Avoiding fraudulent orders is not always as easy as it seems. Just ask Lorie at My Flower Shop in Cambridge, Ontario who recently had an encounter with a fraudulent order. Thanks to her diligence and attention to detail, Lorie was able to abate the results of her experience and walk away clean. To avoid fraudulent orders in your flower shop, use these tips from Flower Shop Network.

• Scrutinize unusually large or hurried orders. Almost all fraudulent orders tend to be larger than average. Though some instances call for large orders, note particularly large and hurried orders.
• Pay attention to the signature on the card. Make sure that the signature on the card matches the signature of the sender. Also, make sure that the signature is a real name and not an obvious nick name.
• Do not accept foreign (Non US or Canadian) credit card orders. Approximately 30% of all foreign orders are fraudulent.
• Note the email address and corresponding mail server. Take particular note if the account is a setup under a free server such as Yahoo! mail, Gmail, and others or a very strange server as these can be obtained by anyone anywhere.

If you have a reason to be suspicious, contact the sender for more information.
Keep detailed documentation (especially for phone orders). According to Lorie, “Make your notes very clear. Make sure you have documentation because that’s what saved me.”

It is easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the floral industry. However, follow these tips for avoiding fraudulent orders and the end results will be well worth the extra time and attention.