Disclaimer: Our website and publications aim to give you general information to help you make financial decisions. It is not advice, nor can it take account of your own particular circumstances. For advice with a view to making decisions about your own circumstances you should consult a financial or other professional adviser.

© The Financial Services Authority.

Advance fee scams

The catch

REMEMBER: IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT PROBABLY IS!

A letter drops on your doormat offering you a fortune. All you have to do is discreetly help the sender transfer millions of pounds out of their country. The need to do this is often blamed on some great misfortune that has occurred in that country (recent examples include the Asian tsunami, the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina). You will be asked to send details of your bank account and an administration fee to initiate the transaction, with the promise that you’re on your way to becoming a millionaire.

Or perhaps you open your inbox and find an email sent by what looks like a national bank or some other authoritative or reputable institution asking you for help in moving money which is about to be confiscated. Or you receive a similar, official-looking letter by fax. Another common variation is a notification that you have won a lottery in a foreign country.

No such luck – this money DOES NOT exist.

Protect yourself

No matter how tempting the offer of making lots of money is, don't get hooked in if you're approached in this way. It will always be a scam and once you show an interest, you'll find it very difficult to be let off the hook by the swindlers.

Remember:

  • Just say no. These kinds of letters, emails and faxes will ALWAYS be a scam. You'll lose your money, that's the only thing guaranteed.
  • Any letter, phone call or email that asks for money upfront should be ignored. You should NEVER have to pay for a prize.
  • Don't be under any false illusion that you've been “specially chosen”.
  • NEVER give your bank account numbers, credit card numbers or other personal information to anyone you don't know, or haven't checked out.

The Metropolitan Police has a special Fraud Alert website, set up to assist in combating specific types of fraud, and to prevent you becoming a victim of crime, through prevention advice and ways to foil fraud. See Related links.

If you think you have become a victim of such a fraud, report it to the police immediately.