If you are shopping online for a pet this holiday season, watch out. Complaints continue to escalate into Better Business Bureau’s Scam Tracker as fake pet and puppy scams are on the increase, according to the 2020 BBB Risk Report.
Scammers know few things pull at a person’s heartstrings quite like an adorable puppy. And as consumers rely on the internet to find new pets, they will be met with a slew of heart-tugging ads.
A BBB study found many of the ads are scams and anyone looking online for a pet is extremely likely to encounter one.
The Federal Trade Commission estimates only about 10% of victims report these crimes — so the problem is likely more widespread.
In 2020, BBB Scam Tracker saw a spike in pet fraud reports soon after cities and states began to impose tighter restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19 with nearly 4,000 reports received from the U.S. and Canada. The COVID-19 bump continued into the 2020 holiday season.
The median loss related to pet scams reported to BBB Scam Tracker in 2020 is $750. People ages 35 to 55 accounted for half of the BBB reports in 2020.
How the scam works: A photo of an adorable puppy on a website or an online ad pops up. The description is endearing and appears to be from a breeder or pet seller. In other situations, ads or social media post descriptions come across as a distraught pet owner who…
