If you don’t think you could fall victim to a travel scam, then think again. Many people fall victims to these scams each day. Are you aware of these top travel scams?
Free Items That Are Given To You
So, you are at a destination and someone walks up and gives you a rosary or small trinket and you just think they are being nice, but things quickly change. What happens during this scam is that when you actually have the item in your hand the “giver” will demand money and cause a huge scene. You can avoid this scam by never accepting anything from anyone while traveling, even if it’s something as simple as a flower.
Someone Offering Assistance At The ATM
Even though this scam seems very obvious, a lot of people fall for it. How it works is that while a traveler is at an ATM, a stranger will approach them and pull a device out of their pocket that they say will help them avoid bank fees. This device is actually an ATM skimmer that they can use to drain the money in your account at a later time. You can avoid this scam by never letting anyone try to help you at the ATM, even other customers waiting in line. Always cover the pin pad when you are entering your pin and if someone comes near you trying to pull this scam, leave the ATM and try to find another one.
A Taxi Meter That Doesn’t Work
No matter where you travel too, you might run into a shady cab driver. How this scam works is that once you get into the taxi cab, the driver will start to drive and will inform you at your destination that the meter didn’t work and will charge you an enormous fee. How you can avoid this scam is to make sure the meter is actually working as you are driving. If it isn’t, have the driver stop the cab and get out and wait for another one.
Beggars
In many countries you will find people begging. It’s not uncommon to see children or those pretending to be hurt asking for money. Unfortunately, they can be quite persistent and it’s pretty hard for some tourists to resist giving them money. After the beggars get some money an accomplish nearby will often try to pick pocket you as they’ve seen where you keep your wallet. You can avoid this scam by never giving money to beggars when traveling. This is easier said than done because it’s not uncommon for them to harass tourists until they give in. Just keep walking and try to get away as quickly as possible.
Fake Tickets
This is one of the most common travel scams out there. You see a vendor selling a plane, train or bus ticket at a discounted price and you think it would be nice to save some money, but in reality the tickets is actually fake. Many of these tickets look so authentic that you can’t tell the fake ticket from the real one. You can avoid this scam by only buying tickets from trusted websites or travel agencies. Even if someone tells you that they can get you a really great deal, just let them know that you aren’t interested.
