Coronavirus advance fee fraud: the NHS has warned households to be vigilant about fraudsters sending out fake invitations to have the coronavirus vaccination.
The warning comes amid an increasing number of complaints being made about scammers attempting steal individuals’ personal details or extract payments from them. According to Action Fraud, there have been more than 1,000 reports of email scams claiming to offer vaccines in just 24 hours this week.
In one case, a 92-year-old woman in London was charged £160 and administered with a fake vaccine, which she was told would be reimbursed to her by the NHS.
Fraudsters are also sending out scam emails which include a link to register for the vaccine, and asking individuals to provide their bank details to verify their identification or make payment.
The NHS says that it would never ask for bank details, as the vaccine is free and no registration is required either.
These scams are, of course, classic examples of advance fee frauds. An advance fee fraud is one of the most common types of confidence tricks, and typically involves promising the victim a significant share or a large sum of money, or in this case a highly sought after vaccination, in return for a small amount of money up front.
For more information on how our expert fraud solicitors can help you, visit our Advance Fee Fraud Page
If you would like to know how NHS would contact you, follow this link:
Coronavirus Scam
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