This month is scams awareness month. Now I get constituents who come to me regularly who have been victims of scams. They are not alone as it is estimated that nearly half of the UK’s population have been targeted by a scam and every year 3.2m adults fall victim to this deception. The average amount lost per scam is £850, accounting for some £3.5b per annum.
Scams take many shapes and sizes. Only last week I received a text message urging me to pick up £375 for the accident that I experienced. The only problem is that I have not had an accident recently. Likewise the tax refund from HM Revenue and Customs is nothing of the sort so don’t fill in form if it is sent to you over the web.
I have lost count of the number of kind benefactors, usually from Nigeria, who want to share their wealth with me and all they ever want is my bank account number and details. Sadly I have been contacted by some who have fallen foul of this subterfuge. Thankfully people are now largely wise to this most outrageous of scams though this one does take many forms and so let everyone remain on their guard.
Of course the internet has given boundless new opportunities for the scammers. One that recently came to my notice was a web site that offered to fast track visas to the US for a fee. The problem is that visas to America are free and the real web site made this clear. Thus someone had paid for nothing. So always check first before paying – it could save you a great deal of hassle and avoid not a little unnecessary expense.
Other popular ruses involve the health field whereby after offering a special low price introductory offer when the scammer has your details they can off-load very little more but in return take large sums from your account. They prey on the vulnerable particularly which is why such activities must always be treated as criminal.
The top five scam mailings are in order of importance, deceptive sweepstakes, misleading prize draws, fake clairvoyance or psychic therapy, bogus foreign lotteries and ‘miracle’ health cures. However there are many variations of these.
Pleasingly the month’s activities will bring attention to the scale of the problem and why people must remain wary of gift horses. The nationwide initiative is called ‘scamnesty’ and information can be obtained via the local Trading Standards Department at Hillfield House at Denmark Rd in Gloucester or via the web site at
www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/scamnesty
.