Can anyone help??

[vixxy]

Hi everyone, recently my mum and i answered an ad for hilton escorts in our local paper. They sold it to us after an hour on the phone when we then borrowed my uncles credit card and paid them £700 to get started. We haven't been able to contact them since and we now owe my uncle 700 which we cant pay because im a single mum on benefits and my mum is in a supermarket job. Please can anyone help? Is there any way to get the money back? Thanks x

[anjali]

If your uncle is awear of the situation, I would claim it back off the credit card company (section 73 of the consumer credit act)
its usualy just fill in a form explaining, why you want to claim the money back, tell them you were missled or something

[lexienight]

Hi Vixxy.

Unfortunately it sounds llike you have fallen for a scam agency.  there are a few posts on SAAFE where others have been asking about similar scams.  i was contacted a few times a couple of weeks ago by a company called escortopia.  I dont think there is a way of getting your money back but i dont know of anyone who has tried.  

the general rule that i have come to discover is that no genuine agency would want money from you before your first booking.

I'm sorry the Bastards got you and your mum.  If you are still considering escorting i can recommend this site and forum as a great place to get advice from ladies who know what they are talking about because they have the experiance to fall back on.  Research is key.

After escortopia contacted me i decided to check out a few more agencies.  No one else asked me for money up front but i didnt find one that i felt comfortable working with so have decided to go independent.  I expect this means it will take me a little longer to get started (i'm hoping to be able to take my first booking this week or next) and i am expecting it to be a slower start than if i worked with an agency but its a risk im willing to take.  

You will find loads of help and advice here about how to get started as an indie or with an agency.  Again, I'm sorry you got caught out with the scammers, its so easy to fall for there sales patter because it seems like they are offering everything you would want as an escort.

Good luck with whatever you and your mum decide to do in the future.  

Lexie

[brandy@saafe]

The bloody bastards. Unfortunately, as Lexie says, you're the latest victim of a well known scam. There are various threads about it on here at the moment, as it seems to be a common occurrence. It's a bit late now, but read Ani-Mae's thread at the top of this forum.

The good news is, that you can claim it back through your uncle's credit card as it's over £100. It can be claimed under "goods/services not received".
The bad news is, you're going to have to tell your uncle, 1) because he's going to have to be the person to claim for it as it's his and 2) he's going to find out when he gets his next statement anyway. Best you explain it to him asap before he gets the shock of his life when it comes through the post.
There'd be no point in you or your mum calling the credit card company, for data protection reasons they won't tell you anything over the phone as you're not the main cardholder. I'm sure you'd rather not tell your uncle, but unfortunately as I say, he is going to find out anyway.

Sorry I can't be of more help. But if you want to get your uncle's money back, this is the only way.

[xw5]

What they said, really.

Normally the scams are reluctant to take credit card payments because of the possibility of 'chargebacks' from the credit card company as the victims realise they have been conned and complain.

I hope for your sakes that it was a credit card payment and not a 'cash advance' on the card, then paying the scammers with the cash.

[vixxy]

Hi, I just want to say thanks to every1 who replied its made me feel alot better! My uncle has rang the credit card company and they said it will be a long process but he should receive the money back. Thanks again!xx

[brandy@saafe]

Hi, I just want to say thanks to every1 who replied its made me feel alot better! My uncle has rang the credit card company and they said it will be a long process but he should receive the money back. Thanks again!xx

Yippee! Thank God for that. That's wonderful news, Vixxy. That's made my day. That's one over on the bastards. And don't let you uncle give up. I can't believe these people have the audacity to take credit card payments now. They were probably banking on you not telling anybody and maybe being reluctant to pursue it.

These pieces of scum prey on the naivete of people new to the industry who have no idea how things work. Now you know not to give any agency any money upfront.
Take some time today and do a search of these forums and you'll similar stories with (dare I say it ) great advice given by us on here. You should also see some posts on legit agencies to sign up with.

Good luck, and any other queries, just ask.

[lexienight]

Glad your getting your money back eventually.  Like Brandy said, they probably hope that people would be to embarrassed to say they paid money to become an escort so well done for not letting them get away with it. 

I think i was lucky that i didnt get scammed for 2 reasons.  the first was that some of the things she said I just couldnt get my head around.  She told me that 95%of clients came from places like Japan and USA and then said that that all clients had to be police checked... well what man using an escort is going to agree with that??? She also said that escorts needed a licence to work and that i would need liability insurance incase a client had an accident in my 'care'.  i had visions of all sorts of funny stuff that could possibly happen and couldnt take her seriously after tthat one.  The 2nd reason was that it was a week before pay day and i didnt have any cash anyway so it gave me time to sit back, think about it and do some research.  thats when i found SAAFE adn had my suspisions confirmed.

Anyway, i'm a newbie too so if i can help in anyway feel free to contact me.

Goodluck with it.

Lexie

[crista]

Its made my day too. It really sickens me these scammers and can't stand them targetting women in this industry. Glad your uncle is pursueing this and you get the money back. I would question any company like this who want money upfront.
I know it can be difficult discussing when we have been "had over" but it is so important to share information like this x

[amy]

That's great - you must be so relieved. And well done to you and your family for sticking together and standing up to this scum; they won't have been expecting that I'm sure companies like these are well aware that many of the vulnerable men and women they target would rather not publicly admit to wanting to be an escort, and that's how they get away with it again and again.

If you and your mum still want to give escorting a try there are decent agencies out there and we're all here to help too!

[brandy@saafe]

Vixxy, I know yours was from the back of the local paper, but is this the Hilton Escorts you refer to? Did you ring this same number?

http://www.hiltonescorts.com/home.html

[vixxy]

Yes that is the same hilton escorts. And have found out that the money was sent to spain!x

[suzysouthampton]

HI Vixxy

Am sorry this happened, it is horrid for you.  If you feel up to it then name and shame on here and some of the other main escort sites it is worth it to help avoid other girls falling for this nonsense.  £700 is a lot of money and they should be ashamed of themselves! (LOL... I sound like my nan!!)

Take care xx

Suzy x

[phil316k]

hey everyone, I have literaly just got off the phone with hilton escorts and just gave them my credit card details to hand over my £350, and i thought i would look online to see if they had any adverts or anything for people needing my services as a male escort, and have instead come across sites saying its a scam, in particular this thread... I now feel like a complete idiot .... they want me to fax them over a statement to prove the credit card is mine, which i havent done yet, if i dont do it, is it enough to prevent them from taking the cash from my card? if not how do i get my money back via this section 73 thing? do I just ring my credit card provider?

[anjali]

ring your cc company straight away, be honest and tell them whats happened
your only speaking to a call center so not like your going to meet whoever you speak to

they may be able to stop it, if not, under section 73? / 75? of the consumer credit act, you have a claim if you were missled when making a purchase, if it helps, tell the CC company they took more than agreed, its up to them then to prove they didnt 

if the money has been paid, you will be sent a form to fill in, then depending on how long the card firm take, it can be anything from a few days to 6 weeks + to get a refund (chargeback)