Every so often, usually around the start of the new year our office gets an increased frequency of calls about receiving unreasonably costly invoices for toner. Our first thought is that more often than not these customers are already under a toner inclusive contract with us at H.L. Dempsey and should not receive these invoices. The fact of the matter is, your printer dealer or service provider likely had nothing to do with it. Not long prior to receiving these invoices our customer received a friendly prospect call with an angle along the lines of "we are expecting procurement issues with the toner for your machine and would like to send you some ahead of time" and proceeds to ask questions in effort to mine for information such as make, model or simply the toner that you need so they can send you compatible supplies in hope that you open and use them.
These places call around to offices and sometimes fraudulently claim to be affiliated with local companies that you may have heard of in an effort to be more personable. But really, they are trying to send supplies only to be followed by an invoice for the provided products that is well above MSRP. This is simply a fraudulent scam.
Scammers that call companies posing as reliable suppliers of copier and printer supplies are known as "toner pirates". They then deceive the company by supplying generic and low quality goods while pretending to be familiar vendors. Upon delivery, victims of these toner pirates frequently receive inferior toner with an inflated price.
The telltale signs of a "Toner Pirate"
Toner Pirates share basic qualities that you will recognize to save money and time in your office, even though their scam tactics are always changing:
- The caller poses as someone who does or has done business with your office in the past.
- Callers use terms from high-pressure sales pitches, like "urgent!" Take action now! No waiting around! Available for a short period of time only!
- This is a fear-based strategy to compel the client to act right now. The caller demands payment in person or with cash.
- The caller refuses to give a business reference, address, phone number, or email address for communication.
- Over the phone, the caller will ask for the Make, Model, and Serial number of your machines (the equipment list should already be with your existing vendor). If the caller asks.
What to do if you think a "Toner Pirate" has gotten in touch with you:
- Request the account number from the caller; only you and your supplier/vendor should be aware of it.
- Simply hang up and give your supplier a call to get the details if you are not sure.
A "Toner Pirate" has scammed my company. Now what?
Don't panic if a "toner pirate" has targeted your company! The Federal Trade Commission has put in place measures to protect companies against "toner pirates."
- It is illegal for toner pirates to take money from you. In the event that items arrive that your company has not approved, either return them to the sender or handle them as a gift. But because those toners are frequently of poor quality and can harm your machines, we advise against using them.
- Make a quick call to your vendor and look into any odd invoices. Reputable suppliers are always happy to address questions regarding unpaid amounts and provide clarifications on invoices.
- Inform the appropriate authorities about toner pirates, such as:
- U.S. Postal Service: https://www.uspsoig.gov/hotline
- Better Business Bureau: http://www.bbb.org/
- Federal Trade Commission: https://www.ftc.gov/