One of the most common complaints reported to the Which? scam sharer tool is unauthorised subscriptions. Victims often assume they’re giving their card details to legitimate companies but later find they’re paying money to unrecognised recipients every month, when they had assumed that they’re giving their card details to legitimate companies.
Which? senior researcher, Chiara Cavaglieri, has helped someone recently to recover money after they had unwittingly been paying £40 a month to an unknown company.
Chiara Cavaglieri, Which? senior researcher, said:
“Unauthorised subscriptions are one of the most common complaints reported to our Scam Sharer tool at the moment.
“We couldn’t get to the bottom of how scentnice.com had your card details, but in most cases, rogue subscriptions are linked to misleading adverts found online. We often find that victims assume they’re giving their card details to legitimate companies and then later find they’re paying money to unrecognised companies every month.
“You tried to get your money back from scentnice.com, which is based in Limassol in Cyprus, but it refused. We spoke to NatWest on your behalf, sharing our insight into the tactics used by rogue subscription companies.
“These can be tricky cases for banks to investigate because payments appear to be fully authorised. However, we expect them to take complaints about unauthorised payments seriously and at the very least you should be helped with a chargeback or Section 75 claim.
“NatWest told us that scentnice.com took its first payment of £3 in December 2023 and then a recurring monthly payment of £40. Having reviewed its initial decision, it agreed to refund you in full.”
In response, NatWest said:
“We have fully compensated our customer for their loss. We advise all our customers to be extra vigilant when making online purchases, especially when dealing with a retailer for the first time who might offer a subscription service. It’s crucial to carefully review the terms and conditions to ensure you’re not inadvertently agreeing to a recurring payment.”
Which? says that they have also contacted scentnice.com, asking it to share evidence that the person involved willingly signed up for a subscription and explain why they had never received any goods. It didn’t respond, so Which? has reported the company to the National Cyber Security Centre and Trading Standards.
What you need to know
Here is the advice that Which? gives, if you feel that you are the victim of a scam subscription:
- If you spot a dodgy recurring payment, contact your card provider and ask them to stop all future payments.
- Gather as much evidence as you can to demonstrate that you’ve been misled or the company is a scam, you could do this by providing examples of other people complaining of similar experiences.
- Getting a refund on the money you have lost can be difficult as these appear to be authorised transactions, if you card provider refuses to refund your money, you should escalate a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman.
- If you spot a recurring payment on a credit card, you could try claiming a refund under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. Our free Section 75 and chargeback tool can help you claim.
- You can report the scam to Action Fraud, or if you live in Scotland, report it to the Police on 101. Scam websites can be reported to the National Cyber Security Centre.
Latest scams doing the rounds
Which? has also provided a list of the latest scams doing the rounds:
10 April
Boots scam email
Watch out for a dodgy email promoting a ‘Nivea sunscreen pack. You are asked to complete a short survey in order to receive the items.
Scam emails can be reported by forwarding them to report@phishing.gov.uk and malicious websites can be reported to the National Cyber Security Centre.
This is not the first time this year that Boots has been used in a scam. In February it was also reported that Cybercrime officers were warning the public about a phishing scam “involving fake emails that claim to be from Boots, offering recipients a free Medicare Kit. The fraudulent messages, which have been reported more than 740 times to Action Fraud in just two weeks, are designed to steal personal and financial information”.
7 April
One in four Britons have experienced a ticketing scam, losing £82 on average according to data analysed by Nationwide has found that. Which? advises that, “when buying tickets, stick to official retailers and be alert to scammers on social media. Avoid offers that seem too good to be true and don’t pay by bank transfer. If you’ve lost money to a scammer, call your bank immediately using the number on the back of your card. Report the scam to Action Fraud or call the police on 101 if you’re in Scotland”.
1 April
Between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2024, British consumers lost more money to scams through WhatsApp than any other country in Europe, with one in five of all reported scams in the UK and victims lost an average of £2,437 per fraud incident.
Which? has stated: “In the second half of 2024, WhatsApp’s fraudulent activity surged by 33% and two of the biggest scams on WhatsApp were job scams, making up half of cases on Revolut, and investment scams, making up four in 10”.
To report a WhatsApp message select it in your conversation and tapping ‘report’ and to report the sender on WhatsApp, open up the chat, tap on the sender’s contact details and select ‘block and report’.
31 March
Phishing Facebook post
Beware a Facebook post promoting a fake giveaway at skincare company Sol De Janeiro, said to come from a seemingly hacked Facebook account. It tells you that you can fill out a short questionnaire and get a Sol De Janeiro ‘Ultimate Icons’ set for £1.95.
Which? report that, “the post then includes a phishing link to complete this questionnaire, which will actually take you to a site designed to steal your personal and financial data. To report a scam post on Facebook, select the three dots on the right-hand side of the page and click ‘report’. You can report scam websites to the National Cyber Security Centre”.
25 March
Screwfix scam email
This is a dodgy email claiming to be from Screwfix telling you that you’ve won a Knipex backpack tool bag. The email is said to include “a link to ‘claim your reward’ which will lead to a malicious website ready to steal your personal and financial data”.
Scam emails can be reported by forwarding them to report@phishing.gov.uk and malicious websites can be reported to the National Cyber Security Centre.
Sharing scams
If you have come across a scam you can share it with others by using the Which? Scam Sharer tool.
