In the late 90s, there was an animated series on Cartoon Network called Ed, Edd n’ Eddy. The show was about three boys who tried to get their tongues on jawbreakers by tricking, scamming and scheming their fellow peers in the neighborhood. Almost all of the time, their tricks, schemes, and scams backfired. However that’s just a cartoon and if you don’t think adults can trick, scam and scheme, think again. Scams are an epidemic.
When it comes to probate, there is always a chance that somebody could be trying to trick, scam and scheme their way into saving money – or even taking someone’s money. You’ll see all sorts of tricks like fake checks. It’s not just getting a check and forging a signature. People will go out of their way to print off a three-folded check with perforated edges. They’ll print out fake IDs and present them. They’ll even create fake death certificates if they have to. When it comes to scheming, scamming, conning or whatever you want to call it, there are many ways in which a fraud can try to trick you. Of course, there’s also many ways in which you can make sure that you avoid scams, cons and frauds. Thankfully, these are easy tips to follow,
Scams: A few trips
If something seems too good to be true, you may be onto something
More often than not, your intuition and awareness of the situation at hand is to be trusted. Just because the money you desire or need is right there in front of you doesn’t mean you should be letting your guard down. Check the legitimacy of the documents, signatures and checks. Having it vetted by a probate attorney can also help you gain clarity on the validity of potentially fraudulent documents, signatures and checks.
Ask a lot of questions
Sometimes the most obvious solutions are the ones you can instinctively do. In this case, asking questions will always help. By asking questions, you’ll come to one of three conclusions: One, the person providing the check, signature or document is telling the truth; Two, the person providing the check, signature or document is lying to you and you know it; Three, the answers are conflicting, if not, inconclusive as to whether the person is telling the truth or not. In that situation, which happens more frequently than once believed, it’s best to have a probate attorney.
At The Probate Pro, we see this happen often. As we say, just because it happened to someone else aside you, doesn’t mean it won’t happen to you. That’s why it’s always best to have a probate attorney to handle the documents, signatures and checks. With years of experience in probate court, we know just who may be trying to scheme, scam or trick you out of money.
If you need someone to look over probate related matters, give The Probate Pro a call today at (833) PROBATE.
