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Friends Against Scams

A local community in Dudley is banding together and encouraging businesses and organisations to sign up to an anti-scam initiative. In the borough of Dudley an estimated £3.1 Million is lost each year to scammers, who specifically target elderly and vulnerable people. Their details are circulated amongst fraudsters on what is known as a ‘Sucker List’, meaning some of these people are repeatedly targeted.

In an effort to tackle the problem, 1 year ago, Dudley’s Council Trading Standards department, launched a Scams Unit. They are now asking businesses, organisations, residents and voluntary services help to stop the scammers and protect … Read more

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Conman took advantage of vulnerable pensioner

A conman who tricked a pensioner into spending money on a worthless product to cut her heating bills has been sentenced to 3 months imprisonment. Adrian Hillman, a former director of Eco Shield UK Ltd, cold-called his elderly victim in November 2015 and offered her a product, he said would drastically cut her heating bills, and help her save money.

The victim agreed to pay the £2,000 to the conman after he visited her in her home and convinced her this worthless product would be a worthwhile purchase. However, when the job was complete, the elderly victim was horrified to … Read more

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Company Fined £200,000 For Sending 14.8 Million Spam Texts

A London based tax returns company has been fined £200,000 by the Information Commissioner’s Office for sending 14.8 million marketing text messages between July 2016 and October 2017. The ICO began an investigation after receiving over 2,100 complaints from members of the public.

The company, named as Tax Returned Limited, did not follow the proper guidelines when contacting people. The ICO found that the company had not taken the reasonable steps to make sure the data complied with the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulation, which requires a company or organisation obtains specific consent from people receiving the messages, prior … Read more

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Conman Jailed for £4.5 Million Fraud

A former financial advisor has been jailed for his involvement in a multi-million pound investment fraud. Neil Bartlett has been sentenced to 8 years imprisonment for scamming £4.5 million from victims, which he used to fund a lavish lifestyle of travel and gambling.

Police in Merseyside began to investigate Bartlett after receiving a number of complaints from Action Fraud, about his business practices. The scheme involved tricking victims into believing they were investing their pensions and life savings into investment accounts with interest. What he was actually doing was filtering the money through his company to pay himself this … Read more

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Drone attack at Gatwick

Tens of thousands of passengers are facing major disruption after a drone attack grounded flights. Gatwick airport said 11,000 passengers on 760 flights were delayed when authorities noticed two devices flying over the perimeter fence. Gatwick closed its runway Wednesday night just after 9pm, when the drones were spotted, in what police say is a deliberate act of disruption. The runway briefly opened in the early hours of the morning, but closed again 45 minutes later when another drone was spotted. Police were unable to shoot the drone down because of the risk from stray bullets, but Gatwick officials … Read more

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Couple who made fake sickness holiday claim convicted

A couple who made a fake sickness claim to Jet2holidays have been convicted of fraud and ordered to pay back almost £30,000. Martin and Linsey Brown, from Lancashire, submitted a false claim against Jet2holidays for gastric illness, after staying at a resort in Marmaris, Turkey. The couple claimed they suffered with stomach cramps, diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea, arising from food poisoning. They claimed the whole family, including their children, were bed-bound, because of food served on their all-inclusive holiday. However, after being tipped off by another guest, hotel owners used CCTV to compile evidence, including the couple dancing at the … Read more

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Top Vacation Destinations 2019

2019 is right around the corner, which means it is time for a very important list, and Airbnb has released it’s list for 2019 top vacation destinations. By analysing Airbnb searches, bookings, and wish list growth data, the house-sharing website was able to forecast which regions, cities, and town users are eager to explore in 2019. The destinations are located across six continents. Some are spots that you may have heard of, while others may be new discoveries. Though you likely won’t be able to make it all 19 destinations travellers are wanting to visit in 2019, Airbnb does have … Read more

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New rules and laws for 2019 !

2019 has a lot of changes in store for many UK citizens. Everything from how much tax you pay, to switching your mobile provider is changing in 2019. Wages and pensions are set to rise, but so is council tax and rail fares, so what is changing and when? And how will it affect you? With the uncertainty of Brexit, and the possibility of a second referendum or even another general election is is important to get on top of our financial planning, so we can handle whatever 2019 has in store.

Here are some of the key changes planned … Read more

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Man who promised to recover timeshare fees jailed

Officials in Singapore have sentenced another timeshare fraudster, after he was involved in multiple cheating scams, duping unsuspecting timeshare owners into believing he could recover money from terminating their timeshare memberships. He has been sentenced to 3 and a half years imprisonment for his part in this huge scam.

A court heard that during the course of three years, over 50 victims reported to police that they were cheated by the defendant into paying money to recover some of the money they had already paid to their timeshare resorts. Victims paid nearly $100,000 to the fraudster and his co-conspirators.… Read more

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Scammers Targeting University Students

Thousands of fraud reports have been received by the tax authority from students at university and colleges across the UK. Fake emails, which use university addresses in a bid to appear legitimate, may tell people that they are owed money and encourage them to send their personal details. The recipient’s name and email address may be included several times within the email itself and the email will include links that redirect the recipient to websites where their data is stolen. The emails often spoof the branding of HMRC, Gov.UK or credit card branding.

Director of Action Fraud, Pauline Smith … Read more

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