Kent Trading Standards Warning on OFT Phone Scam

3.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 5th Sep 2007

Kent Trading Standards has been made aware of a scam involving consumers being telephoned by people alleging to be from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) asking for personal and financial information. This includes asking for bank account details in order for the OFT "to reclaim bank charges on behalf of consumers".

The Office of Fair Trading is a government department and therefore consumers could easily be misled into thinking that such requests are legitimate. They are not.These callers have no connection with the OFT, and their sole intention is to use the information for identity theft or to run up bills or commit crimes using stolen details.

The OFT will never contact consumers asking them for personal bank details.

Kent Trading Standards and the OFT are warning consumers not to pass on personal or financial information to cold callers either over the phone or via email. If they have already done so they should contact their bank as soon as possible and review their credit card and bank account statements to see if there have been any unauthorised transactions.