HMRC.......surely THIS cant be a scam :)

[Dave7]

I received an email from HMRC to say I had over-paid and will be receiving £425 off them. Now (what a surprise) they cannot pay by cheque so I have to give them my bank & credit card details.

I heard on the news that £Ms are scammed successfully each year, mainly off the elderley. It's hard to believe that people do fall for it but it must work.
I suppose that these scammers work on 1% success i.e. if just 1-in-100 fall for it then they get rich.
BTW....for scammers-read b*@#~*ds.

 

[Drago]

Just give them fake details, give them sonething to get frustrated over.

 

[rich p]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

 

[tadpole]

I received an email from HMRC to say I had over-paid and will be receiving £425 off them. Now (what a surprise) they cannot pay by cheque so I have to give them my bank & credit card details.

I heard on the news that £Ms are scammed successfully each year, mainly off the elderley. It's hard to believe that people do fall for it but it must work.
I suppose that these scammers work on 1% success i.e. if just 1-in-100 fall for it then they get rich.
BTW....for scammers-read b*@#~*ds.

Why would they need you to give them details that they would already have. and why credit card details

 

[Andrew_Culture]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

I've wondered that, in fact I've seen some companies give out bank details on their website!

 

[Dave7]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

If you buy something on line or over the phone you give them your card details plus the 3 didgit security number on the back and they are then able to take this from your account. I assume that dodgy people can do the same?

Or maybe they just want the details so they can purchase items on line with your card.....even If you wise up within, say, 48 hours a lot of damage could already be done.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

perhaps it is the credit card details they are after... we all know just how easy it is to use someone elses card (married life can be so much fun!) and have it shipped to another location...

 

[asterix]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

Credit card details don't appear on my cheques. Having your account number is valueless. When I call my bank they always want to know my dog's mother's maiden name's date of birth. And its pin number's third digit's favourite colour.

Never let your card out of your sight when paying for something, however dodgy websites that let hackers in mean your card details can go astray.

IME HMRC always send a cheque for tax refunds. It doesn't happen to me very often though!

 

[ColinJ]

How do scammers get money from bank details? They appear on cheques anyway.

Ask Jeremy Clarkson!

 

[Speicher]

I think the HMRC will send you a letter informing you of the refund. The "Cheque" will arrive separately, iIrc.

 

[EltonFrog]

I think the HMRC will send you a letter informing you of the refund. The "Cheque" will arrive separately, iIrc.

This is my experience too. It is highly unlikely that HRMC will send an email asking for any details at all, I strongly suspect that it's a sam.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

ring hmrc up and check...

 

[summerdays]

I think the HMRC will send you a letter informing you of the refund. The "Cheque" will arrive separately, iIrc.

I think that is what happened to me. I certainly received a letter saying they had been checking my previous years and found I had overpaid about 4 years previously. I'm sure it was repaid in the form of a cheque.

 

[Speicher]

I think this is a scam Dave7. I have a vague memory of receiving something similar.

 

[TVC]

Simple test: Did it have your NI number on it?
If no, it's a scam. If yes, it's still a scam but they've got your NI number.