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Better Business Bureau Serving Canton Region & Greater West Virginia is warning consumers about Foremost Shipping LLC offering work-from-home positions to reship packages. Consumers allege after 30 days of work, their promised pay is not received, and all communication is stopped.
Since July 2023, BBB® has received several Scam Tracker reports and complaints from across the country on Foremost Shipping LLC. Several complainants reported they had posted their resumes online but did not apply directly with the company. The consumers state the company contacts them for a package quality checker position, and after a quick phone interview, the new hires are asked to supply their banking information and social security number and to include a selfie holding their photo ID, front and back, in
order to set up direct deposit for payment on the 30th day of employment.
The consumers told BBB the company shipped packages to their homes, where they opened and inspected the items for damages and were required to take pictures of the product and post them on a supplied dashboard. They were told the “customers” needed to approve and pay for the products at that time. Once approved, a new shipping label would be supplied for the employee to print and attach to the package to be dropped off at UPS or FedEx to be shipped to the new address.
None of the consumers received the promised payment for completed work at the end of their first month of employment; instead, the company locked them out of the dashboard and stopped returning calls and emails. One complainant stated her unpaid work totaled $2,700.00.
"With employment scams on the rise, job seekers should be especially guarded,” said Frank Cilona, President & CEO of BBB serving Canton Region & Greater West Virginia. “Always be wary of work-from-home positions with package reshipment. When a company sends you items in somebody else's name, then asks you to reship them, ask yourself - why aren’t they just doing it themselves?"
The company website, foremostshippingus.com, was newly registered on June 21, 2023, and according to the site, the company refers to themselves as package “forwarders.”
The address used on the website belongs to a BBB-accredited business that has been receiving several calls from consumers caught in the employment scam. BBB spoke with Central Van & Storage and confirmed Foremost Shipping was not located at the address.
Foremost Shipping had filed an LLC with the WV Secretary of State to utilize the paperwork during the hiring process, but it was revoked for fraud on August 31, 2023.
If you are a victim of this scam, BBB recommends reporting it to the United States Postal Inspectors. With the likelihood the perpetrators are located outside the U.S., choose “International Fraud” from the dropdown for scam type.
BBB tips for consumers looking for work-from-home opportunities:
- Pay attention to unusual procedures. Job offers without interviews are a red flag of employment scams. Be very suspicious if an unfamiliar “employer” asks for your Social Security number, bank account number, or other private information that could be used to steal your identity.
- Ask questions. If you want to take advantage of a work-from-home opportunity, research. The FTC’s Business Opportunity Rule has safeguards to ensure you have the information you need to tell whether a work-at-home opportunity is risky. Under the Rule, sellers must give you a one-page disclosure document that offers key information about the opportunity.
- Report the bad actors. You can report employment, reshipping, and work-at-home scams to BBB.org/ScamTracker, the Federal Trade Commission, and your state’s Attorney General.
More information
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