Post Office hails scam buster plan

Feb 20 2009 by Our Correspondent, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

A BIG County post office boss has praised a high profile scheme to crack down on scam mailings.

During February’s Scams Awareness Month, PKC’s Trading Standards Service is asking members of the public to collect any potential scam mailings they have received and drop them into designated bins at public buildings.

Locally, bins are situated in each Council area office, at sheltered housing complexes, at Pullar House in Perth and in participating post offices – including Scone Sub Post Office, which is run by Councillor Lewis Simpson.

Councillor Simpson said: “Scam mailings collected from the Scamnesty bins could provide important intelligence to Trading Standards and the OFT, help to inform future investigations, and prevent others from being scammed. I was only too happy to be able to take part in this campaign.

“Locally, our Trading Standards Team has seen a significant rise in the number of people within Perth and Kinross who have been duped by scams which have cost the victims significant sums of money and, in one case, will probably cost the victim his home.

“I would urge anyone who receives what they think is a piece of scam mail to drop it in one of the Scamnesty bins before the end of the month, or they can report it to our Trading Standards service anytime.”

Examples of scams dealt with by local Trading Standards staff include:

An elderly lady in her nineties who sent £4000 to bogus clairvoyants

A 55-year-old man who sent around £29,000 pounds to a Costa Rican based lottery scam

An 80-year-old man in the early stages of dementia who was being systematically relieved of his money by advertising companies who sent couriers to collect cheques from him.

To find out the location of the Scamnesty bins or if you would like to discuss in confidence any issues relating to either you or your relatives being the victim of a scam, call the Council’s Trading Standards Service on 01738 476476.

Scam e-mails can be forwarded to enquiries@pkc.gov.uk and marked for the attention of Trading Standards.