Shortcut to hire maids leads to cash loss

UAE residents trying to recruit Asian housemaids through agents located outside the country are warned against a new fraud. Two Indian families in the UAE said they have been duped by one dubious agent.

The shortage of Indian housemaids in the UAE following strict rules by the Indian Government has resulted in a scam where companies and individuals claim to be operating from outside the UAE and offer housemaids in the UAE for much less salary and expenses.

There is a ban on sending Indian housemaids below 30 years of age to foreign countries as domestic servants and a minimum bank guarantee of $2,500 (Dh9,182) is now mandatory, rules which the fraudsters are exploiting to make a quick buck.

Venkat Iyer, an employee of Al Nabooda Contracting Company has lost Dh2,000, which he paid an agent in India through wire transfer for hiring a maid in the UAE.

He said: "It is very difficult to get a housemaid in the UAE. My wife, while surfing the internet, found an agent and contacted him through e-mail.

He called back and promised to send a housemaid in Dubai after receiving a service charge of Dh3,000.

"We sent Dh2,000 to the agent in India and agreed to make the remaining payment after the agent's Dubai representative supplied us the housemaid. We lost the money, paid in April, and did not get any maid."

Agents are asking for booking fees anywhere between Dh3,000 and Dh6,000. Some companies place advertisements on internet offering Indian housemaids for Dh700 to Dh800 per month – much less than the minimum housemaid fees in the UAE and a fee of Dh3,000 in advance for recruiting Indian housemaids.

There are several postings classified ad websites offering services of live-in housemaids for a fee, but most of them turn out to be fraudulent operations.

Another Indian family too has been cheated in this fashion. Such families have advised people against sending money in advance for housemaid recruitment, but the they did not file any police complaint.

Advertisements by such dubious companies offer Indian, Sri Lankan, Filipina or Indonesian maids for a booking charge of Dh2,500 for a full-time maid and Dh1,500 for a part-time maid at a salary of Dh750.

Once the money is sent, the agents do not respond to phone calls or e-mails. Western Union has been alerting consumers about various types of frauds in which customers are advised to send money through the company to unknown people.

"The Western Union Money Transfer service is a great way to send money to people you know and trust. If you need to send money to someone you don't know; you may be putting yourself at risk for fraud," a recent fraud alert said. "Never send money to a stranger using a money transfer service. The agency has listed a number of scams and said it never recommends customers to send money to somebody you don't know or whose identity cannot be verified.

Deepak Chabbaria, Chairman, Employment Promotion Council of Indian Personnel, an association of 1,000 Indian recruitment agents, said: "There is a shortage of Indian housemaids in the UAE and other GCC countries because the Indian Government has put a minimum bank guarantee of $2,500 and a minimum salary requirement.

"Some Indian housemaids below 30 years are entering the GCC countries through Sri Lanka and illegally from Thiruvananthapuram, Lucknow and Goa. UAE residents who are recruiting housemaids should do it through registered recruitment agents and check their registration number. Don't pay money in advance for any such services," he said.

An internet posting by one such dubious company said: "We are Indian-based housemaid providers for the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada. Now we have started [service] for Dubai. Our candidates' salary is Dh750 and our service charge for one year is Dh3,000. If you want us to provide a house maid visa we charge Dh3,850 for two years visa."

Fraudsters posing as officials of such companies claim that they are in the process of setting up an office and current operations are directed from India. The UAE customers are then advised to send the service charge and visa fees by Western Union to a particular account in India.

"We can provide housemaid within 24 hours of booking and we don't give details of the maid before booking. After booking, we arrange interview in your place at your convenient time. And all bookings are to be made in our Indian address only." The advertiser also promises two years housemaid visa for Dh6,500 and maids from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharastra and even Gujarat are available."

A UAE resident, who gave his first name as Sayed, said: "I was trying to recruit a housemaid and saw this advertisement. When I responded to it by e-mail, one guy called me from India and promised to send a housemaid. He asked me to send Dh3,500 by Western Union in advance and from the way he responded, I realised that something is fishy. I did not send any money because I realised that it is a fraud. People need to be aware of the fraud and don't sent any money in advance through Western Union," he said.

The advertiser also offered Indian cooks, who can cook Arab food, at a booking fee of Dh3000 for full time cook. When Emirates Business tried to contact the Indian mobile number, it was switched off.

The guidelines

The Government of Dubai, on its dubai.ae website, recommends sponsors keep the following in mind when recruiting maids from overseas:

- Do keep in mind that each country has its own regulations regarding minimum salary, age and rights and you will have to check with the respective consulate or embassy for these details.

- A maid from India or Philippines must be older than 30, but not over 60 years of age.

- Even recommended minimum salaries differ, with Indian maids to be paid from Dh1,100 onwards (see update), as advised by the Indian Embassy, while new regulations from the Philippines say the minimum salary should be Dh1,400.

- As per the Sri Lankan embassy, the minimum salary for Sri Lankan maids is Dh825. The minimum salary for Indonesian maids is Dh800 and from Bangladesh, it is Dh750.

- Please note that these are minimum recommendations from governments, but there's nothing stopping you from paying more than the minimum wage.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.