Newport City Council trading standards issues warning over COVID-19-related opportunist scammers
Posted on Tuesday 24th March 2020
Newport City Council’s trading standards team are urging local residents to be aware of doorstep callers in their area during a time where people are self-isolating or social distancing to help combat COVID-19 coronavirus.
Individuals and organised groups of criminals have been looking to capitalise on the current situation by attempting to take advantage of consumers and businesses.
The team has been made aware of doorstep callers trying to obtain gardening work, and urges residents to be aware of doorstep callers attempting to undertake unnecessary or overpriced property repairs and gardening work.
The team further urges residents not to deal with cold callers at any time, to be particularly vigilant against those who may seek to exploit the current situation, and to take extra care of vulnerable residents to protect them from scams.
Nationally, there have been reports of frauds relating to the supply of face masks, illegal hand sanitiser and fraudsters trying to obtain personal information by posing as a bank, police or health officials.
One specific scam claims to be from the government offering a tax rebate in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The fraudulent activity is being carried out over the phone and via email which in turn has seen victims provide their financial details or attachments that may contain dangerous malware.
Do not to respond to unsolicited emails and keep in mind that genuine emails from a bank, police, health officials or government body will never ask for your bank details over the phone, email or post.
Should you require consumer or business advice please contact the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06. Alternatively you can use this link provided by the Citizens Advice that assists as a scam checker.