First, I want to say how incredibly sorry I am that you’ve had to endure such a relentless series of challenges. No one deserves that level of stress, and it’s completely understandable to feel frustrated, betrayed, and disillusioned by the systems that are supposed to protect small business owners like you. Your perseverance in rebuilding everything despite all of this speaks volumes about your strength and resilience.
I've rarely had these issues. I run a dumpster rental business. Some calls us, orders a dumpster, we put it in their driveway, invoice immediately, and then pick the dumpster up when they say, "It's full." I thought when I bought this business, "what could go wrong!" However, someone once rented a dumpster from us, we delivered it, and they paid with a stolen credit card. Immediately Quickbooks (which we integrate into Jobber) flagged us that the credit card was stolen. Soon thereafter, someone called us to ask us why the number on our dumpster wasn't the one in our "for sale" ad. "What for sale ad?" we asked. Seems that the person who fraudulently rented the dumpster put up a for sale listing on Facebook Marketplace SELLING our dumpster! Had we not gotten alerted by the hopeful buyer, we would have lost a dumpster. Who steals dumpsters? Anyway, I just want you to know that, unfortunately you’re not alone—many small business owners have faced similar hardships, though maybe not all at once as you have. Scams, fraudulent lawsuits, employee theft, and identity theft have become more prevalent, and it often feels as if the law protects the wrong people. That said, there are steps other small businesses have taken to try to reduce their risk moving forward. You’ve already implemented some smart moves—like installing security systems and freezing your credit reports—so I want to share a few other ideas that might help:
Finally, you’re absolutely right—society should do more to support small businesses like yours. Small, family-run businesses are the backbone of our communities, and it’s incredibly disheartening when they’re the ones left unprotected. I hope sharing your experience helps others realize just how serious this issue is and encourages small business owners to band together for change.
Please know that your struggles matter, and your resilience hasn’t gone unnoticed. I hope better days are ahead for you and your company. If there’s any way this group can support you further, please don’t hesitate to ask. You’ve been through more than enough on your own.
Take care, and keep fighting the good fight!
David, you telling me your story is enough. Your story is so similar to some of the things we have gone through that it helps to make me feel a little less alone. One guy scamming us thought he had gotten away with it, and he almost did until a customer wanted a refund and had to call us because the scammer's number mysteriously didn't work anymore after the scammer had secured the customer's down payment for the job! The customer looked up our company name, which is the name the scammer had used when securing the deposit, found our real number, and called us to have us settle up. I was confused and that is when the sh*t hit the fan for that scammer! The customer was livid and told me he would handle it and not to worry. I was worried but the customer was brilliant! He sued the pants off of the scammer! That was the most satisfying outcome we had concerning scammers but that one guy who sued the scammer was the only one who stood up for us. It made us feel so alone in our uphill battle. I cannot even imagine stealing a dumpster! That is beyond crazy! We had an employee steal our work van so he could go steal drinks from a convenience store with his drug buddies one day and I thought that was ridiculous! Arrested over a root beer and then, having a vehicle theft added to the root beer theft? Then the van was impounded and searched and they had drugs and stolen goods in it! So it went from a root beer theft to grand theft! It was a bit funny in a way, except the morons were set free on bail and went right back to "work". Not for me obviously, because I fired his sorry butt. I mean he went back to his job of stealing and selling drugs! I had to pay to get the van out of impound by the way!! UGG!! Stealing your boss' van so you can steal root beer and stealing a dumpster? Yup, those are beyond crazy! You and I need to write a book about dumb criminals! LOL! Thank you for making me feel less alone. I truly appreciate that!
