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Furniture Scam

Discussion in 'Broadlands Community Issues' started by Rhaegar, Apr 3, 2011.

  1. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    Guys with a semi running the "we're from out of town and someone couldn't pay for their furniture" scam down Vestals Gap.

    As can be easily googled, this is generally off low quality stuff being sold as name brand. I assume they are operating within the letter of the law though as far as their business model. Caveat emptor.
     
  2. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    Did they have a permit from the County?
     
  3. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    I didn't ask to see one. I would assume he didn't since his line was that they were just up from NC.
     
  4. Mike-and-Kim

    Mike-and-Kim Member

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    We had them yesterday (ring the doorbell and knock on the door), they offered that they had a copy of a permit to sell.
     
  5. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    First thing I always ask is to see their permit. If they hesitate, give an excuse or claim to have a 'copy in the truck', I shut the door, lock it and call the Sheriff's non-emergency number to report them. It's really fun to watch them squirm when they see a LCSO car pull up next to them :devil2:

    Thanks for the heads-up!
     
  6. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    Good tip. Thanks. I didn't realize a permit was required, but it's good to know that this for future interactions. It is an obvious scam and it's nice to have some level of recourse.
     
  7. JLC

    JLC Member

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    When we first moved here in 1999 semi trucks came by several times. They didn't use any line about someone not being able to pay - they were just hauling stuff up here because there were so many new houses that needed furniture.

    We bought a chair from them and it's still in our living room.
     
  8. msflynn

    msflynn New Member

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    They had what I believe to be an imitation copy from the county when he stopped at our door. The good news is enough people must have been asking for him to actually try to have one.
    A genuine county license is 2 pieces one of which is a picture id

    Staci
     
  9. Capricorn1964

    Capricorn1964 Well-Known Member

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    Those folks often came up to Fairfax County as well when I lived there. We passed them up on the side of the road or at the door of our house because if you had a problem with the furniture later, there was NO recourse since they had no offices here in Fairfax County to call to handle the problem and they had no "headquarters" to deal with too.

    I read somewhere that someone recently was busted (actually arrested) for selling stuff door to door without a VALID permit/license.

    Say, I wonder if it is legal for people with buckets to congregate at intersections going from car to car asking for $$$???
     
  10. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    I assume this is implying that their operation is legit or at least works out well for some folks. I don't doubt this. Obviously they are selling "real" furniture that you can sit on and use and so forth. It's not going to evaporate.

    You have to consider that going door to door with a semi costs some serious money though and that money isn't coming from volume sales so that implies pretty good margin somewhere. It likely gets more dicey with higher end furniture, especially when it comes to higher end materials and name brands. Reading other posts indicates that the leather and wood types are misrepresented and the quality (stitching and construction) are lower quality.

    That being said, my wife accuses me of being hypersensitive to sales pitches, scams and the general intent of my fellow man. She's correct to a degree, but it doesn't mean that there isn't always someone ready to take your money when given the opportunity.
     
  11. Capricorn1964

    Capricorn1964 Well-Known Member

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    Andy- Your comments are valid here ...however, where are the resident's recourse if there's a problem with the said furniture? How would the purchaser get a refund or get someone from the company to fix it? There are too many unknowns and is often too risky to buy from a semi going around hawking the items. It truly is a caveat emptor situation here--especially when they don't have a "real" permit/license.

    I wonder if the county takes away the furniture from them if they are caught without a license?
     
  12. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    Those are good points as well. I didn't even consider that angle. Lots of problems with this model.
     
  13. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    Another excellent point. I wouldn't know what a real one was supposed to look like even if he did show me something.
     
  14. redon1

    redon1 aka Aphioni

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    we saw them today and they approached us with the permit in hand, very polite. if we weren't on our way to our son's baseball game, we would have taken a peek...
     
  15. Capricorn1964

    Capricorn1964 Well-Known Member

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    Speak of the devil....Just five mins ago, some kid wanted to sell something (I think he was trying to sell some "discount cards" or something like that. I politely declined but it got me thinking about what this whole thread was about....What if a youth organization (e.g. scouting organization or school organization or something along those lines) wanted to sell stuff door to door. Must they have a license/permit from the county to sell as well because recently LCSO arrested a young kid (18 yr old, I think..Don't hold that against me ;) ) for selling magazines without a valid permit/license.

    Must these youth organizations also be subject to the same laws as those selling furniture / magazines or whatever? Just wondering if these organizations are exempt or not?

    Surely food for thought here.
     
  16. Rhaegar

    Rhaegar Member

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    I think that's a different can of worms. Neighborhood kids are one thing, and always welcome at my door. The magazine thing isn't as much of a scam as somewhat of a bad situation for the kids. Apparently they get shipped off to other cities and end up in a sort of indentured servanthood complete with propaganda and other aspects of messing with their heads.

    To me, this is similar to the folks at the intersections. The organization there does tend to help them turn their lives around but then also plays up the "you need to go work for the organization" and put them out in an organized fashion. I don't believe the "charity" aspect is legit.
     
  17. Capricorn1964

    Capricorn1964 Well-Known Member

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    Yeah, I've always wondered about that at the intersection. Speaking of that, I read in a Washington Post newspaper--about 10 yrs ago---about how a guy panhandled aggressively here in Northern Virginia for 6 months and then for the rest of the year, he would go down to Florida to "vacation". The newspaper reported that he was amassing a sizeable "income" of more than $100K a year (tax-free)...I was dumbfounded (it was mind boggling to me with that much "income" not being taxed!!) and wondered if the IRS would be investigating to find out who this "person" was so they could tax that "income".
     
  18. twubs

    twubs New Member

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    They came by today, and I looked at the permit and was prettyy sure it was fake. I did though go look at the pictures of all the products they had to offer. There was one dinning room set (8 chairs, table and breakfront)that caught our eye. Price was extremely reasonalbe at 3900, but more money then I was ready to spend with a random truck driving by my house. Sure I could have haggled some. Wonder if they take credit cards or if they were going to charge sales tax.
     
  19. jamesmkelly

    jamesmkelly Member

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    The Loudoun Permit is an actual picture ID like a license.

    Anyone going door to door is required to have one
     
  20. T8erman

    T8erman Well-Known Member

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    No, they do not need a license as most as classified as a charitable organizations or the seller (i.e. child) is not being compensated.
     

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