Welsh Icons News | People power helps Flintshire crack down on scams

Flintshire Trading Standards and the Office of Fair Trading are calling on consumers to ‘drop in to drop them in it’.

A nationwide ‘Scamnesty’ campaign by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), which aims to help end the scourge of mass marketed scam mailings in the UK, is coming to Flintshire this February.

Nearly half of the UK adult population has been targeted by a scam. Every year, 3.2 million adults – one in 15 people – across the country fall victim to a scam involving deceptive unsolicited mailings, phone calls, or emails, which are designed to con victims out of their cash. UK consumers lose around a staggering £3.5 billion to scams every year.

‘Scamnesty 2010’ calls on the people of Flintshire to fight back against the fraudsters by collecting any scam mailings they receive and dropping them into designated ‘Scamnesty’ bins located across Flintshire.

Last year the campaign revealed that the top five mass-marketed scam mailings in the UK at that time were:

1) Deceptive sweepstakes,

2) Misleading prize draws,

3) fake clairvoyants/psychics,

4) Bogus foreign lotteries, and

5) ‘Miracle’ health cures.

The Scamnesty bins will provide valuable new intelligence to the OFT and local authority Trading Standards Services and help inform future investigations which will prevent others from being scammed.

Heather Clayton, OFT Senior Director, said: “Scamnesty 2010 promises to reveal a marked increased in scale and range of mass marketed scam mailings in the UK. Every day, people are at risk from unscrupulous fraudsters who want to con them out of their cash. By dropping your scam mailing into your local Scamnesty bin, you will help provide crucial intelligence to support us in stopping scams bringing misery to millions of people every year.”

If you think you have been the victim of a scam, or you suspect a scam, call

Consumer Direct for clear, practical advice on 08454 04 05 06 or visit

www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/scamnesty Consumers can report all types of scams at https://secure.consumerdirect.gov.uk/reportascam.aspx on the Consumer Direct website.

Ron Hughes, Head of Flintshire Trading Standards Service, said: “Mass mailing scams prey on the most vulnerable members of our community who can ill afford to lose any money, particularly at this difficult economic time.

We become aware of scams throughout the year but for each one that gets closed down many more begin. Regrettably these people often hide behind international boundaries which make enforcement action difficult for UK authorities.

“My officers were recently contacted by an elderly gentleman who received almost 600 scam letters in one month. This gentleman had suffered a stroke and was also suffering from dementia. Unfortunately the gentleman had sent at least £10,000 to scam lotteries before Trading Standards and North Wales Police became involved. This vast quantity of mail being received each day caused the gentleman and his family a great deal of upset and anxiety.”

“The best strategy is to raise consumer awareness so that fewer people fall victim to this crime and that’s why we are supporting the OFT’s scams awareness campaign.”

From 1 February 2010 Scamnesty bins will be located at the following libraries and Council offices;

Libraries;