For things like concerts and sporting events, scalping is inevitable. But in Broward and Miami-Dade counties in Florida, some people are taking the concept of scalping to new lows.
According to the Miami-Dade Tax Collector's office, a "network" of scalpers are hoarding hundreds of otherwise free DMV appointments and attempting to flip them for a profit. They use fictitious names to schedule appointments at driving schools throughout Broward and Miami-Dade County and sell them for anywhere between $25 and $250, according to the Miami Herald.
Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez released a statement, saying:
"We know who they are and how they operate. We will not accept any appointment obtained through system abuse. Our office is committed to ensuring that all residents have fair and equal access to services without interference from those seeking to exploit the system."
More than 200 appointments were booked by suspected scalpers at the county’s newly opened downtown Miami location alone. The scalpers used bots and fake accounts to secure as many appointments as possible, all before the general public had a chance to sign up. Many of those bogus appointments were even registered under the same phone number.
For now, scalping DMV appointments isn’t illegal under Florida state law. Fernandez says he will urge the state to make changes to prevent this type of scalping moving forward. A county commissioner recently introduced legislation that would make selling DMV appointments a civil offense with up to a $500 fine.
"We believe this type of activity has been happening for a long time at other DMV state-run locations," he told the Miami Herald. "We are taking action to make this illegal and enforce the law to stop the fraud."
Source: Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office via Miami Herald
