A Plan For The Scams
With a whopping 48% of us being duped for our hard-earned cash, it’s time to wise up. Nel Staveley scopes out the scammers
Imagine you’re an elderly widow, living alone, and your eyesight is starting to fade. One day, a smiling young man walks up your garden path, knocks on the door and says he’s noticed your roof looks in need of repair. “Hardly surprising,” you smile, “I’ve lived here 40 years, and I know nothing about DIY.”
“Luckily, I do,” the charming stranger smiles back.
Fast-forward a few minutes, and he’s agreed to come and fix everything up for you, all for a bargain upfront price of £2,000. Fast-forward a few weeks, and he’s come back, removed a couple of tiles, and you haven’t seen him since.
It’s a story about someone I know, but sadly, it’s also a story about someone most of us know.
Because every year, more than three million people in the UK fall victim to scams, losing hundreds, sometimes thousands of pounds.
Recently, and in the space of seven days, there were two headlines about two elderly women, each losing £100,000 and £10,000 respectively, to phone scam artists posing as police officers and bank clerks.
Scan the news back a little further, and you’ll find reams of depressingly identical tales of innocent people being duped for their cash – more often than not, elderly, innocent people.
Naturally, the nature of these cons varies. The main channels are web/email (31%), phone call/texts (29%), letter/fax (14%) and in person (13%), and the most common wheezes are fake lotteries and prize draws, bogus health cures and dodgy investment schemes.
Of course, unless you’re in the 48% of Brits estimated to have been the target of these vicious scams, it’s easy to shrug, roll your eyes and assume everyone that falls for them is stupid.
But it’s not the case. People running the scams are clever, manipulative and ruthlessly efficient – they know what works, and who it works on. They know how to move with the times – online shopping and auction scams were the most common fraud reported in 2013 at the cost of £63.6 million – and critically, they know how to get away with it.
But it’s time to fight back. Here’s how to arm yourself…
SCAMMING – THE BASIC RULES
:: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
:: If you haven’t bought a ticket – you can’t win it.
:: You shouldn’t have to pay anything to get a prize.
:: If in doubt, don’t reply. Bin it, delete it or hang up.
:: Contacted out of the blue? Be suspicious.
:: Never give out your bank details unless you’re certain you can trust the person contacting you.
:: Never send money to someone you don’t know.
:: Remember your bank will never attend your home, and your bank and the police will never collect your bank card or ask for your PIN.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU FALL FOR A SCAM
The most important thing is don’t suffer in silence – it’s thought only 5% of scams are actually reported. While it’s understandable you might feel embarrassed or scared, not contacting the police or a help group will only let the conman carry on conning others.
There are lots of support groups for people who’ve been the victims of scams, try Victim Support (www.victimsupport.org.uk/ 30 30 900) or Age UK (www.ageuk.org.uk) as a first port of call. They can then advise you on what to do and how to take your complaint further – or they can simply offer a shoulder to cry on. If you want to report what’s happened directly, contact Action Fraud (www.actionfraud.police.uk).
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