In September, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), published information about banking scams, stating that they “can take many forms, with fraudsters using a number of tactics to steal your money.” They went on to note the following types of banking scams:
- Vishing
- Number spoofing
- Online phishing scams
- Online Website scams
- Card scams
- Supplier scams
Faye Lipson, a senior researcher and writer at Which? has commented that “fraudsters often imitate banks’ fraud departments to persuade you to transfer your money into their clutches”.
If you are concerned about any contact claiming to be from your bank, you can ensure that the call is genuine by hanging up and then calling the number back using a different number. You can also wait about 15 minutes to ensure that the line is free and use the contact number found on your card or call 159 (an anti-fraud hotline, which connects you to the fraud team of most providers).
Bank impersonation scams
Faye Lipson also advises the following:
“Don’t be fooled into thinking it can be easy to spot a bank impersonation scam, as they can be incredibly sophisticated. If you’re contacted by your bank and are being asked to share sensitive details, move money or log into your account, then you should be suspicious of this request. Always take steps to verify the call.
“Contact your bank immediately if you believe you have lost any money to a scam or if you believe the scammer could have access to your account. You should also report the scam to Action Fraud or call the police on 101 if you live in Scotland.”
Which are the worst UK companies for fraud?
The highest number of fraud and scam complaints escalated to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), was recorded by Revolut.
Fraud complaints from customers of the e-money provider continue to outstrip all banks, as they did in 2023, according to data obtained exclusively by Which?
Which? reports that they have “kept an eye on the number of disgruntled customers taking their disputes to the FOS – an informal and free alternative to the courts for financial complaints – and this figure still surpasses that of much larger banks”.
In the article found here, Which? reveals the firms attracting the most fraud complaints, how uphold rates compare, and what the banks have said in response.
Termination Experts: the cancellation service you’ve never heard of, until you receive its bill
Termination Experts is said to be a service that helps users to cancel subscriptions, by aiming to make the cancellation process straightforward and by preparing legally correct termination letters.
Which? has stated that they have spoken to a number of people who told them that they were unexpectedly contacted by ‘Termination Experts’ to be chased for unpaid charges.
Which? have reported that, “Termination Experts says that it cancels services on your behalf by sending a cancellation letter by post or email for a fee. But cancelling any service should be possible by contacting the company you have a subscription with directly. Which? has concerns that people feel they’re being charged for a service they didn’t agree to”.
What to do if you’re contacted by Termination Experts
Which? recommend that if you are contacted by Termination Experts, you should get in touch with the company referenced by them directly. Ask the company if a membership or subscription has been cancelled on your behalf. If it hasn’t, Which? states, “the service you supposedly owe money for hasn’t been carried out”.
Which? also advises that if you buy services from a company online, in most cases, you should be given a cooling-off period. This is said to be “the period of time you have to change your mind about something you’ve purchased from a distance. This starts when you enter the contract and ends 14 days after. The company should not provide the service before the end of the cooling-off period, unless the consumer has expressly requested it”.
If you want to cancel a service, you have to tell the seller within the 14-day cooling-off period that you don’t want it anymore. The best way to do this is via email as then you will have a written record. However, you won’t be able to cancel, if you asked the company to begin the service before the end of the cooling-off period, and the service has been completed.
Which? has also noted that, “In its terms and conditions, Termination Experts state that there is no cooling-off period due to the service taking place entirely within the statutory cooling-off period”.
Scam sharer tools
To learn more about how you can share scams and help to protect others from scams, please see here.
You can sign up for emails from Which? By clicking here.
The scam alert is also available on WhatsApp found here. To sign up for scam alerts on Facebook please click here.
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