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In this issue:
 We continue to receive reports of
emails claiming to be from HMRC advising on Tax refunds that are due.
A
local resident has reported receiving a phishing e-mail claiming to
be sent on behalf of HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The resident was
advised that she was due a rebate and was asked to provide personal
information, including bank details.
HMRC will never send notifications of a tax rebate by email, or ask you
to disclose personal or payment information by email. Do not
visit the website contained within the email or disclose any personal or
payment information.
If you have received a HMRC related phishing/bogus email, please
forward it to phishing@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk and then delete it.
If, following receipt of any email claiming to be from HMRC and you have
disclosed personal details - forward brief details of the type(s) of information
disclosed: e.g. name, address, date of birth etc. to HMRC: security.custcon@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk (do
not give your actual personal details in the email). HMRC will act upon all
HMRC related phishing emails, removing reported fraudulent websites.
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Several residents have
reported being contacted by companies offering property valuations, council tax
banding and area comparisons of their homes claiming they may be able to save
them thousands of pounds in Council Tax.
However they will charge
a ‘small’ administration fee of anything upwards of £55. If you are contacted
by one of these companies please remember that Valuation Office Agency (VOA) offers the same
service for free. To get in touch about this service please call them on 03000
501501 or visit the gov.uk/council-tax website.
Coventry Trading
Standards would always suggest that residents carry out their own research by a
simple Google search, or contacting the relevant Local Authority or Government
department, and thus avoid having to pay a middleperson whether directly or by
commission.
In other parts of the Country reports have
been received about an email with: "Your
Council Tax Bill Overdue" in the header and claimed there was a council
tax bill to be paid.
It also demanded that personal
information should be provided within 72 hours or further action would be taken
against them. Unfortunately this and similar
emails comes around every year.
We would remind people that Coventry
City Council would never send emails requesting personal information, or ask
you to update personal details via a website. Instead, a bill would be sent out in the post.
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 Trading
Standards is warning people to be wary of inheritance scam letters which have
once again been dropping through people's doors following several reports from
residents concerning a scam inheritance letter from Mr Cai Xu.
Mr Cai Xu claims to be a Business Relations Manager at the China CITIC
Bank in Hong Kong. He claims a person with the same name as the resident died
leaving no will and $16.4million US dollars.
The letter suggests that the resident can claim the inheritance if he
will split it with Mr Cai Xu.
Do not respond to this letter. If you do the scammers will ask you to
pay a fee before they can send the money. If you make payment the scammers will
come up with an excuse why they can’t send it to you.
You will not receive the money and the scammers will continue to ask you
for payment.
By responding, your details may be passed to other scammers and you will
receive more scams letters and phone calls.
We are aware of many versions of the same letter with each telling an
identical story but using a different name for the person who is said to have
died leaving a large fortune but no will.
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HMRC have
advised that from April 2015, people over the age of 55 will be given the
flexibility of taking a number of smaller lump sum pension pots. 25% of the sum
will be tax-free, with the remaining pension fund charged at marginal rate of
income tax.
If you take out money from your pension fund before the age of 55, the normal
tax rules apply. We are concerned that fraudsters may take advantage of
these rule changes by offering to invest pensions on the victim’s behalf. Be very wary of such offers.
Avoid losing your
hard-earned cash:
- Do
not invest with companies which cold call you, offering extremely high
returns. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
-
Seek
financial advice from the Citizens Advice Bureau, who work alongside the
Treasury delivering the ‘Pension Wise’ service. Further
information can be found here.
- If
you wish to invest your savings in a company, please ensure you seek
advice from an and authorised advisor registered with the Financial
Conduct Authority [FCA]
- Be
aware of callers offering a free pension review service by phone call,
email and text message and do not invest in unregulated markets such as
overseas property developments, storage units or forestry.
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The number of people using electronic
cigarettes has increased dramatically in recent years, but so has the number of
potential safety related incidents involving
e-cigarette batteries and chargers, some of which have overheated or exploded
whilst in use.
Over 70% of the complaints made about e-cigarettes to councils in the
East Midlands region have been about safety issues.
Local residents are therefore being warned about the potential dangers
when charging e-cigarettes and how they can keep themselves safe.
Tips to reduce possible accidents include:
- Only use
the connectors and chargers specifically provided for use with the e-cigarette.
- Don't
leave a charging e-cigarette battery unattended.
- Don't
exceed the recommended charging time and disconnect when charging is complete.
- Only
charge in a location fitted with a smoke alarm and well away from flammable
materials, soft furnishings, beds, sofas and carpets. Don't charge batteries in
an unattended vehicle.
- Be wary
of low-priced, unbranded products
- Keep the
original product literature for future reference.
Residents who have purchased a product that you have concerns about
please let Trading Standards know by contacting the Citizens Advice consumer service
on 03454 04 05 06.
Contact 0500 834
333 for advice on stopping smoking.
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 Igenix have identified a potential
safety issue with their Igenix
2000W Oil Filled Radiator where the oil used is causing the
product to overheat and the oil can escape through a single point in one of the
radiator fins.
The affected product has Code: IG2600 and Batch
Number: 50 08 14. The batch
number is detailed on the products silver rating label which is located on the
side of the plastic control panel above the wheel.
The affected item was offered for sale
since: 15 September 2014.
Only product code IG2600 with the batch number 50 08 14 is at risk. All other Igenix oil filled radiators are unaffected.
If you have one of the affected
Igenix oil filled radiators please
stop using it immediately. Please return the product to the
retailer it was purchased from for a full refund of the purchase price or a
replacement. If this is not possible please contact the Igenix Customer Service
team on 01473 271 272 or email info@igenix.co.uk.
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 Hertfordshire
Police have put together a simulated courier fraud phone call/video called ‘Do
you know who is on the phone?’ which you might find useful.
It is
available on YouTube but the following link will take you to the police website:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvWjvsmG1t0
Although it
is based on experiences in Hertfordshire it does highlight how these calls are
made.
The crime
prevention advice is:
- Your
bank or the Police will never ask you for your PIN number
or account details over the phone.
- The
Police will never tell you to withdraw large amounts of
money to pass to them for ‘safekeeping’.
- The
Police will never ask someone to aid an investigation by
purchasing goods with their own money
-
The Police will never ask
you to send your bank cards, or any other personal property, to them via
courier, taxi or by any other means.
- If
you receive one of these calls end it immediately, wait 5
minutes, call someone you know to check the line is clear and then report
it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or to your local Police on 101.
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For
more information on scams, visit: www.coventry.gov.uk/scams
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