Fraud exists everywhere, but you?re not likely to think a furniture store has been the haven for it for years!
Mississauga’s Rooms and Furniture Accessories has been serving customers since 2012 and it looks like they?ve been defrauding people since then. Just a quick google search and you?ll find complaints after complaints bearing the message DO NOT BUY. What?s incredible about all this is the fact that the store still seems to be operating today and still doing harm to people.
Canadian Fraud News received a message from one Alex, a guy who lost about $55,000 from being defrauded by Rooms and Furniture Accessories in November last year. The huge amount is because he owns a printing company and agreed to create and print flyers for the store. All 3 cheques that were issued to him bounced at the bank.
Numerous Fraud Victims Online
Kimberley, a customer who ordered new furniture at Rooms and Furniture Accessories in April, was asked by the store to pay a deposit so that she can have her furniture at the reservation price. She was shocked to find out that the store was permanently closed when she went there to pick up the furniture she bought. She further shares that she never got her money back and called the owners ?thieves?.
Sandra, a customer from February posted a similar story. She purchased a couch set back in late 2015 that was supposed to be delivered in January this year. January came and went and her furniture did not arrive. The store kept giving her excuses such as her furniture still being in China or that the deliveryman was sick. After waiting for more than 3 months, she then realized that she has been scammed. Up to this day, no one contacted her or told her why her couch set was never delivered. She says that the people at the store are ?scammers?.
In the same vein, someone who called himself/herself confused consumers says that he/she would like to know how come the store is still in business. This poster said that the store may be running some sort of Ponzi scheme. The poster elaborated that the store could be taking a customer?s money to pay for someone?s order that has been used to pay another person?s order and so forth.
What Actions Can Victims Take?
Fraud recovery lawyer Norman Groot shares that he handles a lot of consumer fraud cases and says a case like this is not uncommon. He described the situation as a straightforward case with the problem being the cost of litigation preventing complainants from coming forward. After all, there would be no litigation process if Rooms do not respond to demand letters. He also says that for this reason, most people do not push through going to court for small cases like this. This is also why most simply post online or on social media to warn future victims.
Groot further states that if a victim truly wishes to press for civil action, the first step to do so is to hire an initial retainer who will conduct an investigation and determine the best course of action to take to recover lost funds and/or damages.
Are you facing a similar issue and need professional help to dig for evidence? Contact us at our Mississauga private investigation location and we?ll see which of our private investigation services we can help you with!
