Scams Hitting Indy Restaurants

Jeff Wright from Agio has sent us news that the old “Dry Cleaning Scam” is circulating again. The receipts are copies, but look more sophisticated than previous versions of the scam. This version is from Henderson Nevada and was actually sent via mail which is considered a federal offense.

If you receive such a scam via mail send along with the envelope to:
Fraud Inspector
7188 Lakeview Parkway West Drive
Indianapolis, IN 46268

This follows a recent scam where a man using a chef's jacket and business cards managed to eat and drink at a number of area restaurants using the name of the chef at Rick’s Boatyard Café.

Mike Hibbeln is the executive chef at Rick's Boatyard Cafe. He first learned there was a problem from a worker at Jillian's downtown. She said a man came in wearing a chef's jacket and ran up a $60 tab and said Hibbeln would take care of it.

Hibbeln said the man calls himself "Bill Matthews" and is using Hibbeln's business cards to further his scam. The man actually picked up the business cards from a display at Rick's Boatyard.

"From most people who've called, he uses the same deal. He tells them ‘This is the guy I work for. I need to go pick him up at the airport. I locked my keys in my car, I need $75 to get a locksmith so I can get in my car and pick up my chef.' And people are giving him like anywhere from $20, $30, $40," said Hibbeln.

Hibbeln said he also heard from a couple who Matthews had approached out in front of the Conrad Hotel, but they were smart enough not to take him up on his offer of a free meal. Hibbeln says he's hearing from callers that the scammer is a white man about 6'3" with medium-length black hair.

Anyone with information regarding the case should call metro police at 327-6621.

Adopting a policy to handle customer complaints at the time they occur can eliminate most problems while identifying those people who have truthful claims. Have documentation such as a daily journal or incident log where management records potential customer problems including date, time, table location, server, customer name and a description of the incident, even if the customer insists everything is taken care of satisfactorily. Once you have the journal and your staff is trained on its use, adopt a policy of only addressing customer complaints that are logged in the journal.

For more information please contact Debbie Scott at the Indiana Restaurant Association office, 317-673-4211 or email dscott at lmvconsulting.com.