Escort Deposit- Should You Pay It?

Deposits are a pretty standard procedure for booking sex workers. You may be (understandably) cautious about handing money to someone over the internet- however this guide will help you understand why deposits are necessary, how to safely pay one and also, how to avoid getting scammed.

Why Escorts Require Deposits?

Many escorts require a deposit as a means of commitment to a booking. In case a client cancels, the money from the deposit will cover booking fees such as the incall location (many girls hire a hotel or incall space) and taxi fares. If an escort is reserving a time for a client who in non-committal, it also means she may lose money from another client who could have reserved that time instead.

A deposit is like a handshake of trust between a client and a provider. In many cases, clients have greater ability to do their research about a particular escort to gain trust that she is reputable. This can be done through her social media as well as various online forums. However, we have very limited information about a client, therefore the deposit serves as the handshake from the client for us to be able to trust them.

When touring interstate, the expenses invested are more significant and deposits become even more crucial. Often an escort can be paying thousands of dollars in flights, hotels, taxis etc and if their clients are not committed, then they would easily be at a loss.

How To Pay a Deposit

There are a few different methods for paying an escort a deposit. Firstly, there is bank transfer (or Pay ID, Osko). This is the most convenient method, but the downside is that your full name may appear on their statement, depending on how you set your account up with your bank. You also don’t know how their bank account is going to appear on your statement as well, so if you’re concerned about discretion, then this may not be ideal.

An alternative is to use an app called Beemit (which I believe the original intended use was actually for splitting house expenses). This allows you to create a username where you can send money anonymously and discreetly. Setting up an account is fairly straight forward- all you need is a debit card. The money is transferred instantly, which is great for last minute bookings.

The other common method for paying a deposit is an ATM deposit. This method provides a bit more effort, as you need to physically visit the ATM of the bank that the escort is with. However, it is also very discrete as there is no electronic record of paying any money at all (even Beemit technically has a record- it’s just anonymous). You then do a cash deposit to their account by following the prompts on the screen for a cardless deposit (instructions here).

Red Flags

While many escorts do ask for deposits with good intentions, there are times where you need to be careful. I wrote a blog about other escorting scams here. Here are a couple of red flags to look out for:

The deposit is a significant portion of the fee. Reputation is vital in the adult industry. Most reputable escorts won’t lose this over a small deposit of $100-$200 and this amount should be enough to compensate in case of a cancellation. If an escort is asking for a deposit of 50% of the total booking fee or more then this should start raising alarm bells. I have actually had clients of mine unfortunately pay the entire booking fee to an escort as a deposit before realising they had been scammed. There are genuine instances where a reputable escort may ask for a 50% deposit such as FMTY (fly me to you) or while touring, due of the higher investment in flights and hotels that need to be covered up front. In this case, it’s best just to check out her socials or the reviews forums to gauge whether they are genuine or not.

New Profiles Scamming escort profiles generally get reported and taken down quite soon after appearing. Therefore, I would be wary of booking escorts whose profiles have just popped up. Obviously, that means it can be hard for new escorts who are honest to gain clients but building a reputation is just the nature of the industry.

The Offer is Too Good Ah, the old cliche- ‘if the offer is too good to be true, then it probably is’. Just like buying any sort of product or service online, do a bit of research and determine whether their rate seems in line with others. I also previously written a guide about escort prices. Generally their physical appearance, the type of establishment they work from and their service list will determine their price, but there can be a multitude of factors.

Many fake profile use ‘super hot’ photos to bait clients into handing over money. Check to see if they have a selfie gallery or social media to verify if the photos are actually of a real person. Also many escorting sites provide verification (usually showing profiles with a verification banner) and while these aren’t always 100% accurate, they at least offer some guidance.