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Don't Become the Victim of an OSHA Scam

With all the attention in the media lately to the issue of safety - safety at home, while traveling in a plane, at work, in public places and even in our own homes - there is bound to be people who will use that increased awareness to scam someone who is concerned about their safety. In the business arena, those scams often involve compliance with workplace safety rules. There have been recent reports of veterinary hospitals across the country receiving calls from individuals representing themselves as OSHA Inspectors who later turn out to be salespersons of compliance- related products or services.

These scammers typically use one of two scenarios - they either try to collect money for bogus “fines” or they attempt to get the business to purchase a particular product or service in lieu of a fine.

Scam Number 1 - The Impending Inspection Scam

In this scenario, a person calls the practice and identifies himself as “Mr. John Doe, an Inspector with OSHA.” This is usually sufficient to get past the receptionist and to the manager or owner. The bogus inspector then starts asking specific questions about the practice’s safety programs - questions like “What was the results of the latest air sampling tests you performed on your anesthetic machine?” They sometimes imply and sometimes just outright lie, that they have received a complaint from a former employee and that an inspection is pending. Because of a backlog of cases, the inspection will take place in two weeks and that they should use the time to review their paperwork. If the practice manager or owner asks any questions like “How do we know if we’re covering everything?” then the bogus inspector moves to the next phase of the scam. They will tell the manager or owner that normally OSHA can’t recommend any particular person or company for service, but since “You sound like someone who really needs help, I'll just say that we have never had any problems with the workplaces that were assisted by ........” This way the bogus inspector implies that the practice should contract with that company for assistance. When the practice owner or manager calls the company for assistance, they are told that the compliance company has “connections” with OSHA and that once the contract is signed, there is a good chance the pending “inspection” can be averted. The practice signs the contract as insurance and the inspection never happens.

Scam Number 2 - The Phony Inspection Scam.

This scam is less common, but it does happen. As in the previous scam, a person represents him- or herself as a legitimate OSHA agent, only this time they do it in person. They often come complete with a photo ID and a badge. They usually show up at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon and very often on a Friday or the day before a holiday.

The bogus inspector tells the owner or manager that OSHA has received a complaint from a former employee and that an investigation is necessary. They review several aspects of the hospital’s safety program until they have accumulated several “violations.” Then the inspector tells the manager or owner that the total of the fines for these violations equals over “ten thousand dollars.” However, the bogus inspector can see that the practice takes safety seriously and although he can’t totally dismiss the violations, he does have the authority to reduce the fines to three or four hundred dollars because of the “good intentions” of the practice. By this time, it is usually late in the evening, the real OSHA offices are closed and the manager or owner just wants it to be over.

The bogus inspector goes through an official-sounding speech about the rights of the business for an appeal and how to do that, but finishes with two vital elements of the scam: he asks for a check for the fines to attach to the paperwork and promises that a reinspection will take place in two weeks. If during the reinspection all of the violations are not corrected, then the original fine amount will have to be reinstated and there will be less chance for appeal. If the bogus inspector doesn’t get a check and a signed “Intent To Correct Violations” form today, then the practice must cease operations pending a review by the Area Supervisor within 10 days. Of course, the practice doesn’t want to shut down for this so the manager or owner writes the check — remember it has been a LONG Friday and we’re well into the evening at this point.

Two weeks later, the reinspection doesn’t happen and the check has been cashed. What they don’t know is that the fraudulent inspector changes bank accounts every month or two. He/she opens an account at a different bank using a false ID and the name of a business with the initials O.S.H.A., so when checks are deposited with a stamp that says “FOR DEPOSIT ONLY - OSHA” the bank nor the practice thinks twice about it. The practice thinks they got off light and doesn’t press the issue, so the scam is completed.

What you can do!

Both of these scams and a few others are possible because the victims believe the bogus inspector’s credentials and don’t think to verify them and they want the matter to be over so badly that they just keep a low profile when the threatened reinspection doesn’t happen.

The best defense against these scams is an informed staff and a healthy dose of skepticism. Make sure the entire staff knows that the owner or manager has the sole authority to admit an inspector. Unless the staff member has been given that authority to act on his or her behalf in an inspection situation, the inspection can not be completed in the owner’s absence.

• Ask for credentials from the inspector. If it’s in person, photocopy the credentials. If it’s over the phone, ask for an ID number. Look up the phone number for the nearest OSHA office in the phone book and call them to verify the identity of the persons. Legitimate OSHA Officers do not object to this because they want to catch these scammers, too! If the “inspector” refuses these requests, call the police as soon as possible and explain that you think you may have been the victim of a scam.
• Don’t confront the person with your suspicions; go along with their requests and take copious notes of details. Attempt to get a picture of the person pointing out the violation “for correction purposes.” If they refuse, don’t press the issue.
• If this happens at “odd times” you should verify the credentials of the person the very next business day with the regional OSHA office. Use the telephone number from the phone directory and not the one printed on the business card they left behind.
• NEVER write a check or give money to any person claiming to be an OSHA Officer or Inspector. A legitimate OSHA Officer will NEVER collect fines at the time of the inspection. If the phony inspector persists, excuse yourself to “get your checkbook” and call the police for assistance.
• Don’t sign a contract with any person or company for fear of failing an inspection. OSHA does not endorse nor recommend any specific company of service for compliance. In fact, if the veterinary practice has had outside assistance in preparing their safety program, it has little meaning to OSHA. They will still proceed with the investigation as necessary. Be wary of any company that claims to have “contacts” in OSHA.
• Also be wary of companies that claim to pay any OSHA fines that may be imposed if you sign a contract with them. Often, buried in the fine print, is disclaimers that will either void the guarantee if some obscure action by the practice is not implemented or will simply limit the amount of the guarantee to the amount paid for the product or service. No person or company can relieve the business of the responsibility to follow the rules. Click here for more information on selecting a consultant to help you with your safety program.

All of these warnings are not intended to imply that outside assistance is not worth consideration - on the contrary, many practices find it helpful to have someone come into the facility and actually do the work. In most cases, a reputable OSHA consulting company will assist in preparing responses to investigations as part of the original consultation contract without additional charge if it involves any part of the work they performed or should have performed. Just remember that the ultimate responsibility still lies with the business that operates the workplace.

If you have multiple businesses in the same facility or if you are considering an individual or company to help with your program, click here for important information on multi-employer workplaces.

The information on these pages is excerpted from
The Veterinary Safety & Health Digest,
Copyright 2000 Philip J. Seibert, Jr., CVT  All Rights Reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced for distribution without prior permission from the publisher.