Trading Standards is warning residents to be on their guard after a Wyken resident fell for a telephone cold call scam.

The resident was advised that the caller was working for the Government, and that they were due a refund cheque for bank charges.

In order to receive this cheque, thy were asked to buy £200 worth of iTunes vouchers to cover the 'admin' fee.

After making the purchase, the resident had unfortunately already given one voucher code over before realising this was a scam.

Trading Standards advise that fraudsters are now moving onto iTunes gift cards to collect money from victims because they can be easily redeemed and quick purchases can be made with them. The scammers don’t need the physical card to redeem the value and instead get victims to read out the serial code on the back over the phone. iTunes owners Apple say that gift cards can only be used to purchase goods on the iTunes store so should not be used for any other kind of payment.

On its support page, Apple said some fraudsters were using the same trick to persuade people to pay off hospital bills, bail money, debt collection fees and utility bills.

Since last October, there has been new wording on the back of iTunes vouchers warning buyers not to share the code with anyone else.

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Everyone from the UK going to the USA by air or sea, even those just passing through, must fill out an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) form in advance. Without one you may be denied boarding or can even be sent straight back home. 

ESTA is an online system that tells you in advance whether you're eligible to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). All accepted applications have a fee of $14 each ($4 if you're rejected); that's $56 for a family of four. You will also need a chipped passport to apply.

However, Trading Standards are warning that when applying for this online, watch out for any copycat website demanding a fee for the ESTA. 

This warning comes after a local resident reported falling for this, and paying an unecessary 'broker fee' of £76 on top of the cost of the ETSA.

Be warned, when applying online, watch out for any copycat website demanding a fee for the ESTA. Search the internet for ‘ESTA’ and you’ll discover many that claim to submit an application on your behalf.

Not only will you be paying money unnecessarily, you can't be certain it'll be a legitimate submission and acceptance, so you may still get turned away when you get to the USA.

You may also be providing personal information to a fraudster.

Always use the official ESTA site. 

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A Coventry man has been made to pay £1,000 and carry out 150 hours of unpaid work after he was caught selling counterfeit DVDs on Facebook.

Sean Hiatt, Age 37, of Cheylesmore, Coventry pleaded guilty to charges under the Trade Marks Act 1994 and the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988, when the case was heard at Coventry Magistrates Court on 29 August 2018.

An investigation by Coventry Trading Standards team revealed that Hiatt was advertising counterfeit DVDs and CD’s on Facebook.

The court ordered Mr Hiatt to carry out 150 hours unpaid work and to pay costs to the council of £1,000.

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Rogue traders are individuals or groups of people who cold-call householders, often targeting vulnerable residents, claiming to be a bona fide business and purporting to offer services, most commonly gardening services, buildings maintenance and roof repair.

Our advice is to be on your guard for such unsolicited approaches, and to stay vigilant especially if you have vulnerable or elderly people living nearby who may be potential targets.

If you didn't arrange for a visit, politely decline any offers of work and close your door. Be firm, as rogue traders are in the habit of turning up in the evenings and at weekends and often more than once to try put pressure on people. These individuals will soon move on if their source of work – and income – dries up.

The police are also issuing warnings to householders about the dangers of leaving windows wide open in the warmer weather, especially at night.

There has been a recent increase in car key burglaries where access to properties has been made through open windows or unlocked doors in order to steal car keys.

You can also protect your personal property by registering your property with www.immobilise.com. This free online checking service is used thousands of times each day by UK police forces to trace owners of lost and stolen property.

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Parents are being advised to take precautions when buying 'Squishies' for their children, after more than 2,000 fake products were seized by authorities.

Squishies are children's toys, made from foam material, which have surged in popularity.

Wolverhampton City Council found more than 2,000 counterfeit products being sold in the city.

The council's trading standards department say replicas of the toys failed health and safety tests and do not feature enough warning messages for parents.

Test results found dangerous faults in the toys, as well as packaging, labelling and lack of warning labels required by law.

The toy safety regulations require all new toys to be marked with sufficient model numbers, include manufacturer’s details, CE markings, test certificates and appropriate warning messages for parents.

Customers and traders who believe they have purchased fake Squishies are encouraged to contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 04 05 06.

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