Current Scams...

[Baron99 778]

23 hours ago, RiffRaff said:

And here's one that turned out to be not one, but I'll list it anyway in case anyone else gets a similar email!

 

Yesterday late morning - an email from BT to the account holder here.

Instantly suspicious, but everything appeared - and was - OK, even down to the correct BT account number, phone numbers (checked elsewhere first) and return email address, etc. etc.

The reason my attention was drawn to it was the heading - "We're sorry you're leaving us".

Eh?!

"Your line will cease at 2pm, 20 August as per your instructions."

 

Contacted them immediately, only to find that, at 9.17 yesterday morning, someone had contacted BT and told them that we were leaving BT for a competitor. I managed to reassure them that that wasn't the case, got the operative to void the cancellation order, and then started the obvious line of questioning...

 

Now before some smarty-pants on here claims that the above can't possibly be right, let me assure you that it's not something that Joe Public can do - for example, you can't have a grudge against a neighbour and get BT to pull their service out of spite - because you'll get the 3rd degree with security questions, account number, bill details, etc.

No - this was instigated by a competitor, and confirmed by BT - they get "quite a few from time to time..."

Virgin.

Some department at Virgin is the culprit.

 

Now consider this. I might not have seen/read the email. I might've been away from home for a few days.

I would've picked the phone up or tried to make a call after 2.01 pm tomorrow to discover "no line".

Accordingly, I've been expecting a call from Virgin bragging about their excellent service/deals, and (probably) saying that they have taken over BT's customers due to some business deal or other.

I defy them to call me, me knowing what I know now.

 

So be careful.

If you get an email with "Leaving BT: here's a summary of what happens and any charges" in the subject line, it isn't a scam in the usual sense...

 

 

 

 

 

If you've got all the email evidence from BT, I'd be tempted to drop Virgin in it by making a referral to the Communications Ombudsman. 

 

https://www.ombudsman-services.org/sectors/communications

[RiffRaff 10]

2 hours ago, Baron99 said:

If you've got all the email evidence from BT, I'd be tempted to drop Virgin in it by making a referral to the Communications Ombudsman. 

 

https://www.ombudsman-services.org/sectors/communications

Tempting!

Well, it's over an hour since the "deadline" of 2pm, and thankfully we're (still) up and running, so it seems as though BT did indeed cancel the cancellation, if you see what I mean.

(I was still half-expecting the line to be pulled!)

Obviously I still have the original BT email, but the revelations about Virgin's underhand activities were verbal from BT's 0800 028 3098 number when I queried what was going on...

What intrigues me is, had I missed the email or been away, I would've presumably come back to no landline/broadband. I'd obviously have contacted BT regarding "a fault", to be told what exactly?

To contact Virgin?

When I've had no connection (in any sense) with them, at any time?

Would they have denied everything?

I can't see how I would look at them in a good light, can you?!

The whole thing stinks...

 

[Dardandec 32]

On 19/08/2020 at 13:47, RiffRaff said:

And here's one that turned out to be not one, but I'll list it anyway in case anyone else gets a similar email!

 

Yesterday late morning - an email from BT to the account holder here.

Instantly suspicious, but everything appeared - and was - OK, even down to the correct BT account number, phone numbers (checked elsewhere first) and return email address, etc. etc.

The reason my attention was drawn to it was the heading - "We're sorry you're leaving us".

Eh?!

"Your line will cease at 2pm, 20 August as per your instructions."

 

Contacted them immediately, only to find that, at 9.17 yesterday morning, someone had contacted BT and told them that we were leaving BT for a competitor. I managed to reassure them that that wasn't the case, got the operative to void the cancellation order, and then started the obvious line of questioning...

 

Now before some smarty-pants on here claims that the above can't possibly be right, let me assure you that it's not something that Joe Public can do - for example, you can't have a grudge against a neighbour and get BT to pull their service out of spite - because you'll get the 3rd degree with security questions, account number, bill details, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Little true anecdote for you that happened to us about 4 years  ago. Ordered a smart meter from our energy supplier only to be told they couldn't supply one because we had switched suppliers to EDL energy about six weeks earlier. Having explained we had done no such thing they did sort it out. Turned out one of our neighbours had somehow botched an energy switch at their address and put our house number instead. Wouldn't  have thought it would be that easy.

[saywhatnow 33]

On 19/08/2020 at 13:47, RiffRaff said:

And here's one that turned out to be not one, but I'll list it anyway in case anyone else gets a similar email!

 

Yesterday late morning - an email from BT to the account holder here.

Instantly suspicious, but everything appeared - and was - OK, even down to the correct BT account number, phone numbers (checked elsewhere first) and return email address, etc. etc.

The reason my attention was drawn to it was the heading - "We're sorry you're leaving us".

Eh?!

"Your line will cease at 2pm, 20 August as per your instructions."

 

Contacted them immediately, only to find that, at 9.17 yesterday morning, someone had contacted BT and told them that we were leaving BT for a competitor. I managed to reassure them that that wasn't the case, got the operative to void the cancellation order, and then started the obvious line of questioning...

 

Now before some smarty-pants on here claims that the above can't possibly be right, let me assure you that it's not something that Joe Public can do - for example, you can't have a grudge against a neighbour and get BT to pull their service out of spite - because you'll get the 3rd degree with security questions, account number, bill details, etc.

No - this was instigated by a competitor, and confirmed by BT - they get "quite a few from time to time..."

Virgin.

Some department at Virgin is the culprit.

 

Now consider this. I might not have seen/read the email. I might've been away from home for a few days.

I would've picked the phone up or tried to make a call after 2.01 pm tomorrow to discover "no line".

Accordingly, I've been expecting a call from Virgin bragging about their excellent service/deals, and (probably) saying that they have taken over BT's customers due to some business deal or other.

I defy them to call me, me knowing what I know now.

 

So be careful.

If you get an email with "Leaving BT: here's a summary of what happens and any charges" in the subject line, it isn't a scam in the usual sense...

 

 

 

 

 

It doesn't make a lot of sense to me that Virgin would do that maliciously, they don't have your bank details to take payment. But if that is their tactic I can only assume the plan is to aggressively contact their new customers after the switch hoping to bully vulnerable people into giving over their details which is appalling behaviour.

 

Edited August 21, 2020 by saywhatnow

[RiffRaff 10]

9 hours ago, saywhatnow said:

It doesn't make a lot of sense to me that Virgin would do that maliciously, they don't have your bank details to take payment. But if that is their tactic I can only assume the plan is to aggressively contact their new customers after the switch hoping to bully vulnerable people into giving over their details which is appalling behaviour.

 

BT don't have our bank details either! We pay on receipt of a quarterly bill, rather than DD.

We've had a letter from BT - posted 18th, arrived this morning - headed "We're sorry you're leaving"!

"Just make you contact us before 2pm on 20the August (!) as that's the latest we can change things before you move. If we don't hear from you by then, your services will automatically move on 24 August 2020."

 

 

 

 

[saywhatnow 33]

Fair enough. Just doesn't seem a very efficient scam for a big company such as Virgin. If it happened to me I'd refuse to pay and they'd be out of pocket. 

[RiffRaff 10]

7 hours ago, saywhatnow said:

Fair enough. Just doesn't seem a very efficient scam for a big company such as Virgin. If it happened to me I'd refuse to pay and they'd be out of pocket. 

Yes, it'll be interesting to see what happens on the 24th!

 

 

[RollingJ 1,999]

RiffRaff - it will be interesting, especially as a switch from BT to Virgin involves an engineer visit to install the VM service.

[pintor 32]

Quote

 

Amazon emailed me yesterday, saying all my payments to them on my orders will be stopped if I don't change details etc, haven't ordered anything from them in years, email  was very basic looking so marked it phishing scam and deleted! 

[Fiat500 17]

28 minutes ago, pintor said:

Amazon emailed me yesterday, saying all my payments to them on my orders will be stopped if I don't change details etc, haven't ordered anything from them in years, email  was very basic looking so marked it phishing scam and deleted! 

I had one this week same sort of thing only wasn't from Amazon but 'amaozon'. Just sent to Amazon phishing email address.

[cressida 1,551]

Not sure if this is a scam,  I ordered an item and they sent  a similar item,  I also had notification from Paypal about three times asking me to pay,  fortunately I had proof the item was paid for and sent a copy to them,  they now want me to pay to send the unwanted item back to them and pay customs charges,  I said no  it was their mistake and I would contact paypal - today they said they would replace the item for a small fee. 

They seem desperate and I'm not sure if it is fraud,  the packaging had an address in Wallsall,  but the item came from Asia - I had already paid £97.98 to them.

[RiffRaff 10]

6 hours ago, RollingJ said:

RiffRaff - it will be interesting, especially as a switch from BT to Virgin involves an engineer visit to install the VM service.

Haven't a clue what "VM service" means, but I'll be keeping an eye out for an engineer!