Pensioners warned over new telephone scam (From Wandsworth Guardian)

Pensioners warned over new telephone scam

7:00am Saturday 19th January 2013 in News

Residents are being warned to be on their guard against a new telephone scam being used by confidence tricksters to milk people’s bank accounts.

The town hall has received two reports this week of residents receiving phone calls from fraudsters pretending to be from the "pensions and benefit office".

The caller told the two women residents, who both live in Earlsfield and are aged over 60, they reached pensionable age and they were both entitled to a £1,000 rebate.

They were told that if they wished to make a claim they should hold the line and respond to a series of automated instructions, which culminated in them being asked to hand over their bank details.

In both cases the women smelled a rat and hung up before divulging any confidential or sensitive information.

This latest ruse is a classic variation on a long-running scam and has prompted staff who work in the council’s community safety team to issue a warning to residents not to be taken in by the fraudsters.

Councillor Jonathan Cook, the council's spokesman on community safety, said: "These calls are a complete and utter con.

"No government department would ever make such a call and it would simply not be necessary to hand over your bank account details to get any kind of rebate.

"My advice to anyone who gets a call like this is to refuse to tell them anything and simply hang up."

For more information visit www.met.police.uk/fraudalert.