Don’t want to get over my head

[Jafi224]

I have a request from a client, but I want to be sure I'm not getting over my head. He/she is requesting a video graphic site inspection for a piece of property. What does this mean, what should I expect and some tips if possible or look outs? They are also saying they need the drone "especially for site inspection". Thoughts? Thanks for the help

 

[MapMaker53]

Honestly, I would have no idea what they want from that description and you should not agree to anything unless they spell out their specific needs, as in what type of deliverables they want. So far, to me, it sounds like they just want aerial video of site conditions. But you need them to describe in detail what they expect you to do, what they expect you to give them when done (raw video? post-production editing?), and how often they expect you to do it. Otherwise, you don't really know what you are getting into or how much to quote/charge them.

 

[Jafi224]

Honestly I’m starting to think this is a scam of some sort.... he asked for a quote and stated that he should have been there to do the inspections but he’s in the hospital recovering from COVID.

I asked the location, acres and size of building. His English started to be more broken as you can see. The whole thing just give a bad vibe....

 

[Jafi224]

Okay ya this is too much of a coincidence...... this just happened. I get rare job offers. I get two in 4 days?

 

[MapMaker53]

It just smells wrong to me. Have you been able to verify this person and the company hiring you on LinkedIn? If it's a real company, call the number and ask for the person to see if they really exist or even work there. Just some thoughts, in case you are interested in pursuing this.

 

[chambosinthere]

The poor English is a big red flag for me...

 

[Jafi224]

The second customer has the exact same job but he’s got cancer instead of covid....lol

 

[MapMaker53]

Many scammers have some sort of medical reason that they can't meet with you. Next comes a requirement that you need to put up some money for insurance against any property damage that the drone might cause -- which "naturally will be returned to you after the work is completed". Yeah, sure.

 

[Fred Garvin]

They'll also need your account numbers so they can pay you.

 

[iaincaradoc]

It's likely they're going to send you a rubber check, for more than the job would actually pay, with instructions that you pay some subcontractor for something along the way. Then you're out the money you've paid the "subcontractor" when the check gets bounced a few days after you've paid them, and possibly even before the job is completed.

I've gotten several of these bogus offers for various photography jobs. Hadn't seen one for a drone videographer yet, but I suppose it was inevitable.

 

[Kristina Fowler]

Honestly I’m starting to think this is a scam of some sort.... he asked for a quote and stated that he should have been there to do the inspections but he’s in the hospital recovering from COVID.

I asked the location, acres and size of building. His English started to be more broken as you can see. The whole thing just give a bad vibe....

I've gotten 2 of these in the past week. One said he would have met me personally, but he's got lung cancer and had to go to an appointment (sniffle). They usually ask if you take Credit Cards and normally close with a phrase to the effect that says "Get back to me". Then they proceed to describe this elaborate project that implies a big payday - even to the point of referencing nearby cities within driving range. Surprisingly, they seem well versed in mapping and capture techniques. I have a tracking app installed on my website and saw a hit from Nigeria at about that same time.

 

[JimD]

This is actually a very common Scam Photographers get them all the time.

 

[R Martin]

Many scammers have some sort of medical reason that they can't meet with you. Next comes a requirement that you need to put up some money for insurance against any property damage that the drone might cause -- which "naturally will be returned to you after the work is completed". Yeah, sure.

Tell them you will provide a copy of your insurance which covers that. Of course you know that. Just me typing out loud.

 

[Drone DS]

This is a scam, as I had a very similar experience involving a real estate request. Most likely they were trying to get account numbers.

 

[R.Perry]

Run, don't walk, run from these people.

 

[TonyPHX]

I received one very similar. Thank you for posting this. I was already super suspicious because the "story" was just way too convoluted. Same deal about 20 days of missions, etc. And of course, he is recovering from Covid... lol