Premium Rate Line Scams
‘Congratulations You’re a Winner’ scratch cards, letters, and telephone calls
If you have ever received a scratchcard, letter, or telephone call informing you that you have won a large cash prize, or car, and requesting that you phone an 090 premium rate line number to find out what your prize is, then beware. The cost of finding out what you have won may be substantially more than the value of your prize.
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If you are contacted on the telephone you may be told how much the call will cost per minute - but not always!
If you respond to a letter or scratchcard, either may contain small print, but again not always. In the small print it will normally say that there is only one of each of the expensive prizes available to be won. However one other of the prizes mentioned will be unlimited, for example a piece of cheap jewellery, or a holiday voucher. These prizes are usually worth less than the cost of the call you will need to make to find out what you have won, yet most people who call will have 'won' one of these unlimited gifts.
Remember, premium rate lines are often charged at £1 per minute of more, and you will be required to stay on the line for several minutes. Therefore the cost of the call may amount to more than the cost of the prize!
Consumers are also warned to beware of phoning telephone numbers beginning 070. These are non regulated personal numbers where the charge per minute can be anything from 35p to £1.50 (approx). A number of consumers contacted the service to report that they had have received an automated phone message that purported (falsely) to come from a leadings courier company. The message told them that there was a radio awaiting their collection and asked them to phone an 070 number to confirm a delivery time. It is possible therefore that if a caller spent several minutes on the phone the cost may exceed the value of the radio, should they actually receive a delivery (we cannot confirm at this time that anyone has received a radio). |