Spotting claims and refund scams
Wherever there is publicity about compensation, fraud follows. Criminals know that a message about money you are "owed" gets opened. Here is how these approaches actually work, and the lines a legitimate firm will never cross.
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Why this topic attracts fraud
Compensation stories create three things fraudsters rely on: a plausible reason to make contact, a sum of money to dangle, and enough genuine complexity that people are unsure what the real process looks like. A message claiming you are due £3,200 from a lender does not sound absurd, because for some people it is roughly true.
The common patterns
The specific-sum text
An unexpected message states a precise amount you are owed and gives a link. The precision is the trick: it feels like it came from a record. Genuine redress does not begin with an unsolicited text containing a link.
The "deadline today" call
Urgency suppresses checking. Real deadlines exist, but they are published by regulators and ombudsmen, not delivered by a stranger insisting on a decision within the hour.
The upfront fee
An "administration fee", "court fee" or "release fee" is requested before your money can be sent. There is no legitimate version of this in consumer redress.
The clone
A real firm's name, logo and even Register number are copied, with contact details changed. The details are genuine; the contact route is not.
The recovery-room follow-up
Someone who has already lost money is contacted by a "recovery" service promising to get it back for a fee. Victim lists circulate, so a second approach after a first loss is a strong warning sign.
The remote-access request
You are asked to install software so they can "process the refund", then shown a screen suggesting you have been overpaid and must return the difference.
What nobody legitimate will ask for
- Your banking password, PIN, or a one-time passcode. Never, under any circumstance.
- An upfront payment to release compensation.
- Remote access to your computer or phone to arrange a refund.
- Payment in gift cards, vouchers or cryptocurrency.
- A transfer to a "safe account". Banks do not do this.
How to verify independently
- Stop. Do not use the link, number or email address in the message.
- Find the official contact route yourself, by typing the organisation's address into your browser, or using the number on your card or statement.
- Check the Financial Services Register for regulated firms, and confirm the contact details there rather than the ones you were given.
- Take your time. Legitimate processes survive a twenty-four hour pause. Fraud rarely does.
- Talk to someone. Saying the offer out loud to a friend or family member is a remarkably effective test.
If you have already paid or shared details
- Contact your bank immediately using the number on your card, and tell them you believe you have been scammed.
- Report it to Action Fraud, the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime. In Scotland, report to Police Scotland.
- Change passwords for any account whose details you shared, and enable two-factor authentication.
- If you gave remote access, disconnect the device from the internet and have it checked before using it for banking.
- Keep everything: messages, numbers, payment references. It supports both the bank investigation and the report.
You may be able to recover money in some circumstances, and a complaint about how your bank handled it can go to the Financial Ombudsman Service free of charge. Do not pay anyone who offers to recover the funds for a fee.
General information only, not legal advice. If you are in immediate danger of losing money, contact your bank first.