You already know that renting your vehicle on Outdoorsy is a great way to earn a living some extra side cash. That’s why you’re here!
That great earning potential isn’t without its risks, though. Marketplaces like Outdoorsy can sometimes fall subject to fraudsters who prey on unsuspecting hosts and RV owners. And while we have teammates working full-time behind the scenes to minimize this risk as much as possible, there are also things you can be doing to protect yourself.
What fraud behavior should you watch out for?
Any strange behavior from prospective renters should be treated with caution. Some red flags could be:
- Flooding your inbox with messages
- Asking to pay you off of the Outdoorsy platform
- Having an unidentifiable profile photo or description
- Having an odd contact email address
- Sending strange links with their messages
A note on strange links…
Never click on a link from a prospective renter that feels unexpected or out of place. This is a common tacting in phishing, which allows fraudsters to steal your personal details, debit and credit card details, and social security numbers (or any other info they can access on your device).
What can you do to protect yourself?
Aside from staying aware of strange behavior, what can you do as an owner to protect yourself and your business from fraud?
Protect yourself by:
- Vetting your renters – Dive into your prospective renters’ profiles, comments, and reviews to make sure they are who they say they are and seem like a safe bet. Ask them detailed questions about their campground site or who they’ll be traveling with so you have more information.
- Use a GPS tracker – Outfitting your rig with a GPS tracker can help give you some major peace of mind when it’s out with a renter. Knowing when a renter has gone off course can help you detect criminal behavior early enough to alert Outdoorsy about attempts at fraud or theft.
- Report fraud attempts to Outdoorsy – Email trustandsafety@outdoorsy.co if you suspect fraudulent activity. And if you happen to come across any fraudulent RV listings, be sure to report those directly from the listing page as shown in the screenshot below:
At the end of the day, you should always trust your gut. Never hand over the keys to your rig to someone you just don’t trust.
Our Trust & Safety team is constantly working on ways to make Outdoorsy as safe and secure as possible for our owners and renters. We strive to ensure that owners have access to trusted renters and secure payments, as well as features like our comprehensive fraud stack that uses facial recognition software to verify drivers.
Remember that we’ll always be on hand to help you with any fraud-related matters you may have questions about.
Stay safe!
