Its pretty simple.. I ask for deposits now because im done being scammed out of time and effort, as well as revealing the location of my discreet place of business. So many clients dont even bother to show up for appointments, or theyre new and get cold feet, or they suddenly have been called out of town for work right before the appointment.
Im sorry you fell prey to hopefully a hard to spot fake, but the thing is:
If you are no good at spotting fakes, you should learn how to spot them instead of expecing people to change their business model. Like, the entitlement!!
Id be shocked if youve been scammed by a verified provider here that seems legit and has recommendations from various established client accounts. But even if it did happen that would be the rare exception and they wouldnt pull off such a scam for long here on lyla.
If you dont want to do your homework, dont be upset you get a bad grade lol
Others suggested seeing providers that dont ask for deposits. You couldve done that without posting. You just want special treatment and/or a place to complain.
I do feel bad for some of the people who get scammed, like elderly and other vulnerable groups of people, but this industry is no worse than any other for scams. There are email scams, phone scams, tax scams, puppy scams, to name a few They often prey on the most vulnerable. You are unfairly blaming the industry, and the providers in it, for your own mistakes. You arent even complaining about scammers themselves, who arent actual providers!! Youre not here going "screw that introverted incel of a man who pretended to be a SW and tricked me, scammers should be punished by law" or anything. Youre really out here slamming the legit SWers for not making thenselves more vulnerable so you can avoid the risk of being scammed instead of just doing your research!
No one has to give a deposit, but if most or all the providers are asking for one, is it that far fetched to think that we are doing so for a good reason? No, its not.
I have to get ready when someone books, but they dont have to show up. Sure they dont get service but I cant get my time, effort or discretion back. It shouldnt cost those people NOTHING when it costs me so much.
Maybe if I asked for 50 or even 100%, i could see that being reason for me as a provider to not follow through w an appointment, unless I was travelling. A nominal deposit ensures the providers time isnt wasted. I put a lot of time into being at my best for my clients and Id hate to stop doing so bc I cant afford the time to shower and primp anymore since no shows wasted all my time for the day. Travelling companions almost always ask for deposits, from new people, at least, and they seem to be doing just fine and so do their clients who do deposits. I dont think its an industry problem. Is it a CRA problem that scams pretend to be them? Correct me if im wrong, but I havent noticed them changing their policy due to scams. They put out public service announcements educating the public how to spot fakes.
I cant charge your credit card like your doctor or dentist when you dont show up for your appointment or cancel last minute. I gotta do something, and not asking for a deposit and getting the barrage of no shows again, isnt the answer. Maybe you should write a post berating all the clients who book and dont show up instead; they are the ones who ruined it for you, not the service providers that are just trying to find legitimate clients.