How To Avoid The Bad Guys When Renting Vacation Homes

July 28, 2011 - PRLog -- So you've found a great vacation home and you're just about to click the "reserve" button. Then you remember something a friend said to you about getting scammed last summer on they vacation home they rented in Maui. “Everything seemed to be fine at first” they said, “But as the arrival date got closer, things began to fall apart”.

This is a story repeated all too often. You are right to pause and think about your decision. There are hundreds or potentially thousands of scammers on the Internet who will do every dirty trick there is to get your money. Vacation home rentals are certainly one area where one is well advised to use caution when renting.

Consider for a moment how easy it is to advertise a home in places like Craig’s list or Backpage.com. Not only are these ads free, but there is absolutely no verification that the information is correct. That means anyone with Internet access can upload some pictures of a home, even one they don’t own or manage, and create a vacation home for rent ad. You would have no way at all of knowing if the home actually even exists, let alone if it is really a vacation home under the control of the advertiser.

Even sites which specialize in vacation rentals by owner do not verify the homes advertised are real or that the advertiser is authorized to represent them. Still, you’re probably somewhat less at risk given that some of these sites charge substantially for their listings and thieves don’t usually like to spend money.

So how then is one to avoid these problems? Surprisingly, it’s the same answer you’ve probably considered for a plumber or contractor, check the Better Business Bureau. Most BBBs will list active local companies, and the reputable ones will have an actual BBB rating. Many also become BBB accredited for an extra degree of credibility. Accredited companies agree to BBB standards for customer service and issue resolution.

Another way to protect yourself is to simply check online. There are several websites which help to protect the public by listing vacation rental complaints and companies which have a reputation for cheating their customers. VRWD.com and Complaints.com are two good sources for information on vacation rental fraud.

These simple checks can help protect you from becoming the victim of a ruined vacation or business trip. It’s not hard to check, and all it takes is a few minutes of your time to save yourself a mountain of grief. For more information contact Las Vegas Vacation Home Rentals (702) 966-2761 or visit their website at http://www.lasvegasvacationhomerentals.com.

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