Tax scams
Fraudsters exploit every opportunity to steal your money, and as the tax deadline approaches, the banking industry is seeing an in increase in tax-related scams. Typically, the fraudster will contact you via a phone call or text message purporting to be from HMRC. They may say you are due a tax rebate and ask for your banking details to process this, or they may say there is an irregularity with your tax return and threaten penalty charges if you do not send money immediately via a bank transfer.
Please remember that HMRC will never contact you out of the blue, demanding instant payment or personal information. If you receive any such text messages, please do not respond. If you are targeted by telephone, please do not engage in conversation, as this could place you at risk. Instead, end the call immediately and telephone the bank, preferably on a separate device.
Equally, it is always a good idea to double-check the receiving account number when you are making payments to HMRC. You can verify information about tax bills here: Dealing with HMRC: Paying HMRC - detailed information - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
You can read about other scams in circulation in our Staying Safe from Fraud guide.
