‘I felt desolate after £6,000 loss’

DAVID BALe, 77, from Peterborough was tricked into handing over £ 6,000 to scammers who posed as TsB

Bank employees.

The crooks called to say his account had been compromised and that he needed to transfer his money to a ‘safe account’.

David was suspicious at first, but reassured by the fact they knew his password and special phrase as well as his mother’s maiden name.

so he allowed them to transfer £6,000 from his current and savings account as requested.

But he had a sinking feeling the moment he put the phone down and called TsB’s fraud department immediately.

The former actor and english teacher says: ‘I felt completely desolate really. It wasn’t the loss of the money — it was the feeling that I’d been completely made a fool of.’

He later discovered the fraudsters had access to his personal details because he had fallen victim to another scam three months earlier.

David had received an email to say his television licence fee had not been paid, and provided his bank details,

The criminals had then used this information to convince him that they were calling from his bank.

He says: ‘There are a lot of these scams, and they’re getting more and more convincing. And it’s increasingly dangerous for elderly people and people who are less familiar with the internet.’

TsB reimbursed him the £6,000 under its fraud refund guarantee scheme.