Bogus callers

Richmond Council would like to urge residents to be on their guard against bogus officials offering to give Council Tax refunds.

Over the past few months the Council has been contacted by a small number of residents who have received telephone calls informing them they qualified for a Council Tax refund. The caller then asked for bank account details to enable the payment to be processed.

Similar types of attempted fraud have been reported involving other public bodies and private sector firms, in the form of e-mails. Occasionally the caller requests a fee for the service.

Our advice is to always keep your bank and credit card details safe and never give out your PIN number. If you are entitled to a council tax refund, the council will send you a letter showing how much you are owed and offering the option of either deducting the amount from your next council tax bill or providing a refund.

If you are unsure if a caller is genuine, ask them for their name, job title and extension number and call them back through the council switchboard on 08456 122 660.

Anyone who believes they may have been contacted by a bogus caller should report this to Consumer Direct who are a government funded body that co-ordinate information about scams of this sort. Their contact details are 08454 04 05 06, www.adviceguide.org.uk