, stay clean my friends.

-DJ DripDry