deKay’s Blog

Two almost identical scams in two days! Actual, in one day, as this arrived in my home post yesterday. Bundled in with the latest catalogue for The Book People, was this flyer:

As with yesterday’s scam du jour, I was told I’d won an amazing prize! Of course, in order to claim the prize, I’d have to ring 09061 562911, paying £9.30 for the phone call. Then, I’d no doubt win “an MP3 Player”, probably of the sort eBuyer sell for a fiver, and then have to pay £9.95 delivery and insurance. Bargain.

A search for The Prize Registry, PO Box 78, Ross-on-Wye, HR9 9ZU brings up plenty of references, including this from The Motley Fool.

This appeared in my pigeonhole at work today. I’m assuming it was put there because it mentions computers, and therefore is obviously my responsibility. Anyway, as is always the way with these things, it’s a scam.

The company, TLAC Ltd, at Kemp House, 152-160 City Road, London EC1V 2NX (address included for the benefit of Googlers) appears to offer “thankyou prizes and awards”, not unlike Survey UK. As before, I hunted around on the internet, and found this message on The Guardian’s website.

To cut it short, you ring up a premium rate number to claim your “award”, spending more money on the call than the value of the “prize” you actually receive. Note the footnote for the digital camera (the cheapest of the “prizes”), which states “all electrical items require a payment of £6.50 which includes insurance and delivery”, thus grabbing more of your cash for rubbish.

So it’s not a “prize” or and “award” - it’s a lottery. A rubbish one at that.

Aside from blasting off and nuking them from orbit, is there any way of stopping these people from calling me?  I’m set up with the Telephone Preference Service, but I still get people ringing. Usually, no one is on the line when I pick up (or I don’t pick up at all), but they shouldn’t be calling at all.

Today’s offender is 01563 556366, which (according to other posters at WhoCallsMe?) is yet another company pretending to be T-Mobile.

Thankfully, I was busy and didn’t notice my always-on-silent mobile buzzing like a bee. Today’s assailant was 0845 4122700, and once again, here’s the WhoCallsMe? link.

I got yet another call from one of those scamming companies trying to sell me a mobile phone contract. Would you all just leave me alone now? I’ve no interest in taking out a contract with any company who feels the need to ring me at 3am or 11pm. Or any time, in fact.

This post was brought to you by the number 01254 277069, and the letters F and U.

Oh, and here’s the Who Calls Me? page for this number.

Yeah, it’s another one of those numbers again. Got a call in the wee hours this morning, but didn’t answer. From the look of Who Calls Me, it’s another (or possibly the same) scamming company trying to swindle me by selling me a phone contract.

01254277054 - who calls me?

In the week, i got a letter in the post from “Survey UK”, telling me I’d been allocated a gift - one of just 49. It then said to ring 01242 695001 to claim. Naturally, I immediately thought it was a scam, and used Mr Internet to find out more.

I was right to be suspicious. It turns out the company (Matters Consulting Ltd, Victoria House, 1 Gloucester Road, Cheltenham) has been in legal trouble before, when they were called “Opinions” and told people they’d won gifts. Gifts the “winners” then had to pay for. Now they’ve reworded the letters to remove “won”, but the scam remains the same - you ring them up and are offered reduced price gym membership. Some “gift”!

It seems I wasn’t the only one to get this either.

I’ve just had a call on my mobile, from the number 01792 828105. Which looks suspiciously similar to 01792 828103, don’t you think? As in, the number of a company that rang a couple of weeks ago trying to scam me over a new phone or contract or rabbits or something - I can’t really remember as I wasn’t interested.

Surprise surprise, looking up 01792 828105 on WhoCallsMe? confirms it. It’s “Mobiles For You” (with or without a “4″ and/or a “U”) in Cardiff again. Hurrah!

Thankfully, they hung up as soon as I answered. Perhaps I shouldn’t have answered. After all, I guessed it was them before I did, and I’m still not interested…

I’ve just had a phonecall on my mobile.

Welsh Bloke: Hi there! I’m just ringing you to let you know your T-mobile contract is up for renewal and we can offer you a brand new phone and a massive reduction on your bill!

My contract is indeed up for renewal. So I naturally just assumed it was T-mobile calling me.

Me: Erm, OK. It’s unlikely you’ll be able to reduce my bill…
Welsh Bloke: Lets see we–
Me: Hang on, are you from T-mobile
Welshy: Well, no. We’re a company called Mobiles For You and we can offer–
Me: Right, well, I’m sorry but I’m not interested.
Welshy: I’m not interesting?
Me: No, I’m not interested in whatever it is you’re going to offer.
Welshy: Right sir, I’ll just put you through to our “Not Interested” department.
Me: What? You have a–
Welshy: Please hold a second…

So I hung up. Their number was 01792 828102 if anyone fancies ringing them and asking for their Not Interested department. I would, but, well, I’m not actually interested.

That’s right! I’ve won some Spanish lottery again! Last time, I think I forgot to fill the claim form in, or something, as I didn’t get my money. Hurrah for winning again then! I must be the luckiest person ever.

Here’s the envelope that arrived a few days ago:

And in it, the letter telling me I’d won €815,810.00: Read the rest of this entry »