Scam caller pretends to be insurance firm

A WIDNES resident received a scam phone call from somebody claiming to be from a home appliance insurance company.

Halton Borough Council’s Trading Standards officers have issued a warning following the attempt from a con artist claiming to be from Domestic And General.

The caller was phoning from 01246 208 358 and he told the resident that she was paying too much on her insurance and he could reduce it from £20 to £10. He had the woman’s correct name and address and asked her to confirm her bank details.

The resident told him to use the existing details the company had on file and a council spokesman said the caller became ‘quite angry’ before the resident ended the call.

Domestic And General only uses a few telephone lines. These are 0203 666 4358, 0203 820 7742, 0203 820 7743, 0800 597 8608, and 0800 561 4493.

Cllr Dave Cargill, Halton Borough Council’s executive board member for Trading Standards, said; “A call from any other number is not genuine.

“Never give your personal details or bank information to coldcallers, even if they appear to be from an organisation that you’re already involved with.

“If you want to find out if the call is genuine, use the published number for the company to phone them, but wait for 10 minutes before making the call in case the scammer has stayed on the line.”

Halton residents who have either themselves or know someone who has been caught out by a scam can contact specialist officers.

They can be reached by calling 0151 511 8785 or 0151 511 8775.

Those who need advice on anything else can contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline or 0345 404 0506.