Call Blockers Funding has been secured for a limited number of call blockers which can be made available to vulnerable residents of the city who are targeted by scam and nuisance phones calls.   These units would be made available for loan free of charge for an initial period of six months. Scam and nuisance calls can affect people in many ways, these types of crimes often cause financial loss, emotional distress, social isolation and loss of confidence.   A number of pilot projects were carried out by the National Trading Standards Scams Team and they found that the use of call blockers significantly increased wellbeing. It was estimated that the call blockers saved £20,227,167 during the pilot project.   If you think you would benefit from a call blocker or you are aware of anyone who would, please express an interest by emailing: Public.Protection@stoke.gov.uk   Please provide the name, address and contact number of the person who is making the application.   Please note that there are only a limited number of call blockers available and these will be allocated on the basis of need after an assessment has been made.

Cost of living scams

The Department of Work and Pensions is warning people who are eligible for the cost of living payments to watch out for scammers. If you are eligible for the payment you do not need to apply for it, payments will be made automatically.

The Department of Work and Pensions will never ask you for personal details by text or email.

The final payment of £299 will be sent between the 6th and 22nd of February 2024.

If you do receive a text or email offering these payments it is likely to be a scam. We would always advise not to give out personal information such as bank details or passwords, reply to text messages, download attachments or click on any links in emails if you’re not sure they’re genuine.

We would also advise you to be wary of cold calls, emails, texts and online ads offering energy refunds, energy discounts, tax rebates and food vouchers as these are often used by scammers to steal your personal information.

How to protect yourself:

• If you have any doubts about a message claiming to be from an organisation, contact the organisation directly - do not reply to the message
• Don’t use the numbers or address in the message – use details from their official website. Remember, your bank (or any other official source) will never ask you to supply personal information via email or text.

Romance scams Scammers will create fake profiles on dating apps or social media to trick people into believing they are in a relationship. The scammer is often very flattering, and the relationships and messages can become very intense very quickly.   Once they’ve spent a lot of effort building up trust with their victim, they may start suggesting that you communicate outside of the dating site, make excuses about meeting in person such as being stuck overseas, having a family emergency or business issues, and will then start asking for money to help with their problems assuring you they will pay you back as soon as they can.   Don’t fall victim to fake profiles.

Scam warning for Self-Assessment customers

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) urge all self-assessment customers to be on the lookout for scam texts, emails and phone calls from fraudsters.

HMRC received more than 130,000 reports about tax scams in the 12 months to September 2023, of which 58,000 were offering fake tax rebates.

The scams take different approaches. Some offer a rebate; others tell customers that they need to update their tax details or threaten immediate arrest for tax evasion.

Customers can report any suspicious communications to HMRC:

• forward suspicious texts claiming to be from HMRC to 60599;
• forward emails to phishing@hmrc.gov.uk;
• report tax scam phone calls to HMRC on GOV.UK.

Loan fee fraud Loan fee fraud or advance fee fraud is a common scam where individuals are conned into paying a fee for a loan. The fraudsters often ask for between £25 and £450. But once the fee is paid, you’ll never receive the loan you were offered.   Scammers will often try to target individuals who’ve applied for loans online. They may contact you unexpectedly and will offer you the money you need. But before giving you the loan, they’ll ask for an upfront payment as a deposit, administrative fee or insurance. They might claim it’s because you have a bad credit history. They’ll often put pressure on you to pay the fee quickly via a bank transfer. Or they may ask you to buy a voucher, for example from Google Play, Amazon or eBay. Scammers have even started asking for payments to be made via crypto exchanges. The fraudsters might say the fee is refundable. But even though you make the payments they ask for, you’ll never receive the loan – or a refund on the fee.   If you need to apply for a loan, you should only deal with authorised firms. If you don’t, you won’t be protected if things go wrong, and you could end up losing lots of money. Check our Financial Services Register to find out if the firm is authorised. Check that the firm’s contact details match the details on the FS Register. Always use the contact details on the FS Register, rather than a direct line or email you’ve been given. If there are no contact details on the FS Register, or the firm claims they are out of date, call us on 0800 111 6768.

Illegal Money Lending

The England Illegal Money Lending Team investigates and prosecutes illegal money lenders and provides support for those who have borrowed money from a loan shark. If you have been a victim of a loan shark or know someone who may have been a victim then you can find more information here: www.stoploansharks.co.uk

Take control of who contacts you.

• Register with the Telephone Preference Services (TPS) to reduce unwanted sales calls. You can register for free on 0345 070 0707 or go to www.tpsonline.org.uk
• Register with the Mailing Preference Service (MPS) to reduce unwanted mail. You can register for free on 0207 291 3310 or go to www.mpsonline.org.uk
• Register with the Fundraising Preference Service (FPS) to reduce unwanted charity contacts. You can register for free on 0300 303 3517 or go to www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/the-fundraising-preference-service

Fakes Hotline Number

If you think someone is selling fake goods you can report it by ringing the Trading Standards hotline number: 01782 238444.

When leaving a message please include as much information as you can such as:

• What types of products are being sold and how much they are being sold for.
• The name and address of the seller, if you know it.
• Where the items are being sold, any vehicle being used or a description of where the goods are stored.
• Where the seller can be found.
• Details of any printed advertising, online advertising or social media posts.

If you need advice or want to report a scam to Stoke-on-Trent Trading Standards, please contact the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on: 0808 223 1133

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