Every major UK scam. Plain English. No bullshit.
Share this. Someone you know is about to get robbed.
Ever. Under any circumstances. Full stop. If someone asks — it's a scam.
Got a suspicious call from your bank, HMRC, police? Hang up. Find the official number yourself. Call back. Real organisations are fine with this.
Real banks, real HMRC, real police don't panic you into acting in the next 10 minutes. Pressure = scam. Always.
40% returns. Dream job. Free money. Beautiful stranger falling in love. None of it is real.
Someone calls pretending to be your bank, the police, or HMRC. They say your account has been hacked or there's suspicious activity. They panic you into moving your money to a "safe account." That account is theirs.
Unexpected call about fraud on your account
Asked to move money to "protect" it
Told to keep it secret from family
Pressured to act NOW
Hang up immediately
Wait 5 minutes (scammers stay on the line)
Call your bank on the number on the back of your card
Never move money because someone told you to on the phone
Fake investment platforms promising huge returns — crypto, forex, gold, "exclusive opportunities." Many run as actual paid ads on Instagram and Facebook. Some use fake celebrity endorsements. You put money in, watch it "grow" on a fake dashboard, then try to withdraw and it's gone.
Guaranteed returns of 20-40%+
Pressure to invest quickly before opportunity closes
Celebrity endorsement (always fake)
Can't withdraw your money easily
Found via Instagram/Facebook ad
Check the FCA register before investing anything: register.fca.org.uk
If it's not on there — don't touch it
Report fake ads directly to the platform
Someone attractive matches with you online. They're perfect. They fall for you fast. They never meet in person — always an excuse. Then comes the crisis. They need money. Medical emergency, stuck abroad, business deal gone wrong. You send it. They disappear.
Too good to be true profile photos
Falls in love very quickly
Never available to video call (or bad connection)
Always has a crisis requiring money
Asks you to move to WhatsApp immediately
Reverse image search their photos (Google Images)
Never send money to someone you haven't met in person
Tell someone you trust — isolation is part of the scam
Report to Action Fraud: actionfraud.police.uk
Email or text pretending to be your bank, HMRC, Netflix, Amazon, Royal Mail. They want you to click a link and enter your details. The link goes to a fake website that harvests your login, card details, or password.
Urgency — "your account will be suspended"
Slightly wrong email address (amaz0n.com, lloyds-bank-secure.com)
Generic greeting ("Dear Customer")
Link doesn't match the company's real website
Never click links in unexpected emails or texts
Go directly to the website by typing it yourself
Forward suspicious texts to 7726 (free)
Forward suspicious emails to [email protected]
Text from an unknown number: "Hi Mum, I've lost my phone, this is my new number." Then they build conversation, create urgency — need money for a bill, emergency, stuck somewhere. Most parents send it without questioning because it feels real.
New number, says it's your child
Immediately needs money
Asks you not to call them (phone broken etc)
Urgency — needs it today, right now
Call your child on their old number immediately
Set up a family code word for real emergencies
Never send money without voice confirmation
Tell every parent you know about this one
Two versions. Buyer scam: they "overpay" by bank transfer and ask for the difference back — the original payment bounces. Seller scam: you pay for something, it never arrives, seller disappears.
Overpayment with refund request
Won't meet in person — only posts
Price suspiciously low
Wants payment via bank transfer not PayPal
New profile, no reviews
Meet in person for cash where possible
Use PayPal Goods and Services — has buyer protection
Never refund an overpayment before it clears (takes days)
If too good to be true — it is
Fake job offer — often "work from home, great pay, flexible hours." You get the job without a proper interview. Then they ask for money for a DBS check, equipment, training, or a starter kit. Or they ask for your bank details to "set up payroll" and drain your account.
Hired without a proper interview
Asked to pay anything upfront
Vague job description
Unusually high pay for easy work
Contacted out of nowhere on WhatsApp or Instagram
Legitimate employers never ask you to pay to work
Research the company independently
Never hand over bank details before your first payslip
Check the job on the company's official website
Two versions. Version 1: "You're owed a tax refund — click here to claim it." Harvests your details. Version 2: "You owe tax, there's a warrant for your arrest, pay now or police will come." Pure panic tactic. HMRC does neither of these things.
Unexpected tax refund offer
Threat of arrest or legal action
Demand for immediate payment — gift cards, crypto, bank transfer
Automated voice message
HMRC never demands immediate payment or threatens arrest by phone
HMRC never asks for payment by gift card or crypto
Check your actual tax position at gov.uk/personal-tax-account
Report to HMRC: [email protected]
Text saying your parcel couldn't be delivered, there's a small fee to redeliver — £1.99, £2.50. You pay. They now have your card details and charge whatever they want. The parcel doesn't exist.
Text about a parcel you weren't expecting
Small redelivery fee requested
Link to a fake Royal Mail / DPD / Evri website
URL doesn't match the real company
Real delivery companies don't charge redelivery fees by text
Check your actual deliveries by going to the app directly
Forward suspicious texts to 7726
Never enter card details on a site you reached via a text link
Pop-up on your screen says your computer is infected. Call this number immediately. Or a call from "Microsoft" or your internet provider saying your computer has a virus. They want remote access. Once in — they steal passwords, banking details, and sometimes directly transfer money.
Scary pop-up with a phone number
Unsolicited call about your computer or broadband
Asked to download remote access software
Microsoft / BT / Virgin never cold call about viruses
Close the pop-up — restart your computer if needed
Never call the number on a pop-up
Never give anyone remote access to your computer
Microsoft, BT and Virgin do NOT cold call about infections
Tell elderly relatives about this one specifically
Fake charities appear overnight after disasters, floods, wars, and emergencies. They collect donations that go straight to scammers. Also: door-to-door collectors with no ID, aggressive phone fundraisers, and social media posts with no traceable charity behind them.
Brand new charity with no history
No charity registration number
Pressure to donate immediately
Only accepts cash or bank transfer (not card)
Check the charity register: register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk
Donate directly via the charity's official website
Ask for ID from door-to-door collectors
If in doubt — find the charity yourself and donate directly
"Free trial — just pay £1.99 postage." Hidden in the terms: you're signing up for £49.99 a month. The charge appears weeks later with a vague company name. Cancelling is made deliberately difficult. Common with beauty products, weight loss supplements, and online services.
Free trial requiring card details
Vague "terms and conditions" checkbox
Company name on bank statement you don't recognise
Cancellation requires a phone call (not an email)
Use a prepaid card for free trials — limits what they can charge
Set a calendar reminder to cancel before the trial ends
Check your bank statement monthly for unknown subscriptions
Contact your bank to cancel continuous payment authority
Report to Trading Standards via Citizens Advice: 0808 223 1133
How you pay determines whether you get your money back if something goes wrong. This is the most important thing most people don't know.
If you buy something over £100 on a credit card and it goes wrong — the card company is jointly liable with the seller. That's Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. Legal right. Not optional. You can claim back from your card company even if the seller disappears.
Any big purchase. Holidays. Electronics. Anything over £100.
Pay it off in full every month — zero interest, maximum protection.
When you pay via PayPal Goods and Services (not Friends and Family), PayPal covers you if the item doesn't arrive or isn't as described. File a dispute, PayPal investigates, you usually get your money back.
Online purchases from individuals or small shops.
Never use Friends and Family for purchases — zero protection.
eBay's Money Back Guarantee covers almost every purchase. Item didn't arrive? Not as described? Open a case. eBay almost always sides with the buyer. One of the safest places to buy second hand.
Second hand goods, electronics, clothing.
Always pay through eBay's checkout — never off-platform.
Paying by bank transfer to someone you don't know is the riskiest way to pay. If it's a scam — recovering the money is very difficult. Scammers always push for bank transfer for this reason.
Marketplace purchases from strangers
Anything where you don't fully trust the seller
Anyone who refuses PayPal or card
Most people don't know this exists. A chargeback is when your bank reverses a payment you didn't authorise or where goods weren't delivered. It works on debit cards AND credit cards. It's free. Do it immediately.
The sooner the better. Tell them exactly what happened. Ask specifically for a chargeback. Don't just say "I've been scammed" — say "I want to raise a chargeback claim please."
If you paid on a credit card for something over £100 — also claim under Section 75. Stronger protection than chargeback. Both are free.
If your bank refuses a legitimate chargeback — complain formally. Then take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service. Free. They rule in favour of customers more often than banks like.
FINANCIAL OMBUDSMAN →From October 2024 banks must reimburse APP fraud up to £85,000. But banks are fighting back with the Consumer Warning model. Read the section below before assuming you'll get it back.
The ombudsman is getting slower. Banks are getting better at avoiding payouts. The only guaranteed protection is not getting scammed in the first place.
Current reality as of March 2026 — not what the banks tell you.
Every time you send a payment your bank flashes a warning. "Are you sure? Could this be a scam?" You click yes and continue. That click is logged. If you later claim you were scammed the bank says: we warned you, you proceeded, liability is yours. That's the Consumer Warning Recognition model and it's being used to deny more and more claims every month.
Clicking through a warning weakens your claim significantly
Banks argue "fair warning was given"
The more warnings you clicked — the harder to claim back
Getting more common every month in 2026
Document everything BEFORE you send — screenshots of conversation, listing, profile
Explain clearly WHY you believed it was legitimate despite the warning
The ombudsman looks at the full picture not just whether you clicked
Vulnerability counts — if you were pressured, unwell, or manipulated say so explicitly
Neobanks run on thin margins and AI-driven compliance. No branch manager. No human judgment call. Their systems are colder, faster, and more likely to auto-deny claims. Revolut especially — your scam claim faces a harder fight than with any high street bank.
Automated decisions by algorithm
Harder to reach a real human
Faster to deny, slower to resolve
Less regulated on fraud reimbursement than traditional banks
Always escalate in writing — creates a paper trail for the ombudsman
Complain formally first — required before ombudsman accepts it
Give them 8 weeks then escalate immediately
Financial Ombudsman is aware of the neobank pattern
Keep every screenshot, message, and transaction reference
Screenshot everything — profile, listing, conversation
Use credit card or PayPal G&S — stronger protection than bank transfer
For bank transfers — send £1 first, confirm receipt, then send the rest
If something feels off — stop. Call someone you trust first.
Never transfer money under time pressure. Ever.
Every report helps catch the scammers and warn others. Takes 5 minutes. Do it.
Lost money to a bank transfer scam? Contact your bank immediately and ask about the Authorised Push Payment reimbursement scheme. Banks are now required to reimburse most victims.
Forward suspicious texts: 7726 (free, works on all networks)
Forward suspicious emails: [email protected]
Report fake HMRC: [email protected]