BBB Wisconsin and Wisconsin DFI Warn Businesses about Misleading Solicitations

Milwaukee, Wis. – Today, Better Business Bureau Serving Wisconsin (BBB) and the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) are warning businesses about solicitations designed to look like invoices arriving through postal mail and being reported to both BBB and DFI from “WI Certificate Service.”

The solicitation is designed to look like it is from the Secretary of State and requests payment of $72.50 for a “Certificate of Status. The solicitation is not being sent by DFI, and the requested payment amount far exceeds the $10 fee DFI charges to obtain an official certificate of status online. The solicitation is not a valid invoice and businesses are advised not to pay it.

Buried within a paragraph on the mailing is the following sentence which could easily be missed, “WI Certificate is not affiliated with any government or state agency and this is a solicitation for your business.” The address used by “WI Certificate Service” is actually a Madison UPS store and the toll-free phone number on the mailing is not a working number, according to BBB research.

BBB’s current report on “WI Certificate Service” which includes an “alert” can be found here.

“These types of solicitations can mislead consumers into overpaying for documents that businesses can obtain from DFI directly,” said DFI Secretary Kathy Blumenfeld. “Carefully review all notices received and contact DFI with questions or to purchase an official certificate of status.”

Misleading solicitations that are designed to look like invoices may contain a due date and look similar to a government form. They may even contain a logo or an entity’s ID number and business information, which can be obtained from public records.

“Businesses need to closely examine all mailings or emails that appear to be a bill,” said Jim Temmer, BBB Serving Wisconsin CEO/president. “BBB is grateful to the businesses who reported this so quickly to our office, so that we in turn could promptly get the word out publicly.”

BBB and DFI remind businesses to carefully review all solicitations, notices, and websites that offer various business filings, registrations and copy and certification services at prices about the required fees. In addition, check all businesses for free with the Better Business Bureau at bbb.org. Report scams and fraud to BBB Scam Tracker.

To avoid falling victim to a misleading solicitation, BBB recommends businesses:

• Have a solid internal control process for paying invoices. Carefully check invoices against an improved vendor list prior to processing them for payment.
• Train employees to follow internal processes and never pay invoices before vetting them and getting authorization to pay.
• Question any invoice that does not look familiar and does not match an approved vendor list.

Contact DFI with questions regarding business filings, registration, certification or other services via email at dficorporations@dfi.wisconsin.gov or call (608) 261-7577.

For more information or further inquiries, contact the Wisconsin BBB at www.bbb.org/wisconsin, 414-847-6000 or 1-800-273-1002. Consumers also can find more information about how to protect themselves from scams by following the Wisconsin BBB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. For an online version of the story click here.

ABOUT BBB: For more than 100 years, the Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2020, people turned to BBB more than 220 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 6.2 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at BBB.org. There are local, independent BBBs across the United States, Canada and Mexico, including BBB Serving Wisconsin which was founded in 1939 and serves the state of Wisconsin.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.