From October qualifying households will begin receiving £400 off their energy bills to help people across the winter. However, fraudsters are trying to take advantage of this support by concocting a series of schemes in a brand new wave of fraud.
ofgem (Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) wishes to warn the UK about “rising reports” of scammers attempting to impersonate ofgem and legitimate energy firms.
Their post read: “There are rising reports of text, email and phone scams impersonating energy firms e.g. from thieves saying your energy supply has switched and asking for your payment details.”
An example of an email of this kind alleging to be from Ofgem reads;
“The Government has announced a package of support to help households with rising energy bills.
“This includes a £200 discount on their energy bill this autumn for domestic electricity customers and a £250 non-repayable council tax rebate for all households liable for council tax.
“Payment will be processed straight into your bank account. You can get your rebate via Ofgem portal by clicking the button below.”
If the button is clicked the button the person will be redirected towards an official-looking website which asks for their personal details such as bank account information which the scammers then harvest.
The energy regulator has warned fraudsters may try to contact people in the following ways:
- Knocking at your door
- Phone call
- Social media
- Pop-up message on a website
- Instant message
- Text message
REMEMBER
Ofgem states:
“We would never ask for your bank details in any circumstances with regards to energy bills. These are energy scams. Ofgem would never sell you energy, ask for personal information or come to your property.”
Ofgem advice
- Reject, refuse or ignore contact from “Ofgem” that looks or sounds unusual, such as a request for your bank or personal details. We never ask for this information
- Check email addresses. Any emails to or from Ofgem always end @ofgem.gov.uk
- Check branding. The Ofgem logo will always be present in our communications. It should never look stretched, blurry or distorted
- Only criminals will try to rush or panic you