Scams and other fraudulent crimes are a fact of life all year round, but some are more common at this time. Here is a selection of scams to avoid.

Loan Fee Fraud

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued a warning about the dangers of loan fee fraud in the run up to Christmas and New Year.

The FCA found that cases of loan fee fraud are up by a fifth compared to last year. This troubling rise comes at a time when consumers have seen additional pressure placed on their finances.

Loan Free fraud targets people who are looking for a loan online and may have a poor credit record. They promise a loan in return for an upfront fee which will be refunded once the loan is granted. It may be described as an administration fee, a deposit or insurance to cover a bad financial history. Fees tend to range from £25 to £450 but the loan never arrives after the fee is paid.

 Fraudsters are thought to find their targets through fake loan websites or from information gleaned from unsecure loan broker websites

Fake Online Shops.

With the January sales upon us, watch out for fake online shops. If you are considering buying something online and don’t already know the business you are dealing with, please take care. And remember that if a deal looks too good to be true it probably is!

If you have concerns check out that the business is genuine. There is a government website that can help you with this (https://www.gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company/). And always pay by credit card because this gives you some protection if a fraud is taking place. Under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act you may be able to claim a refund on fraudulent purchases if you spend between £100 and £30,000.

Energy Bill Rebate Scams

Beware of emails or phone calls from your energy company or Ofcom offering assistance with claiming energy bill rebates. They may look or sound genuine but are intended to steal personal and financial information. No one needs to apply for the scheme and no legitimate organisation will ask for your bank details.

Another scam going the rounds is a call from your telephone company  stating that you may be due to a discount on the phone bill due to cost-of-living hardships and then asks a series of questions designed to steal personal information.

Fraudulent Family Text Messages

A common scam going the rounds at present is the “Sibling – I need help” message. Someone receives a message purporting to be from their child. It goes something like this:

Hello Mum / Dad

I’ve lost my phone and am trying to buy a new one. I’m in the phone shop now and need some help. Sorry to trouble you but can you transfer £650 to the shop so that I can get a new phone. I’ll be able to pay you back as soon as I get the new phone. I can’t access my bank account without a phone. Can you help me please?

If you respond you will be given bank details to send the money to.

It may seem like an obvious scam, but people do get caught out or they wouldn’t keep doing it. If you call the number, it is not answered. If you think it might be genuine, ask your “child” a question which only they can answer (what’s your name, what’s your birthday, where do you live?) if it’s a fraud the fraudster is unlikely to have such information and will not reply.

Pickpocketing – the Distraction Con

If you are out shopping in the sales, be aware of the distraction con. This happened recently in The Ashley Centre in Epsom.

Somebody falls over or drops their bags. People go to help the person and, in the disturbance this causes, an accomplice steals your handbag or pick pockets your wallet. Whilst we are carrying less cash these days, the case in Epsom involved crooks following a lady after she collected cash from an ATM.  

Booking Holiday Scams

If you are planning on booking a holiday in the new year, look out for travel scams. Unless you are dealing with a well-known company be careful how you pay. Be very careful if you are asked to make a bank transfer which is virtually untraceable. Insist on paying by credit card so that your payment is protected under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

Fake Copycat Websites

Not illegal as such but beware of fake sites that end up costing you more than you need to pay. These sites have similar names to genuine websites and can mislead you into paying more than you have to for a service.

Continuing with the travel theme, if you are travelling to the USA you need to obtain an ESTA certificate which costs $21 (around £17) unless, by mistake you visit www.esta.co.uk when you will have to pay £49.99.

It looks very similar to the US government site but more than doubles your cost.

Although, on the surface it looks quite impressive, check the spelling below. Scammers aren’t always that accurate with their copy.

Another example closer to home concerns applying for the new global health insurance card (Ghic) which is available free of charge from the NHS (what was previously known as the E111 card). But if you visit www.ghicdirect.co.uk you will end up paying a fee.

It is only if you scroll down to the bottom of the page that you see this message.

The advice is to always take care to check a web address when searching for a site on google.

An Update on the Nigerian Prince Email Scam

You may remember the Nigerian Prince scam which was “popular” many years ago. You received, an often badly spelt, email from a Nigerian prince who needed help getting $100 million out of Nigeria – could you let him use your bank account in return for a share of the money?

Now it’s a message from Victor Zubkov, chairman of the Russian state energy giant Gazprom – due to current economic sanctions I can’t transfer the Gazprom profits to the UK – if you let me use your bank account, I’ll share the profits with you.

It may sound farfetched, but some people must fall for the scam, or they wouldn’t do it. Remember if it looks too good to be true it probably is.

Remember the Government’s Take Five Initiative

Stop – take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or information

Challenge – Could it be a fake? It’s OK to reject, refuse, or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you.

Protect – contact your bank immediately if you think you’ve fallen for a scam and report it to Action Fraud

For more information visit https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/