Dear Which,
I recently received a text message that said I'd been exposed to coronavirus and needed to submit my details online.
A couple of days later, I was called by someone who claimed to be from Barclays. The caller said my bank account had been compromised and that I must move my money into two new 'safe' accounts.
In total I transferred £56,000, only to later realise that I'd been scammed.
When I contacted Barclays, it told me I didn't qualify for reimbursement as I was responsible for transferring the money.
Could you help?
Martha Robertson*
Put to Rights
Tali Ramsey, consumer rights expert at Which?, says:This type of scam is called authorised push payment (APP) fraud. It can have awful consequences, and it's easy to see how anyone could fall victim.
In this instance, the scammer called you from what appeared to be a genuine Barclays phone number, albeit with one additional digit.
Getting your money back can be difficult. Many banks (including Barclays) are signed up to a code under which they agree to reimburse innocent scam victims, but all interpret this code differently and assess reports on a case-by-case basis.
In addition to the code, banks should follow guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on offering fair treatment to customers if they're experiencing circumstances that could make them more vulnerable to fraud.
You'd recently experienced the breakdown of a long-term relationship, and this is listed as one of the FCA's 'drivers' of vulnerability.
We contacted Barclays and explained this, and it agreed to reimburse you your losses in full. It said it encourages customers to inform them of these kinds of circumstances.
Barclays said: ‘We have every sympathy with our customer who was the victim of a sophisticated impersonation scam, and we hope that the police urgently investigate this matter and bring the criminal to justice.
‘We urge everyone to take appropriate steps to verify that the person they are speaking to is who they believe it is. No genuine bank or trusted organisation will ever say your money isn’t safe and should be moved to a different account.
'If you receive such a request or are told your bank or its staff are under investigation, end the conversation.’
Need to know
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*name changed
source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/i-lost-56000-to-a-bank-transfer-scam-can-you-help-me-get-my-money-back-a0Bsl1A42vrH