Owners of a Canmore vacation home rental management company are warning that information from one of their properties is being used in a scam through Kijiji classifieds.
Charla Tomlinson of Rockies Rentals said photos and a description of a former property they managed were taken from the company website and now appear in an ad on Kijiji.
The property in question, she said, was removed from the Rockies website at Thanksgiving as it is currently for sale, but it appears in a Kijiji ad under the heading of Downtown Canmore Home – Hot tub – Save 10% Off rate.
The non-existent property, which used to rent for $800 a night, is listed as going for $295, which prompted a guest “who thought it was too good to be true” to contact Tomlinson.
“Worse yet,” she said, “the address he’s using is a legitimate one in Silvertip. That homeowner could have all kinds of angry people showing up on Christmas Eve.
“Something like this happened in Florida a few years ago and it looks terrible for the community and the vacation home business. This always happens at Christmas because of the high demand and people are desperate.”
Tomlinson said she’s alerted Kijiji to the fraud and posted a warning about the supposed owner on the classified ad site. She’s contacted RCMP and is also going to warn the homeowner in Silvertip that his home’s address is being used in a scam.
The Kijiji posting (as of Nov. 11) stated the pet-friendly home is a four-bedroom, two bath that sleeps 10-12 and is available to June 1, 2016. The 10 per cent off rate, it claims, is a limited time offer for a two-night stay minimum. It also states full weeks are $2,000 and that there are many discounts available.
“The phone number shows a 587 area code, which would make you think it’s a local number,” said Tomlinson, “but it doesn’t show the whole number and the email address is hidden on Kijiji, so this could be anyone.”
Tomlinson said she’s also been in touch with a Fitzgerald Kennedy who claims the property is his and attempted to book it herself, to see what kind of demand for payment would be made.
Kennedy, said on Tuesday (Nov. 10), replied to her query to say the unit was full, but that a friend of his had a unit that is also being rented. On Kijiji, the person listed as Kennedy has a second property, under ‘other postings,’ with some of the same photos, under Downtown Canmore Home Availble (sic) – Open Availability for $300 a night and that sleeps 14.
“As soon as I went to the ad, I recognized photos of our house,” she said. “We paid a photographer to take them and we have copyright.
“It’s the first time anyone’s stolen photos from us. There is always a high demand at Christmas and I’m concerned people will come here and have a terrible vacation.
“I could have left this alone, but it was our property and our town. It’s fraudulent and I hope anybody who sees this is warned.”
