I have done 4 recent shops for a well known mystery shopping company. 2 shops in spring and 2 in summer. I submitted an invoice and was promptly paid for the 2 May shops. A couple days ago, I realized that I had not been paid for the summer shops, I called and asked if I forgot to send an invoice. They said they had received my invoice and mentioned that I would be paid when the checks were sent out.

Later in the same day of the phone conversation, I was called back and told the company did not have enough information to pay me. They needed my SS#, my DL# and my policy number for my insurance company. I had already given my SS#. When I told the person on the phone that I had been paid for previous shops without having to give so much personal information, she replied that the company needed my detailed personal info before paying me. She said their lawyers advised them to do so.

My shop had nothing to do with driving or motor vehicles. What is your take on companies asking for so much personal information that has nothing to do with the shop? I am ready to blow off the shop money and remove myself from their roster. Your thoughts please? Thanks.

It would help to know which MSC. Some do require things like a DL and proof of insurance. No doubt it has something to do with potential liability. I honestly don't know if they would have any liability if an IC was driving illegally, but they are paying that lawyer a lot of money to keep them out of trouble

LisaSTL,

I respectfully ask why it matters which company it is? Should one company get a pass for asking for so much personal information? If it was Maritz or BestMark or Maritz or About Face or Maritz or Beyond Hello or Maritz, why should a company want to know my DL# and my car insurance policy info if my shop does not require taking a test drive or even driving to the location?

A pass? I was asking to find out if it was a company who regularly requires the information. As I said, I have had to provide the information in the past. As a small business owner it is actually not such an unusual request. What we are asked for is much less than what we might have to provide if we were operating other types of businesses.

Fair enough. Perhaps I would be more inclined to reveal more about myself if the money were a more significant amount. I have yet to work for a company that has asked for so much information in any type of business.

When considering starting another small business I was going to be required to have proof of car insurance and a rather large liability policy for one specific client. In the beginning I was just going to be a sole proprietor with no employees. IMO it was excessive, but on the other hand we sometimes have to do what our clients request.

I decide how much is excessive or reasonable based on how much work is available from a company. While I have been fine with providing a DL and proof of insurance for some companies, I have drawn the line about other requirements when they were only for one company and a company which provided a minimal amount of income at that.

I dunno, maybe it's just me, but it doesn't seem like a big deal. I don't care if they want that information. It takes me just 5 minutes to scan and upload it and then I'm on their database if that big job ever comes around through them. I've been asked for DL from a few companies and it didn't bother me at all. Most companies are going to want SS# and they are required to have it in case you earn over $600 in a year.

Why would you not name the MSC that asked you for information that you believe is more than you think you should be asked to provide? That way you could learn whether all contractors were asked for the same info.

I also don't get the comment about "why should a company get a pass to ask for extra information." Some companies ask for more and some ask for less. A company can ask for whatever information they want. Anyone who doesn't wish to provide it may simply choose not to work for that company.

AustinMom

I am confident that all shoppers are asked the same info by this company. My question is a general one. I am asking what amount of information shoppers are comfortable sharing with companies. I did not name the MSC because it is not relevant to the question asking shoppers for their opinions about what they disclose.

We agree that some companies ask for more and some ask for less. I am interested in learning from other shoppers if they find certain questions to be deterrents from working for some companies.

Then it is a valid question. I have an answer that is related although not specifically an answer to your question. I very much enjoyed working for a company when they paid by check. When the company suddenly changed its pay method and began to use PayQuicker as their only payment method, it required that all shoppers open PayQuicker accounts in order to be paid. I determined that PayQuicker asked for more personal information than I was willing to provide, and, for that reason, I was unwilling to open an account. This is a little different than your question, because the information requirement is not made by the MSC but rather by their payment entity. But, the result is the same. Because I have to date (and at some point I may change my mind) been unwilling to provide that personal information, I do not choose to perform shops for that company.

You are missing one of the points of the forum. We share information so others know what to expect. There will probably be other shoppers who do not want to share the information and they won't know it is expected until after they have taken the time to register. Why wouldn't you want to save them the time?

I don't like sharing my SSN, but I understand if I want to work I don't have a choice. My DL# and insurance? Not a problem. I'm from Florida, where just about everything is public record anyway so it doesn't bother me to share my DL#. It's not commonly used in ID theft anyway. Insurance? Why not? What nefarious plan could someone have with that? If I hire a contractor to do work for me, I want their business license number and insurance information, so if I want to consider myself a professional, and the only thing I have is a DL# and auto insurance, sure - they can have it.

And then they wanted my measurements and my bra size....

I've been drug-tested. I don't think any of the above are unreasonable. Why are you upset that they are dotting their i's and crossing their t's?

I have a babysitter who I pay as an IC, and I requested all of that information from her. She is my nighttime babysitter, not my fulltime, so she doesn't drive anywhere with my kids, but... should an emergency happen... I want to know that she is insured and legally able to drive.

Technically you are transporting their data and POV in your vehicle with them... there are probably some weird corporate rules they have to follow.

BBird0701

I am not upset about it. I just will likely not shop for a company that demands more personal information after they have paid me for previous shops and after they have likely used the data I provided from the shops where they are withholding payment.

I completely get wanting to know information about the person taking care of your young child. I do not understand wanting to know personal information about the person making far less than your babysitter who may be carrying mental notes or information in a smart phone about an interaction in a retail store.

"Weird corporate rules…" is a great way to put it.

LJ

We agree that it's unlikely that they would have a nefarious plan for my insurance information. At the same time, I don't see a reason for them to want to have it and the associate was unable to offer a reason beyond saying their lawyers wanted them to have it.

I appreciate the replies of all who don't think it's a big deal and perhaps I am just not a good fit for the company.

LisaSTL

I appreciate the points of the forum. The point of my post was not to evaluate a certain company. I intended to discuss a policy and ask how shoppers feel about sharing personal information. If this thread should be in a different category, please advise the administrators of your suggestion. Enjoy your day and happy shopping to you

You don't know why they need it. When the person on the phone told you that the lawyers advised them to get that information, did you question the reason then?

Rather than railing against big corporate for requiring information in order to pay you, why not ask them? It could be a perfectly acceptable and reasonable explanation, something you'd never think of because we don't know all that goes on behind closed doors at the MSCs that keeps them in business and on the right side of the law.

I am the exact opposite of you, I guess. The more information they need of me, the more I become reassured that they are above-board and professional to the nth degree. We have rules we have to follow to get paid, they have rules they have to follow to get paid.

BBird's babysitter is making more than me? Can I apply for that job?

BBird0701

All great points. Thank you. The person on the phone was unable to provide a reason why the lawyers needed the information.

I appreciate your point about the company appearing to be more respectable because they are running their business so tightly according to rules. Perhaps if they had asked for my information before the first two shops they paid me for as well as before the more recent shops they are not paying me for, I would see them as being fully professional and above-board.

I do appreciate hearing the opinions of shoppers who do not think they are out of line & I appreciate you saying as much. Thank you.

My kids are brats, so I pay her well, but no, she doesn't make more than she could MSing.

I, of course, don't tell her that.

Lisa, I'll need a DL#, SSN, proof of insurance, drug test, IC agreement, and a Release of Liability form signed and notarized. If my kids drive you crazy or you require therapy because of them, that's on your own dime.

I'm good with all of the above, but do expect you to cover my Xanax prescription

FrugalCat Wrote:
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> And then they wanted my measurements and my bra
> size....

Re. requiring personal information - I've got no problem with any of it.
Re. naming the MSC - Would be good to share so that others can avoid. Perhaps others would provide examples of other MSCs doing similarly and you could avoid them.
Re. BBird0701's kids being brats - Acorns and oak trees?
Re. SunnyDays' pairing of emoticons in reference to FrugalCat's quote - Ha!

For me, the real concern is not an MSC asking for any particular information, it's demanding it AFTER MysteryMojo has already completed the work. I call foul on the MSC for holding payment hostage for information MM never agreed to supply.

I must admit, I've never quite lost my brattiness. :p

elcarev68 Wrote:
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> Re. BBird0701's kids being brats - Acorns and oak
> trees?

Y'know, there's these jokes about bra size, but I had to actually provide that for a shop once. I was doing a specialty bra store and they wanted to know if I wore a size that isn't usually carried in department stores, but would be carried by this retailer.

I had no problem providing my bra size. For that matter, the size I wear and what it usually costs, I was happy to do the shop for 50% reimbursement! The information you have to provide all depends on the MSC and the client. If you don't like it, don't take those shops.

The thing that jumped out at me form the original post is that the information was requested in a phone call. Did you actually confirm that the person asking your for your SSN and other information over the phone works for an MSC you are registered with, and not a scammer?

That is what would have bothered me -- them call me and asking for information, especially if they asked you for SSN and you had already given it to them.

A few thoughts,

In my experience, it is rare, very rare, for a company to ask for a DL and driver's license information. I have provided a photocopy of the former once or twice to companies but not the latter. What I have seen more often are questions asking if I have a driver's license and auto insurance. Those questions I routinely answered without providing specific information.

I have difficulty understanding why a company that uses independent contractors would need that information unless their lawyers fear that for that company we really aren't independent contractors. I won't go into the discussion about what makes someone an employee or independent contractor. There is plenty of discussion of that on the forum or you can look at the IRS site for the factors. What I will say is the industry norm is not to require that information because we are not employees. If the specific job the OP cites is not the norm, maybe that is an exception.

LisaSTL states, "When considering starting another small business I was going to be required to have proof of car insurance and a rather large liability policy for one specific client. In the beginning I was just going to be a sole proprietor with no employees. IMO it was excessive, but on the other hand we sometimes have to do what our clients request." I ask what about that job made it necessary? A plumber needs insurance in case they screw up doing their job, the homeowner can fix the damages using money from the insurance. What can mystery shoppers screw up that auto insurance can fix?

What would I do? I would be very reluctant to give that information. It is a big deal to give out personal information to those that don't need it. Then it gets passed around to others who also don't need it.

Payment - I think I would have responded something like - What did your lawyers say about paying a shopper for work completed according to the contract? How would they respond to a lawsuit? The correct answer would be the shopper needs to get paid for work completed according to the contract. Additional information can be collected from shoppers before any future shops.

Mystery Mojo - If you want to get more from the forum members you should name the company and perhaps even the type of shop (without also naming the client). There are probably lots of other shoppers who work for that company and some who did that shop. Only if you share can others offer their experiences.

Mystery Mojo - payment, or the lack thereof is a really big deal with many of us. The forum is the only place shoppers can share information about companies that don't pay. If you don't know about Freeman, I suggest you read the threads on that company. Many of us want to know about any non-paying company so that we can avoid them before they go into bankruptcy or worse. Please share the company name and any followup information about your situation.

Just to answer the one small part about liability, etc, it was nothing to do with mystery shopping and I would have been working on their properties.

just tell them you dont drive and use public transportation.