CALGARY- A scam targeting small businesses in Calgary has taught a costly lesson to some local pizza delivery shops.
A big order is placed, the food is delivered, but the payment is never made.
“They ordered two large pizzas, four cheese cakes…pops, onion rings. The total bill was $120.50,” said Sammy’s World’s Greatest Pizza’s Monier Borhot. “It’s a big bill for us.”
Family-owned Sammy’s pizza place in the southwest community of Braeside fell victim to the fraudsters a few weeks ago.
When the order gets delivered to the door, the person who answers says their spouse isn’t home yet and is the one with the credit card. The customer then suggests the delivery person leaves the food there, and they’ll call in the credit card number later.
That call is never made, and the pizza place loses the money. But Sammy’s isn’t the only one business that’s been hit.
One delivery person has been to a certain address twice: he was on the hook for the bill the first time, but refused to fall for it again.
“The second time—same problem,” said AM/PM Delivery Service’s Mohammad Dawod. “He tells me, ‘give me the food, my wife—she will bring the money,’ but I told him, ‘I do not give the food. First money.’”
A handful of other restaurants in the area were also targeted.
Global News visited the apartment address responsible for the calls, but nobody answered the buzzer.
The restaurants have contacted police, who told them there’s little to be done, since technically staff shouldn’t have left the food and trusted a customer to phone back with payments.
“It’s not right,” said Borhot.
“We work hard, we’re here day and night, and then they ruin your whole night. It’s stealing! At the end of the day, it’s stealing.”
With files from Erika Tucker
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