Watch out Watch out there's a ......... about

Found a few scams for you to watch out for over here in sunny old France.

1. Fool's Gold; France

If you're walking the streets of Paris and someone appears to have found a gold ring at your feet, congratulate them and keep on walking. The ring is a plant and the person who pretends to have found it will use just about any sob story to get you to buy it off them.

2. Tourist Scam in Nice,France

We visited Nice in May 2010 and were returning back from Gare SNCF Nice Ville(Main Train Station) to our hotel. We took the tram from the Gare Theirs(nearby tram station) and noticed some two 'grubby' looking guys following us at a distance.

After alighting from the tram we decided to stop at a bank branch to withdraw money.Unfortunately(or fortunately) the ATM did not accept our card. Very soon one of the guys came in and started shouting at us. I have heard about the scam and shouted "police" and "thief". The bank staff came to our help. He was telling them we had picked his pocket! Of course, the bank security sent him in his way. We however waited a little longer. Then, his colleague came, but had to beat a hasty retreat. Advice- Avoid areas near station. Trams are very crowded in Nice. Use buses they are cheap, frequent and not crowded.If taking taxis to/from Nice airport tell the driverbeforehand u need a receipt with his taxi number, (the 4 digit number written on roof next to word "Taxi"), they won't overcharge.

3. The flat tyre trick

How it happens
Cruising along on the motorway, a helpful soul in another car gestures to your back tyre to tell you it's gone flat. When you pull on to the hard shoulder to take a look, they draw up behind you to offer you help with the tyre, which seemed all right before you pulled into the last service station. They might rid you of the puncture, but while you are struggling with the jack, their accomplice will also relieve you of any valuables in the front of your car.
Variations: Some thieves don't even bother with the tyre charade but simply wait for you to slow down at traffic lights and open your car door, seizing any bags they can grab. Where: The south of France, Spain and anywhere your car - your own or rented - marks you out as a tourist.

4. Travel Scam #1 - £109 for an All-Inclusive Trip to Spain or Southern France

This sounds too good to be true right? Well of course it is. What happens when you call to book the trip? Nothing will be available on the dates you want at the magic price point, but for another £300 pounds you can get the hotel you want at the date you want.

Similar scams often offer extremely low prices which are then increased, excessively, with hidden fees.

Travel Scam #2 - Free Vacation to the South of France or Spain

A free vacation is a lot better than a £109 vacation, right? Well be sceptical again. Behind these "free" vacations are tough, high pressure sales presentations for timeshare properties. The worst part about timeshares is they are virtually impossible to get rid of once you buy one and as a result.

5. One for the owners

Had a phone call this afternoon from a nice chap telling me that he was looking for a rental property in our area to add to his list of adverts for army and police personnel looking for holidays. I pointed out that I don't rent my property, I am a B&B, he said "never mind we take them as well" obviously had done his homework! My first question is of course how much will it cost, the answer £149 and bookings were guaranteed. I asked what was their guarantee which turns out that if you don't get an enquiry via them they will give you next years advert free. Personally I never commit on this sort of thing over the phone so I asked him to email me details (I am still waiting). I then go and do some research. Well strangely enough when you start typing their name in to google it tries to second guess what your looking for and gives you suggestions, top of the list was 'Force Travel Club Scam' which immediately sets the old alarm bells ringing. Further investigation reveals that the company behind this has set up several versions in the past all of which have gone bankrupt. I'm not going to bore you with all the stuff I found, you can see for yourselves by simply following this google link force travel club scam Needless to say its a scam of some sort so if you get a phone call from them I suggest you put the phone down and definitely don't part with any money. By the way they told me that they found my details through Visit France and sort of implied they were something to do with them. I phoned Visit France who categorically denied any link and were rather annoyed (putting it mildly) that they had used their website to contact people and in implying a link. Their website does indeed exist and does have properties on it but then it would do because they tell you the website name so you can go and have a look to see who else is advertised in your region and what the website and adverts look like. Keep safe this summer