Frauds

Advance fee fraud is when fraudsters target victims to make advance or upfront payments for goods, services and/or financial gains that do not materialise.

Types of advance fee fraud include:

Career opportunity scams

Clairvoyant or psychic scams

Cheque overpayment fraud

Dating or romance scams

Fraud recovery fraud

Impersonation of officials

Inheritance fraud

Fraud detection has seen a double-digit increase from the prior year.

Allianz Commercial reported a significant increase in detected claims fraud for the year 2023, with the figures reaching £77.4 million, up from £70.7 million in the previous year.

https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/uk/news/claims/allianz-fraud-savings-in-claims-hit-nearly-80-million-in-2023-476837.aspx

Supermarket giant Tesco has said it has unearthed a ‘cash for crash’ scam wherein some of its delivery drivers were staging accidents to help fraudsters claim hefty damages.

A dozen drivers working out of Tesco’s depot in Greenford, west London, allegedly conspired with people outside the company to carry out more than 50 stage-managed accidents in 2019 and 2020, The Times reports.

https://www.easterneye.biz/tesco-drivers-fraud-case-damages/

A ‘heartbroken’ cancer survivor who was conned out of thousands of pounds in a romance fraud has warned it could happen to anyone.

Karen, who lives in the Mansfield area, met her would-be love interest on an online gaming platform. He tricked her into believing he had feelings for her, before grooming her into handing over money over the months that followed.

Police officers in south Shropshire are warning residents to be on the alert for fraudsters posing as police officers.

West Mercia Police say they have number of reports in the Highley and Cleobury Mortimer areas of fraudsters claiming to be from various police services around the country.

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/local-hubs/bridgnorth/2024/02/14/police-fraudsters-reported-in-highley/

A WARRINGTON woman conned out of more than £50,000 in a cruel romance fraud has shared her heartbreaking story.

It comes on valentine’s Day, and as part of Cheshire Police’s month-long focus on romance fraud, which is one of the most common crime types seen today, accounting for in excess of 40 per cent of all crime in England and Wales.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/warrington-woman-conned-50k-romance-145904355.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw&tsrc=twtr

Social housing tenancy fraud costs the taxpayer millions of pounds every year. With more than one million people on the waiting list for a social home and the current economic climate making building social homes challenging, it’s an issue all housing associations and councils need to tackle.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/social-housing-fraud-is-costing-you-millions-84000

A woman in Cumbernauld has been scammed out of a four-figure sum after being contacted by a man claiming to be a police officer.

The woman received a call from a man pretending to be an officer who said her bank cards had been compromised and used in fraud.

Council homes are increasingly being rented out as holiday lets, fuelling a surge in fraud that is costing taxpayers £6.2bn, i can reveal.

Fraud investigators and local authorities said Airbnb, Booking.com and other popular platforms are doing too little to block illegal adverts of social homes.

Ever spend Valentine’s Day alone?

If so, you might understand why February is such a busy month for romance scammers.

“I’ve never felt so seen or understood by another person in my life,” 62-year-old Marie says about a man she met online last year. “We had the deepest conversations I’ve ever had. The most romantic and soulful.” Marie is an experienced online dater and an acclaimed artist based in Florida, with no spouse or kids.