Debt advice: Consumers warned of scam risk

02/02/2010

A report from the Office for Fair Trading (OFT) has found that over four million adults have responded to a scam at some time in their life.

Nearly a third of these lost money.

While for many the amounts lost were negligible, five per cent lost over £5,000 - risking significant personal debt.

The OFT is launching a campaign which it hopes will tackle the issue by encouraging people to send in any suspected scam emails or letters.

Gillian Guy, chief executive of victim support, commented: "Scams can have a devastating impact on people's lives.

"Stigma or embarrassment can wrongly make victims think they are to blame, and discourage them from reporting these crimes or seeking help."

Some general advice was issued by the OFT to help consumers avoid falling into a scammer's trap.

Advice warned consumers that if something sounds too good to be true it probably is and urged them to think about how much money they risk losing when replying to a potential scam.

Posted by Jim Mead

Tags; Budgeting Advice,

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