Do you give clients your home address? I prefer not to give out my home address to clients. Currently, I'm starting to work with a couple who want me to perform their wedding ceremony and they have asked for my address to mail me a cashier's check.
How do you handle this?
Thanks!
Colleen
Hi Colleen,
We generally advise against giving out your home address unless it's to someone you trust. Please be aware, too, of the potential for fraud and scams when you are contacted about your services as a minister. Some red flags to watch out for:
- Vague or conflicting information about the person and their ceremony
- Insistence on a particular payment method (e.g. cashier's check)
- You receive a check and it is for greater than the agreed-upon amount (This is a BIG one. Do not cash a check of this nature.)
If you notice any of these signs, be aware that you might be the target of fraud.
While the internet is a wonderful tool for doing good in the world, unfortunately there are some folks who will use it for bad ends. We urge using caution whenever interacting with people you don't know online.
ULC
FWIW, I got a message from some stranger a few weeks ago asking me if I'd take a cashiers check via mail to perform their services. It was the suspicious "in a rush this weekend and the other minister backed out on us." I declined. Once I marry them, and their fake check bounces, I have little recourse. I can't "unmarry" them once I've returned the marriage license to the clerk of court.
It made no sense to me because if they have to appear in front of me for me to marry them as required in NC, then they can just give me the same cash they claimed they would give the bank teller.
I'd be suspicious of any negotiable instrument from someone you haven't met, don't know, and won't be able to find when the instrument proves not negotiable. Remember, when the check bounces, the money is coming out of YOUR account, not theirs.
