Safety for independent providers: screening, deposits and check-ins

Independent work is safer than it was, in the states that have decriminalised it, because you can screen openly, work with others and go to the police. But the law is the floor, not the ceiling. The habits in this guide are what experienced independents actually do, booking after booking, so that nothing is left to luck. None of them is complicated. All of them only work if you never make an exception.

This guide is about personal safety. For the money and legal side, see our guides on tax and ABNs and the law in your state.

The principle: screen every booking, the same way

Screening is not about being suspicious of everyone. It is about having one routine that every client goes through, so that the rare dangerous one has nowhere to hide and the good ones feel they are dealing with a professional. The routine should be:

• Written down, so you follow it when you are tired or the money is tempting.
• Applied to everyone, including regulars' referrals, including the charming ones.
• Stated on your profile, so clients know what to expect and the ones who will not comply screen themselves out.

Step one: enquiries in writing

Take first contact by message, not by phone. A written enquiry gives you time to think, a record of what was said, and a sample of the person's manner. Things to notice in the first message:

• Did they read the profile? An enquiry that asks for your rate, your location and what you offer, all of which are on the page, is a small warning.
• Is the tone respectful? Someone who opens with demands or explicit language rarely improves in person.
• Are they trying to move you to another app immediately? Insisting on WhatsApp, Telegram or Snapchat before anything is agreed is a common step in scams and in attempts to get free photos.

Unknown numbers calling go to voicemail. Anyone genuine will message.

Step two: get something verifiable

Ask every new client for one piece of information you can check. Independents use different things, and you can offer a choice:

• A reference from another worker they have seen, which you then confirm directly with her.
• A work email or LinkedIn, which ties the person to a real job and a real name.
• A photo of ID with the document number covered, matching the name they gave you.
• A short video call, for clients who will not provide the above.

Keep what they send only as long as you need it, and say so; many clients worry about their privacy as much as you do about yours. A client who refuses every option has told you he values his anonymity more than your safety, and that is a reason to decline.

Step three: confirm the booking in writing

Before any deposit, send one message that states the date, time, length, location (incall at your place, or the outcall address), the rate and the deposit, and ask them to confirm. This does two things: it removes every later "I thought you said", and it gives you a record you could show someone if you ever needed to.

Step four: take a deposit

A deposit is the single most effective filter an independent has. It confirms that the person is real, that they can pay, and that they are willing to commit. Time-wasters, fantasists and most scammers will not pay one.

A workable deposit policy:

• An amount that matters but does not deter: often 20 to 30% of the booking, or a flat figure for shorter bookings.
• Paid by a method that does not expose your legal name: a business account under your ABN, a payment platform that shows a business name, or a prepaid card service. Avoid any method that shows your personal name or address on their statement.
• Non-refundable for no-shows and late cancellations, refundable or transferable if you cancel. Stated on your profile.
• Never "refunded" by a method different from the one it was paid in. That is the basis of a scam (see below).

Step five: the check-in buddy

Every booking, someone should know where you are, who you are with and when you will be done. This is the routine that saves lives, and it needs to be a routine, not a favour.

• Choose one person (a friend, a partner, another worker) and agree the system with them once.
• Before each booking, send them: the client's name and number, the address, the start time and the expected finish time.
• Agree a check-in time a few minutes after the booking should end, and a code word that means "come now" or "call the police" if you ever need to say it in front of someone.
• If you miss the check-in, they call you; if you do not answer, they call again; if you still do not answer, they call the police with the address.

If you do not have a person, several worker-run organisations and apps provide buddy services; your state's peer organisation will know what is current. Working with a colleague, where the law allows it, is the oldest version of the same idea.

Incalls: your space, your rules

Working from your own premises gives you control of the environment. Set it up so that control is real:

• The client does not know your address until the deposit is paid, and then only on the day, as late as is practical.
• A separate work space if you can manage it: a second room, a serviced apartment, or a hotel. Your home address is the one thing you can never take back.
• Your phone charged and in reach, and a second phone or a smart speaker that can call someone by voice.
• Valuables and anything with your legal name out of sight: mail, prescriptions, ID, photos of family.
• An exit you control: you let them in, you are nearer the door, and the door is not deadlocked from the inside.

Outcalls: their space, more caution

Outcalls pay more because they carry more risk. Add these to the routine:

• The full address and a room number, confirmed in writing, checked on a map, and sent to your buddy before you leave.
• Hotels over private homes for first bookings. A hotel has staff, cameras and other people within earshot.
• Arrive and leave by a method you control: your own car or a rideshare you booked, never a lift from the client.
• A quick look around on arrival: who else is there, where the exits are, whether the room matches what was described. If anything is off, you can leave. You do not owe an explanation.
• Payment of the balance on arrival, before anything else. Count it. Clients who are paying by transfer should have done so before you set out.

The scams that target new independents

Most of these arrive in the first message, and all of them rely on you being new. Once you know the shape, you will see them coming.

The common thread: money moving in the wrong direction, or details changing after you have committed. If either happens, stop.

When something goes wrong

• Leave first, think later. Your deposit, your fee and your dignity can all be recovered. Get out, get somewhere public, call your buddy.
• Write down what happened as soon as you can: time, place, name, number, what was said. Memory fades within hours.
• Report it. In NSW, Victoria, Queensland and the NT, a crime against a sex worker is a crime, and police are trained to treat it that way; your peer organisation can help you make the report and will come with you if you want. Several organisations also run confidential "ugly mugs" alerts that warn other workers about a dangerous client; sharing a description there protects the next person.
• Report it to the platform. If the client found you through LuXeel, use the report link on the profile or contact us; we act on reports, and a person reads every one.

The short version

1. Enquiries in writing; calls to voicemail.
2. One verifiable thing from every new client.
3. Booking details confirmed in writing.
4. A deposit, paid in a way that hides your legal name, non-refundable for no-shows.
5. A check-in buddy who has the details before every booking.
6. Incall: your space, your exit, nothing identifying in sight. Outcall: hotel first, your own transport, balance paid on arrival.
7. Money moving the wrong way or details changing late: stop.

People to talk to

The organisations below are run by sex workers for sex workers. They are confidential, free and used to every situation in this guide:

• Scarlet Alliance (national), SWOP NSW, Vixen (Vic), Respect Inc (Qld), SIN (SA), Magenta (WA), and SWOP ACT, SWOP NT and the lutruwita Sex Worker Project via Scarlet Alliance.
• In an emergency anywhere in Australia, call 000.