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Checkaco News: England’s Wembley Euro Final Ticket scam warning; credit card fraud; and the Financial Conduct Authority’s report on the Premier FX investment scandal Don’t let football fever go to your head With England’s football team achieving success in the 2021 European Football competition hundreds of fans are desperate for tickets for the final. Logging onto the internet there are tickets for sale on sites like ebay – with prices around £4,000 for a seat at Wembley. If you have the cash why not? Stop right there. There are rogues out there offering what appear to be genuine tickets but are forgeries meaning you’ll be paying for a piece of paper, or they are genuine but are offering them to more than one buyer but collecting the cash from several punters – none of whom get the tickets. And there are criminal gangs who set up fake websites to attract buyers – the sites look genuine but have a slightly different address to official UEFA approved sellers or well-known ticket shop sites. If they ask you to do a direct bank transfer and put pressure on you to agree – stop! You are simply paying someone for nothing. Do a Checkaco credit check and find out if they are legitimate or if they have a dodgy credit history. Get the low down on any firm, company or business for £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ Have you been affected by this? Leave a comment at https://checkaco.com/blog/  Credit Card fraudOne of the golden rules of buying online given out by experts is never do a direct bank transfer – but use a credit card. If the purchase turns out to be a con you’ll get your money back – and if the card is stolen or skimmed, the credit card firm will reimburse you. Not necessarily is the advice from Checkaco. Number one – do a credit check on the firm you are buying from for £7.95 as that will reveal if they are rogues. Under the 1974 Consumer Credit Act unauthorised payments from your card are covered as indeed are fraudulent payments, but there are exemptions. If your card is lost or stolen you are liable in most cases for the first £50 – and you must report the loss immediately. And a bank can also refuse to pay back the cash if you leave reporting the loss for months and if they can prove you actually authorised the transaction – and it was not by a thief. Another exemption is when the card holder buys something and pretends their card was used by a thief or fraudster in order to have the goods and get their money back. Or they can refuse if you admit to not concealing your pin number and password – for example writing your PIN down on some paper that lives in your wallet with your card or emailing it to someone else Get the low down on any firm, company or business for £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ Have you been affected by this? Leave a comment at https://checkaco.com/blog/  Broker scammersThe police have revealed how investors are being scammed by criminals posing at legitimate businesses such as Aviva and Aberdeen Standard Investments. On average victims lose a quarter of a million pounds a day with an average of £45,242 going missing from their bank accounts according to Action Fraud – the investigative branch of online fraud by the Force. Victims were asked to transfer money to third-party accounts claiming to be legitimate brokerages operating on behalf of investment companies. To convince the victims they are genuine the scammers set up accounts with high street banks such as the Bank of Scotland and NatWest. The victims respond to emails which suggest they will make huge profits if they invest in what appear to be well known firms. Of course, they are not but the scammers alter the web address of the bank or investment company and direct the victims to the fake website. Once the victim trusts the scammer they are asked for their personal information and bank details which allows the fraudsters to empty their bank account. The Online Safety Bill is currently making its way through Parliament. It is hoped the new law when it eventually is passed will help to stamp out some of the fraud by forcing the internet providers to ban fake adverts. Whether this happens is still up for debate with people like Martin Lewis on ITV’s morning programme championing some of its aspects. Get the low down on any firm, company or business for £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ Have you been affected by this? Leave a comment at https://checkaco.com/blog/  Scandal of Premier FXThree years ago Checkaco warned the public about investment firm Premier FX which did not abide the conventions of industry standards in the way it was set up and conducted its work in particular having only one shareholder and director in Peter Rexstrew. Soon afterwards he died leaving a mess and his family discovering Premier FX appeared to have none of the millions it pretended to have. The investors were mostly members of the public who collectively lost £9.2m.Reuters reported this year: “Premier FX was regulated by the FCA for money transfers. But it misled customers into believing it could also hold their funds indefinitely in secure, segregated client accounts, protected by Britain’s financial services compensation scheme. The FCA said Peter Rexstrew, the sole shareholder and director, controlled its operations, restricted access to its bank accounts and dealt with nearly all transactions. He died in 2018, when his children were appointed directors and the firm unravelled.” If investors had done a credit check with Checkaco they would have discovered Peter Rexstrew’s credit history and that of his company and would have run a mile rather than invest in his firm. Get the low down on any firm, company or business for £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ Have you been affected by this? Leave a comment at https://checkaco.com/blog/  Reminder about paying cash in hand Many of us will have paid cash to a builder, a mechanic, a plumber or electrician for a job that would have cost much more with a bigger company. Cash in hand is fine as both sides of the deal understand this is essentially a tax free job. But what happens if the tradesman is a limited company and goes bust or declares a personal bankruptcy with your deposit or full payment before the work is done? When that happens, you have lost your money and there is no redress. It is one of those cases where if the trader had taken a credit card payment you could have been repaid. But with no paper trail or no cheque there is no record and no chance of a refund. Always check out a business – even if the owners are friends to see if they have a dodgy financial background.Get the low down on any firm, company or business for £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ Have you been affected by this? Leave a comment at https://checkaco.com/blog/ There are rogues out there who pose as legitimate businesses or are firms with terrible credit histories. Before you pay a cash deposit to them do a credit check with Checkaco for £7.95 and see if they are legitimate. All firms have tell-tale credit histories which reveal if they can be trusted with your money. Checkaco’s credit checks are accurate and up to date so you can spot if the trader you choose is safe – and won’t go bust. Get the low down on any firm or individual at https://checkaco.com/ The ratings are poor, fair, good or excellent – find out all their details now for just £7.95 at https://checkaco.com/ For details about Checkaco email info@checkaco.com or visit the website https://checkaco.com/ Checkaco, The Exchange, Express Park, Bristol Road, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 4RR UK |
