Fraudsters Who Promise Services or Payments Without Intending to Deliver

Among the many forms of fraud used to harm others and enrich oneself, contractual or inducement fraud (Einlassungsbetrug) is one of the most common. There are two very simple reasons for this:

 

1. Inducement fraud can be committed with little effort.
2. Prosecution is considerably hampered by the frequent lack of objective evidence.

 

A prerequisite for classifying an act as fraud is always a deliberate intent to cause harm. In inducement fraud one party wilfully fails to fulfil obligations arising from a contractual relationship — that is, they are either unable or unwilling to perform the obligation.

Further Definition and Examples of “Inducement Fraud” | Difficult Legal Assessment

A typical example would be concluding a vehicle leasing contract in which the lessee takes possession of the vehicle but subsequently fails to pay the instalments through no fault of the lessor, even though the lessee either had the means to pay or from the outset lacked the necessary funds. Demonstrating afterwards that a person did not merely fail to meet an obligation but did so intentionally and fraudulently is usually difficult. After all, one can only read a person’s face, as the saying goes.

 

Accordingly, many prosecutors and judges are reluctant to deal with this subject, since they must make a subjective assessment of the offender’s intentions — and that is an area in which one can easily get burned. It is often argued that the matter is purely civil-law in nature. In many quarters it is believed that without the debtor’s confession a deceptive intent — and therefore fraud — cannot be proven. From experience, our corporate detectives in Dortmund know that this is an overly simplistic view, because sufficient evidence is often present and perseverance in legal proceedings can pay off.

 

For example: did the cabinetmaker really intend to manufacture the already-deposited writing desk, or did he pocket the advance even though he knew he would never produce the furniture because his workshop was already on the verge of insolvency at the time the order was placed? To clarify such cases, where a distinction must be drawn between mere non-performance of a contract and criminal inducement fraud, Kurtz Investigations Dortmund is at your disposal. The evidence obtained by our professional enquiries can simplify the often difficult court proceedings so that victims obtain justice: +49 231 8401 0065.

Fraud Using Shell Companies

Where non-performance of contracts is organised and planned, shell companies — often mere letterbox firms created for that purpose — are frequently involved. Typical “business activities” of these outfits include:

 

• Luring customers, never providing the promised service or delivery, and running the company into insolvency.
• Engaging third-party companies to provide services which satisfy customers, but the shell firm never pays the third party.
• Attracting investors whose funds are transferred to foreign bank accounts and never used for production or the alleged services of the firm.

 

All three scenarios typically end with an insolvency filing, the dissolution of the shell company, or its takeover by complicit liquidators. The financial proceeds are concealed and excluded from the insolvency estate by tricks such as sham gifts or opaque transfers. Then begins the search for the responsible individuals, who disappear, disclaim responsibility, or cannot be found because they acted under false names. Our corporate detectives’ work is therefore also important for enforcing claims against inducement fraudsters.

Even Detective Agencies Suffer from Inducement Fraud

Although one might assume that the risk of being caught would deter offenders, even an investigative service such as the Kurtz detective operation is not immune to inducement fraud. The pattern can be applied to other service providers: a client commissions, for example, an observation. At the time of commissioning the client already knows they will be unable to pay the agreed fee in full. Other inducement fraudsters are financially able to pay but decide at the moment of commissioning that they will not settle the invoice irrespective of the quality of the service. This results in debtor searches, asset enquiries and lengthy, time-consuming procedures for us as well.

 

On the other hand, this means that, beyond client commissions, we constantly deal with issues such as insolvency fraud, tactics to conceal assets, transfers of valuable property, and so on. Our Dortmund detectives are correspondingly experienced in this field and resolute in their pursuit of bringing such fraudsters to justice.

What Do Our Corporate Investigators Do in Cases of Inducement Fraud?

There are two main areas of detective activity in inducement fraud: obtaining court-admissible proof of the offence and searching for absconding fraudsters.

Proving Inducement Fraud

First, the perpetrator’s criminal and financial background is examined to answer questions such as:

 

• Has the person committed similar offences in the past?
• Was the person insolvent at the time the contract was concluded?

Debtor Search | Perpetrator Search

When locating a person, an initial investigative step may be to check whether the debtor’s name actually exists or whether an alias was used. To do this, we activate our contacts at the relevant authorities. If the name proves false, other data such as bank account information, mailbox numbers, email addresses etc. are examined. Once the debtor’s identity is established, the aim is usually to determine a serviceable address or a regular place of residence.

 

On-site enquiries are often necessary, during which our private detectives in Dortmund check private and business addresses to confirm presence or absence of the person sought or to gather new leads — commonly using a cover story. Surveillance at known haunts of the offender is also frequently conducted to follow the fraudster from there to their current residence.

Engaging Kurtz Detective Agency Dortmund

If you have been defrauded by an inducement fraudster and wish to pursue civil and/or criminal action, do not hesitate to contact our Dortmund private detective agency for a free consultation. We guarantee professionalism, discretion and results-orientation, and we are usually able to deploy the necessary operatives at short notice.

 

You can reach us during business hours (Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 20:00) via our contact form, by e-mail at kontakt@kurtz-detektei-dortmund.de, or by telephone at +49 231 8401 0065.

Author: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

 

Kurtz Detective Agency Dortmund

Meißener Straße 62

44139 Dortmund

Tel.: +49 231 8401 0065

E-Mail: kontakt@kurtz-detektei-dortmund.de

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