Christmas can be a time of stress and money worries – and there’s plenty of loan sharks and scammers waiting to take advantage.
Watch out for things like emails or texts that may claim to be from a delivery service trying to get a parcel to you. Some scammers may pretend to be a government department offering you the winter fuel payment, for example. Look closely and be careful of fake website links, texts or QR codes – and don't click on any links!
In the shot above, you can see a text claiming to be from the DWP –but it has come from a random number with no name, and asks you to apply through a link made to look like an official government website (note: the real DWP would never do this. If you are eligible, you will get the winter fuel payment automatically).
You can report scam emails to the National Cyber Security Centre on report@phishing.gov.uk. Action Fraud, at www.actionfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040, can help if you have already lost money or been hacked as a result of a scam. Contact your bank straight away if you think you might have been the victim of a scam.
Action Fraud raise awareness of ’12 frauds of Christmas’ at this time of year, and it is worth taking a look, as methods used by scammers change quickly with new technology.
Out in the real world, people aren’t always aware they have borrowed from a loan shark until it’s too late. Things can quickly turn nasty as they demand repayments and issue threats of violence when you can’t pay.
Warning signs to look out for include being given no paperwork or details about the loan; the lender demanding repayments that add up to much more than you initially borrowed; being intimidated or threatened by the lender; or the lender demanding you hand over items like bank cards or a passport until you can pay.
You can call Stop Loan Sharks on their 24-hour confidential hotline 0300 555 2222, text a report to 07860 022116, or e-mail reportaloanshark@stoploansharks.gov.uk.
Remember you have done nothing wrong if you have borrowed from a loan shark. It is the lender who has committed a crime.
