Check and Credit Card Fraud Prevention

Richa Kapoor

A bad economy is a double whammy for jewelry artists.

Not only are there fewer buyers, but check and credit card fraud and theft also tend to rise.

I want to emphasize some things a jewelry artist should watch out for in order to avoid payment fraud, based on several incidents I've encountered.

Let me take a recent personal experience with fraudsters as an example.

Freshwater pearls, turquoise, and gold filled
brushed silver beads adorn a necklace
by Richa Kapoor.

As a designer and creator of gemstone artisan jewelry, I have been doing art shows for several years.

This July, I was at the Fillmore Art and Jazz show in San Francisco. Around noon, when my booth was especially crowded, a well-dressed couple walked in and started buying a lot of jewelry in a hurry.

The lady was making her selections quickly. She picked up five items, worth over $500, within a matter of 15 minutes.

Then she started pushing me to ring her up even though I was with a different customer. She made out a check for the full amount and quickly showed me that the address on her license was the same as the one on the check.

Somehow their fidgety nature left me with an uneasy feeling.

As soon as they left, I called my husband to confirm whether he could find anyone by the name the lady had given me, in Belmont (as per the address on her check.) Not only did we NOT find anyone by that name - when we called the lady's bank we discovered that her account had insufficient funds.

Citrine and carnelian earrings
by Richa Kapoor.

As a next step, I tried pursuing the case with San Francisco district attorney, who referred me to Belmont Police - who in turn referred me to the San Jose DA, who has shown no action on the case even after six months.

While the frustration of pursuing the criminal could make for another article, let me focus here on warning other fellow artists on how to spot a fraudster.

1. If someone is buying your items (especially high priced ones) in undue hurry, be wary of the motives. The artist in you could be flattered, but the business person in you should be a bit cautious. I observed similar hurried behavior in an earlier incident involving fraud.


2. Always look at the customer's check carefully to see if it is back-dated. The bank later told me that fraudsters do that to claim that the funds might have dried up after they give a check. Even better, invest in a credit processing and check reading machine.


3. Do not multi-task the transaction processing. It takes your attention from checking the details. In this case, I might have noticed the check back-dating if I were not rushed by the fraudster.

Garnet and Bali silver necklace
by Richa Kapoor.

Remember that fraudsters are experts in what they do, and do not have as much to lose as you do.

So, your biggest allies are time (in checking their identity) and tools to verify their credit. Be sure to invest in them.

Author Richa Kapoor of Bellure Designs creates genuine gemstone, artisan jewelry. Her work is sold in high end boutiques and juried art shows. Richa has also been featured in Almaden Times newspaper for unique fine gems jewelry, Beadwork magazine, and has several articles under publication.

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