A Night Auditor's Intuition

I received a call between 1 and 1:30 this morning from a man who wanted to rent two adjoining rooms. I took the necessary information: his name, phone number and address (first sign of something amiss: he couldn't give me a proper zip code), and then he gave me a number to what he claimed was a Discover card. I didn't worry about the wrong zip code, but I told him I would hold the two rooms until he arrived.

Then, he asked an unusual question (second warning sign): "Did the card go through?" Typically, I don't run a purchase on a card until the guest arrives. And normally, guests don't worry about their card going through unless I tell them it has been declined. This man however was concerned even as he was making the reservation. I went ahead and ran a purchase transaction on the card for the total amount, and told the man his card had been accepted. He then asked "so, I just show you the card and I can have the rooms?" I affirmed with a "yes" and he said he'd be right in.

No less than a minute later, the man walked in the lobby and came up to the front desk. He said he had been the one who just called (apparently he had been sitting in the parking lot the whole time). He was a rough-looking man in his 30s or 40s. I asked for his ID and credit card, and suddenly he was looking at the ground and telling me a story about the card belonging to his mother in Oklahoma and how she really wanted to help him since he had "just gotten out" (of prison or jail I assumed, but he did not specify, and I did not ask). The wheels were turning in my head, as I knew he must be trying to play me for a fool. People normally don't stare at their shuffling feet unless they are uncomfortable.

I don't believe that all who "just get out" are up to no good, but I get suspicious when given a reason to be, regardless of a person's past. I have been in this line of work long enough to know when I'm being lied to by people of the night. I acted as though I did not suspect anything at all, and I apologized repeatedly, explaining it was "company policy" that I have a signed authorization form from the credit card holder before I can charge a purchase amount. I said it might help if his mother could call me. The man then left the building (third suspicious sign) to call his mother.

Less than a minute later, I received a call from a very young sounding girl who said simply "I'm calling on two rooms?"

I asked "are you calling to reserve two rooms?"

And she repeated, "I'm calling on two rooms?" She sounded very unsure of herself.

I knew this must be the "mother" who was supposedly calling from Oklahoma, so I prodded her, asking "are you calling on behalf of someone else?"

"Yes," she replied.

I really wondered how foolish they thought I was. So, I said in a friendly and unsuspecting tone "ah, you must be calling from Oklahoma to verify your credit card information."

"Yes," the young voice replied.

I apologized for the inconvenience, saying "I'm sorry ma'am, but I will need you to fax me a signed authorization form, giving me permission to charge your card. Do you have access to a fax machine?"

No, she did not have access to a fax machine, nor did she sound like she knew much about anything.

I explained that without the card holder's signature, I could not charge the card. I apologized again, repeating the "company policy" mantra, and then the conversation was over.

However, the girl had not ended the call and I could still hear her on the line, so I didn't hang up just yet.

I decided to keep listening, for any other possible clues, when I heard the man's voice in the background asking "what did she say?" I recognized his voice, it was the same man who came into the lobby hanging his head at me in a guilty fashion! I heard the girl say "she needs my signature; I need to fax my signature." Then, the call was ended, and I hung up the phone, laughing.

A short moment later, the phone rang again, and it was the man calling to say that his mother just called him from Oklahoma "all upset" because she doesn't have access to a fax machine. I smiled to myself and said "I'm sorry sir, but without the proper forms I cannot process your mother's credit card."

I reversed the charges on the card, only then learning that it had been a Visa and not a Discover as the man had initially claimed. I chuckled to myself, calling him a lying sack under my breath, thinking that either he wasn't trying very hard tonight, or else I am just too good at spotting his kind.

Be careful with your sensitive information. Keep it safe and be suspicious. These are not the first credit card fishers I've come across.

Good night.