Spot the scam, stop the scam

Shropshire Council’s public protection team is launching a month-long campaign ‘spot the scam, stop the scam’ to raise awareness of a cruel crime that damages consumer confidence, and at worst, blights the lives of victims and their families.

It follows the recent announcement of a new agreement between trading standards and Royal Mail to tackle scam mail in the postal system.

The joint initiative between Royal Mail, the National Trading Standards Scams Team for England and Wales, and Trading Standards Scotland, creates a new, improved process for cancelling the contracts of companies that send fraudulent mail.

Under the initiative, the council’s public protection team will determine whether a mailing is fraudulent and alert Royal Mail, before writing to the identified company requesting they stop posting the items.

Alongside this, Royal Mail will warn the company about its actions before cancelling its contract if it continues to post fraudulent items.

Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member with responsibility for public protection, said:

“Being aware of scams is key to stopping them.  Scammers deliberately target the elderly and vulnerable – so we must ensure they get the protection they need.

“I am extremely pleased that this initiative has been introduced.  Stopping fraudulent mail from entering the postal system will better protect the most vulnerable of people and mean they won’t become victims of targeted, and often cleverly-worded, traps designed to part them from their savings.

“If you believe you or a family member are receiving potentially fraudulent mail please report it.  We can then work with the relevant authorities to investigate and take action.”

Should you receive any scam mail, or know of anyone experiencing problems with continuous telephone calls from persistent cold callers, you can contact the Citizens Advice Bureau Consumer Service on 03454 040506 to report the incident, or Shropshire Council’s customer services on 0345 678 9000.