Reports of frauds, deceptions and scams keep appearing, weekly even daily, on
major news channels and newspapers. Some of these frauds seem just too big and remote to be of immediate, direct relevance to our daily lives. But, we will eventually pay for the consequences and damages, in taxes, costs of goods and services, regulations, copy-cats etc.

I hope we can collect, in one thread, frauds and scams, reported or heard. We must become more aware and more educated to guard against frauds and scams
which impact upon the health, well being, and wealth of ourselves and our families.

Probably the most convenient thread to park this one even though it is striclty, for now, neither a scam nor fraud. But the size of potential compensations makes it an interesting one to follow ... With the amound of money at stake, this can drag on for decades.

Are penalty charges bank robbery?

11 Dec 2006.

"Banks are making billions of pounds each year from penalty charges. But now the legality of these charges - which cost their customers an average of 30 a time - is being called into question and thousands of customers want their money back.

We have investigated why some campaigners claim penalty charges are illegal and what the banks and their regulators are doing about it.

Last year the top six High Street banks in the UK made an estimated 4.5bn from penalty charges. These are charges that are incurred for unauthorized overdrafts, bounced cheques and clearing Direct Debits when there are insufficient funds in the account.

The Campaigner

Stephen Hone is a young father of three and a law student based in Plymouth. When Stephen's bank, Abbey, removed 64 from his account for two 32 penalty charges he called his branch and asked them to pay it back.

"I was livid, I was really annoyed that they refused to give me the money back, the banks are always trying to say they're sympathetic," says Mr Hone. His bank pointed out that these charges were fair and within the terms and conditions of his contract. Mr Hone, however, believed those terms and conditions were unfair and therefore illegal.

Abbey offered to refund one of his charges.

The Legal Position

Stephen argued that under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations (1999) all penalty charges have to truly reflect the cost of administering them.

They are not permitted to be a profit-making enterprise for any business. He believes if a penalty charge is higher than its administrative cost, it is illegal.

...

The highest cost banks could justify for bouncing cheques is 4.50

..."

4.5bn of penalty charges in one year would mean either we as a nation bounce LOTS of cheques (1bn?) or the banking admin and IT system is grossly insufficient, or banks made bn's from penalty charges ???

If the banks was found to have overchaged, by as much as 10 times, and had to refund the extra changes, then, one way or anther, we will all be made foot the bill.
I cannot see the banks are willing and perhaps would struggle to pay back 4bn x 6 years = 24bn + compound interests. In a way, we see how some banks are making such good returns andthus able to reward the shareholders, staff and executives ...

If anyone is wondering why motor insurance increases higher than the rate of inflation ...

Fraud body warns of crash scams

"Criminal gangs may stage 20,000 road accidents in the next 18 months, a fraud body has warned.

The Insurance Fraud Bureau, which was set up in July, believes 400 criminal networks are at work.

One tactic gangs use is to drive to a busy junction or roundabout and brake sharply causing an innocent motorist to drive into the back of them.

They claim the other motorist was at fault because they were driving too fast or too close behind them.

A false and inflated claim is then made to the motorist's insurer for whiplash and damage which can net the fraudsters up to 30,000.

There can be a whole network of people involved in the fraud with doctors and mechanics writing reports to support the case.

Richard Davis from the Insurance Fraud Bureau estimates there have already been more than 20,000 of them across the UK in the last seven years.
..."

Insurance Fraud Bureau

Staged Car Accident Scam

"You're on a roundabout, when suddenly the car in front of you slams on its brakes - but you can't tell, because the brake lights don't work. You hit the carbut have you actually been the victim of a scam?

How It Works
The key to this scam is that it's difficult to prove it's a scam by the insurance companies, and that the police generally will not investigate or prosecute unless presented with strong evidence by those insurance companies. It first came to light in early 2005, with a spate of similar accidents in West Yorkshire, although the idea is thought to have originated in the North West.

A driver, usually in an old car, disconnects his brake lights, so you can't tell when he's braking. When being followed around a roundabout, he slams on his brakes for no obvious reason, and the driver behind then ploughs into them, causing damage to the cars involved and usuaully a injury to the first driver and passengers, more commonly whiplash.

Because it's a rear-end collision, the second driver, who's really the victim of this heavily organised crime, is assumed to be at fault. The first driver - and the passengers in the car (if any) - claim on the victim's insurance. Witnesses, part of the same gang as the driver, will come forward to verify what happened.

The gangs behind this often own garages and car hire firms. A minor crash can produce a 20,000 or 30,000 claim. Insurers believe there could be as many as 10,000 induced accidents a year.

It goes without saying that staging an accident this way is not only illegal, but also highly dangerous, and can easily cause serious injury or even death. To the insurance industry it's part of the greater sense of insurance fraud that costs 1.5 billion a year, and adds an average of 50 to your car insurance premium.

How To Avoid The Scam
The main way to avoid this scam is to follow the rules of the road, and not follow another vehicle too closely. In practical terms, especially on roundabouts, that's not always feasible. So remain very alert. Keep an eye on the vehicle in front. The occupants may turn to look at you or may even make a gesture just before the trap is sprung.

Staged by professionals, it's truthfully not always possible to avoid this, unfortunately.

What To Do If You Think You've Been A Victim

* As with any accident, exchange details with the other driver. If there's been a possible injury, inform the police.
* Have the other driver write down his version of events.
* Write down your own version of the events, including descriptions of the people in the other vehicle - their sex, what they were wearing, everything you can.
* When you contact your insurance company, tell them you believe you were the victim of a scam. The insurance industry has set up the Insurance Fraud Bureau to share intelligence on suspicious claims.

Remember, this is a large, organised crime, and usually very professionally executed. If you suspect that the accident is not genuine, leave it to your insurance company to investigate. They're eager to crack down on this particular type of fraud. "

Online banking fraud 'up 8,000%'

"The UK has seen an 8,000% increase in fake internet banking scams in the past two years, the government's financial watchdog has warned.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) told peers it was "very concerned" about the growth in "phishing".

Phishing involves using fake websites to lure people into revealing their bank account numbers.
..."

Revenue admits theft of staff IDs

""Virulent" organised fraud in the tax credit system is the result of illicit access to government payroll records, the UK's Revenue chief has said.

HM Revenue & Customs executive director David Varney told MPs as many as 13,000 civil servants' personal information had been stolen.
..."

Alert over 'secret shopper' scam

"Consumers are being warned by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) of a sophisticated new scam targeting people across the UK.

The potential victim receives a "secret shopper" letter with a 50 cheque.

The victim is told to cash the cheque and then immediately complete a secret shopper assignment, which involves wiring 1,500 to Canada.

The cheque is bogus and the victim loses any money sent by wire transfer to the address in the letter.

Warning on the scam, the OFT said that consumers should never send money to a stranger using a money transfer service. "

I hope everyone has an anti 'phishing' programme running. IE7 has one. If not you can download one here

http://www.spoofstick.com/

This 10 minute email address system could be of help to someone :-)


http://10minutemail.com/10MinuteMail/index.html

Just in:

Bank charges are unlawful. Take them on and get your money back.
Help spread the word. Please forward to anyone who may be interested.

The campaign to reclaim unlawful bank charges is the biggest consumer revolution for years. Anyone who's had a penalty charge/fine from a UK bank in the last six years should get their cash back. Tens of thousands already have, many in the 1000s. Yet it's in danger of being hijacked by commercial claim handling vultures, who are dominating Google with ?no-win, no-fee? ads. It's hoped this e-mail will help combat that, spreading the word that you should....

...Never pay any company to reclaim bank charges!

Everything needed, including template letters to send to the banks, is available free, without registration, at

http://www.MoneySavingExpert.com/bankcharges

Plus further support can be found at

http://www.penaltycharges.co.uk and also http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk

Please forward this to everyone in the UK you think will be interested.

I'm not usually one for posting warnings about potential scams but I had a close miss at the weekend.


I walked into B&Q and some old guy dressed in orange asked me if I wanted decking. Fortunately, I got the first punch in and that was the end of that.

Those less suspecting might not be so lucky.

You too? It must be a widespread scam :-)

Yeah! Well done, Declan!

From http://money.guardian.co.uk/saving/banks/story/0,,1994533,00.html

Bailiffs raid Royal Bank of Scotland

After a long battle about 3,000 in bank fees, one account holder took legal action - and won. Tony Levene reports

It's a heart-warming tale for anyone who thinks it is impossible to fight back against unfair charges by big banks. Last week, bailiffs raided a Royal Bank of Scotland branch in London to take control of computers, fax machines and a cash till after a customer won a court judgment over more than 3,000 in overdraft charges.
The unprecedented raid followed a long battle by RBS account holder Declan Purcell, 48, who had been an RBS customer for more than 20 years and ran a motorcycle business until recently.

He says: "Each time I exceeded my limits, the bank hit me with penalties of around 30. From 2002 to 2004 it added up to 3,000 on my business account alone."
Following advice from Guardian Money and website Consumer Action Group, Mr Purcell challenged the penalties, citing legal precedents to show the bank could not take more from him than the actual costs incurred with his unauthorised overdraft.

He also asked for copies of bank statements using a Data Protection Act "subject access request". He sent 10 for each account.

"The bank ignored all this so I took out a small claims court action in Bow County Court in late October. The bank did not respond in the 14 days allowed. The court gave me default judgment. The court then gave the bank a second chance but it did not enter a defence. So I asked the court to send in debt enforcers. By now, I was owed 3,369, including interest and court fees. This month, I went back to the court to get my money," he says.

The bailiffs enforced a "walk-in possession", effectively putting a sticker on items which would be grabbed and sold later if the bank did not cough up the judgment monies.

The bank admits the bailiff visit took place. It says: "Unfortunately, due to an administrative error, the bank failed to defend the claim, leading to a default judgment and a resulting warrant. The bank has since organised payment. No goods were actually taken."

Mr Purcell says: "The bank never bothered to reply. It treated me as if I did not exist. Now I want my penalty fees back on my personal bank account as well."

Earlier this week, Lib Dem shadow social exclusion secretary Matthew Taylor said in a parliamentary debate: "Millions of people are being ripped off by their own banks, plunging the poorest deeper into debt. The Office of Fair Trading has failed to act and the banks are dodging the courts.

"Banks are only supposed to charge customers for the real cost of a transaction, rather than make a profit. Everyone who has received one of these charges should phone their bank and demand the money back," he says.

Last year, the Office of Fair Trading ordered credit card companies to reduce their penalty fees to a maximum of 12

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jeffmack,

Well the address exists, although the company has changed name!

Interesting error on the address though!

Mir Field is actually MIRFIELD

Pair jailed over royal phone taps

The interesting bits ...

Mulcaire had a year's contract with the News of the World for "research and information services" ... and it was ironic that Mulcaire ran a company - Nine Consultancy - that offered a service protecting clients from media intrusion.

Losing a home on costa del scam

"Thousands of new homes have been built in Albox, southern Spain as the market burgeoned in recent years but some owners have discovered their homes were constructed without planning permission."

"One of the developers blamed by residents is Procoal, which the BBC has learned is still advertising in the UK.
However its managing director Juan Franciso Alarcon was less keen on publicity when confronted by BBC reporter Paul Kenyon.
Mr Kenyon and film crew were manhandled and forcibly removed from the company's offices."


Greystone, are you OK where you are in Spain?

Arrests made in VAT fraud probe

"Customs officers have made 10 arrests across England and Wales in a 250m value added tax (VAT) fraud case.

The arrests relate to "carousel fraud", where criminals import high value goods free of VAT, from other countries in the European Union.

..."

axdpc. You seem to have a thing about this "carousel fraud". Let it go.

I was short changed once on the "dodgems" and I know I was peeved for an hour or so but, hey, life goes on.
:-)

Bolshi, sincere thanks for your concern :-) I probably had too many bad experiences...