Dudley Financial Abuse - December issue

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council sent this bulletin at 09-12-2020 05:25 PM GMT

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December 2020

Be aware of rogue traders this winter

Dudley Council’s scams unit is warning residents to be aware of rogue traders who might be trying to cash in on energy saving grants.

At this time of year, when people are often trying to cut down on their energy usage and save money on their bills, there are rogue traders around trying to take advantage.

Often they will falsely claim they can carry out work such as cavity wall or loft insulation, at a reduced price through the use of energy savings grants but fail to do it, having taken advance payment or complete it to a poor standard.

Advice to consumers shopping online

With many people now choosing to shop online as a result of the pandemic, the scams unit is urging people to follow some steps to ensure they don’t become the victim of a scam.

Scam alert

Residents are warned to be aware of a scam, which has cost one Dudley resident thousands of pounds.

Dudley Council’s scams unit is supporting a Dudley resident who was tricked into parting with £8,000.

Scamnesty

The National Trading Standards scams team has declared a month-long scamnesty throughout December.

It aims to encourage people to talk to their loved ones about scams and to send in any unwanted or suspicious mail to the team to investigate.

People can send mail (no need for a stamp) to: NTSST, FREEPOST, MAIL MARSHALS

Scams unit

The scams unit was set up to protect the borough's most vulnerable residents, who are most likely to be targeted by scammers.

It has already helped prevent more than £5.5million being lost to scams. Click on the button below to find out more about its work.

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