Consumers in Scotland lodge over 1,300 fraud and scam complaints

• Fraud and scam complaints up by almost 40%, year-on-year, from those living in Scotland
• Just under half of these complaints were about authorised push payment (APP) scams
• We explain how we can help people who are victims of scams

Scottish people have submitted around 1,300 complaints to us about fraud and scams so far in this financial year (1 April 2024 to 31 December 2024). In the same period in 2023, those living in Scotland lodged around 950 fraud and scam complaints.

For the same period, we received around 26,500 complaints about fraud and scams from those living in the UK, which is up by a third when compared to the same period in 2023.

We can help people if they have lost money because of a fraud or a scam, and their bank refuses to refund them.

Just under half the complaints from those who live in Scotland were about authorised push payment (APP) scams. APP scams occur when someone is tricked into transferring money to a fraudster’s account, believing they are making a genuine payment.

Scammers may, for example, sell fake goods, such as cars, or promote non-existent services. This can mean consumers transfer money to fraudsters under the mistaken belief they are genuine businesses or people.

James Dipple-Johnstone, Deputy Chief Ombudsman said:

Being the victim of a fraud or scam can be a life changing experience – both emotionally and financially – but support is available. In recent years, as a result of our investigations into thousands of cases across the UK, more than £150m has been returned to those who have fallen victim to these crimes.

Consumers should raise any suspicious transactions with their bank as soon as possible.

If people don’t feel they have been treated fairly and are then unhappy with how their financial provider has handled their complaint, they can come directly to our service. Getting a fair answer is free and easy.”

Multi-stage frauds, where funds pass through several banks before reaching the fraudster, are now becoming more common.

This is particularly prevalent in cryptocurrency investment scams as well as ‘safe account’ scams – where people are cold-called by fraudsters posing as a trusted entity, such as their bank, and persuaded to transfer money to another account.

Pat Hurley, Ombudsman Director said:

People from all walks of life can fall victim to a scam. Scammers’ strategies are always evolving and they’re constantly looking for new ways to defraud people. So, it’s more important than ever to be extra thoughtful about payments we make.

Increasingly, we’re seeing more multi-stage frauds, where fraudsters encourage people to move money through different banks or other payment providers for ‘investment’ opportunities including cryptocurrency. Whilst the victim is promised amazing returns, it's actually a scam. 

We also continue to see traditional scams where criminals pose as an official body, such as a bank or the police, and ask consumers to move their money to a ‘safe account’. If you're called out of the blue, hang up the phone." 

When people submit a complaint, we will make a decision about what happened using evidence from consumers, the financial business and any relevant third parties. We will also consider the relevant rules and regulations. When we have finished investigating, we will say whether we think the business treated someone fairly and we will explain how we reached our decision and can order the bank to reimburse someone if we find they have not.

Tips on how to avoid being scammed

“Safe account” scams

• A bank will never contact you and ask you to move money. Hang up the phone.
• Telephone numbers can be spoofed – caller ID is no guarantee that you’re speaking to the person you think you are. Hang up and call your bank back on a trusted number.
• The bank will never ask you to help catch fraudsters by moving money, neither will the police. Only fraudsters will ask you to lie to your bank.
• Always read and take account of the warnings the bank provides, only fraudsters will ask you to ignore them.

Investment scams

• If you invest in a firm which is not authorised by the FCA, you risk losing money without any of the usual protection, such as access to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
• Adverts on social media that appear to offer spectacular returns on investments are almost certainly scams. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• It is highly unlikely that a reputable business will ask you to pay a fee upfront.

Notes to editors

Case studies available on request

What regulations are in place to protect consumers?

The Contingent Reimbursement Model (CRM) Code

The CRM is a voluntary Code that came into force in July 2019 which some banking groups signed up to. The CRM Code provides additional protection for consumers who have made authorised push payments (APP), meaning that banks must refund their customers unless any exceptions to reimbursement apply. Debit card payments, cash withdrawals and international payments are not covered by the Code. If a payment is not covered by the Code, we can still consider a complaint about the majority of payments.  The Payment Systems Regulator’s (PSR) new rules replaced the CRM in October last year, however the CRM could still be a factor when we look at APP complaints about transactions that took place prior to that.

The PSR’s new rules

The PSR introduced new reimbursement rules for victims of APP fraud, which came into force in October 2024. This puts the onus on payment service providers to reimburse customers who are victims of scams unless the customer has been grossly negligent. The new reimbursement rules cover scams up to £85,000 involving UK bank transfers – other payment types such as cash or card are not covered. We can still consider complaints about the majority of APP payments. It can tell a business to pay up to a maximum of £430,000 and can make recommendations to pay losses above this amount.