A Halton resident has recently received several scam phone calls telling him that the insurance cover on his washing machine was due to expire.
Luckily, in this case, the person receiving the call became suspicious it was a scam and did not give out any payment information. His suspicions arose when he didn’t recognise the name of the scam insurance company and he also knew that his insurance wasn’t about to run out.
By cold calling, bogus callers will try to catch consumers off their guard and trick them into thinking that they need cover or the cover that they do have is expiring. They will try to get you to pay a fee over the phone to supposedly ‘renew’ the cover.
Either the policy will not exist, or it is unnecessary or not needed.
Halton Borough Council’s Executive Board Member for Consumer Protection, Cllr Dave Cargill, said: “If you have any concerns about a policy always contact your insurer directly with the contact details you already have for them.
“If you really do need to renew a policy then always shop around and check how much protection the cover gives you.”
If you or somebody you know has been caught out by a fraud please contact one of our specialist officers, Linda or Sue on 0151 511 8785 or 0151 511 8775, who are already working with people in Halton who have lost thousands of pounds to scams.
If you need advice on anything else please contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline or 03454 04 05 06