Alert on scammers charging fees for free TPS call-blocking service

An increasing number of fraudsters are playing upon public fears of telephone scams by extracting money from people to join a free call-blocking service, trading standards groups have warned.

National Trading Standards (NTS) said it was aware of a growing number of scammers making cold calls pretending to be from the Telephone Preference Service and telling victims that the service now costs money. The TPS is the official central opt-out register on which people can record their preference not to receive unsolicited sales or marketing calls. There is no fee for joining.

The scam has been highlighted by trading standards teams across the country in recent weeks. Residents in Kent have been warned that people claiming to be from the TPS have been targeting elderly and vulnerable people, requesting a £50 registration fee. Louise Baxter, from the NTS scams team, said: “This is a sad and cynical scam that targets people who are actively trying to protect themselves or vulnerable relatives. The TPS never cold calls and its service is always free.”

In its first Consumer Harm Report, released today, the NTS also warns that the use of subscription traps is on the rise. People responding to email offers and ads on social media are tricked into signing up for a “free trial” for various services, and are then trapped into making costly monthly payments which can be difficult to stop.

The NTS said that the latest scams are likely to emerge in the energy sector, for instance fraudulent businesses claiming to sell solar panels as government funding for the Green Deal comes to an end.

Other areas of concern include an increase in loan sharks known for targeting those vulnerable to financial problems as they get to grips with universal credit and the cap on payday loans, and unauthorised sellers of fake or duplicate tickets.

Mike Andrews from the NTS eCrime Team said: “Our growing concern is with the sale of ‘big ticket’ items such as electrical goods and clocked cars that are not only expensive but could potentially put lives at risk. We would always urge shoppers to use reputable dealers or retailers for all purchases, particularly when substandard products could cause harm.”

The NTS said its teams prevented £252m worth of loss to consumers and businesses in the past year and prevented more than 2.5 million unsafe or non-compliant goods from entering the supply chain.

Taking into account illegal activity between April 2014 and March 2015, the report disclosed that victims of mail scams lost more than £13m and 200,000 people now appear on so-called “suckers lists”. The average age of those targeted was 74 years.

This is a sad and cynical scam that targets people trying to protect themselves