For drivers · 6 min read · Updated November 2026

How to check if a car advertising company is real

Run six checks before you share anything: find the company yourself, read the app listing and BBB profile, match the FTC alert, confirm pay, and refuse any request for money.

Get the Lunar app → Free to join, up to $500 a month.

To check whether a car advertising company is real, run six checks before you share anything: confirm a named business with a working website you found yourself, look for the company's own driver page and app listing, see what its BBB profile and reviews say, search the FTC and Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre warnings for the offer you received, ask exactly how and when you are paid, and refuse anything that asks you to pay or forward money. A real program passes all six in about ten minutes. Lunar (lunarcar.me) is free for drivers to join and pays monthly through Stripe, and you should hold it to the same list.

Check 1: can you find the company yourself?

Start from a search, not from the message you received. A real company has a named business, a website you can reach by typing its address, and a driver page that explains the requirements. Compare that page with what the person contacting you said. The big names publish their terms: Carvertise's driver page, checked on 2 November 2026, lists a car 2015 or newer, no significant body damage and an app installed with tracking on; Firefly's driver page, checked the same day, says its rooftop displays are for rideshare, delivery, taxi and courier drivers. If an offer promises pay and a brand but the company cannot be found, or its site only has a sign-up form, stop there.

Be careful in the other direction too. Some companies that used to recruit drivers are gone. When we checked on 2 November 2026, the Nickelytics site redirected to an advertiser-only page, the StickerRide domain redirected to an unrelated blog and the Mobilads domain was for sale. A name you remember from an old article is not proof the company still exists.

Check 2: is there a real app listing and driver page?

Most legitimate programs run through an app or a sign-up flow you can inspect before you commit. Open the App Store or Google Play listing yourself and read the description, the requirements and the recent reviews. The listing should match the company's website. Wrapify's iOS listing, for example, said on 2 November 2026 that it is now part of Firefly, which is a reminder to read the listing and not assume. A program that only ever communicates by text message, Instagram direct message or a personal email address has nothing for you to verify.

Check 3: what do the BBB profile and reviews say?

Search the company name on bbb.org and read the profile, including the rating, whether the business is accredited and how complaints were answered. The BBB is one signal, not a verdict, so read the complaint text and not just the letter grade. Stickr is an example of why it helps: when we checked on 2 November 2026, the Stickr site was down and the BBB listed it with an F and no accreditation, and FinanceBuzz reported in July 2025 that it asked for $19 up front. Reviews on app stores and forums add more, but treat a page of identical five-star reviews, or no reviews at all, as a warning.

Check 4: does the offer match a known scam?

The Federal Trade Commission's consumer alert from March 2024, How to avoid getting wrapped up in a car wrap scam, describes the pattern: an offer of $600 to $700 a week to wrap your car, a check in the mail, and an instruction to pay an "installer" from it. The check is fake, and the money you send is real. In Canada, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (antifraudcentre.ca) is the place to look up the same kind of offer and to report one. If your offer matches, you can read how the check scam works step by step in this walkthrough.

Check 5: how and when are you paid?

Ask for the answer in writing before you do anything. Who pays, how often and by what method, and what has to be true before the first payment? Real programs pay after the work is verified, on a schedule, through a traceable processor. Lunar drivers can earn up to $500 a month, paid monthly through Stripe; that is an estimate and not a guarantee, and a payout depends on the matches available and on the verified driving. Lunar's team matches drivers offer by offer, and each offer is yours to accept or decline for free. Be wary of any program that promises a fixed weekly figure, pays before anything is installed or can only be paid by check, gift card or wire. You can see how payouts work on the payouts page.

Check 6: does it ask you to pay?

This is the check that settles most cases. A real advertising company earns its money from businesses that want to advertise, so it has no reason to take money from a driver. A registration fee, a deposit, shipping for a kit, or a request to forward part of a check is a scam sign on its own, whatever else about the offer looks real. Our guide to car advertising companies that ask for money up front lists the usual wordings.

A short checklist you can screenshot

• I found the company's website and driver page myself, not through the message.
• The app listing and the website describe the same program and the same requirements.
• I read the BBB profile and the complaints, and I read some independent reviews.
• The offer does not match the FTC or Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre warnings.
• I know who pays, how often, by what method and after what step.
• Nobody has asked me for money, a deposit, a fee, or to forward part of a check.

How does Lunar answer these checks?

Lunar is a marketplace where local businesses pay for small circle stickers on everyday drivers' cars. Drivers pay nothing to join and are never asked for money. The driver installs the sticker from the instructions that ship with it and sends a placement photo that a person reviews, and a weekly check (a photo of every live sticker plus an odometer reading) confirms the car is on the road. Our how it works page covers the steps. If a company cannot explain its own process as plainly as that, keep looking.

What should you do if you already replied?

Stop replying, do not deposit any check, and if you already sent money contact your bank right away. Report the offer to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov in the US or to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre in Canada. Reporting helps other drivers, and a quick call to your bank can sometimes stop a transfer that has not yet completed.