Heysham South, Middleton & Overton. February 2016

Transcription

1 Heysham South, Middleton & Overton. February 2016 PACT Meeting 1 st February Venue: Heysham Library. Introductions and welcome by Graeme Austin. Incidents reported in December 2016 and January 2016 explained. The PACT priorities for December 2015 and January 2016 were for NPT action regarding fly-tipping in the area, which after the flooding incidents in December, the NPT considered may give cause for concern. However no fly-tipping incidents have been reported and patrols have not detected any untoward activities in this respect. We are still logging incidents of thefts from vehicles left insecure. Please do not leave valuables in unlocked cars, even when they are parked on a driveway. Remove all items including clothing and lock all doors. Current advice is to check your vehicle is locked before you walk away. The number of incidents of criminal damage to vehicles from sharp objects, either slashed tyres or scratched paintwork continues to give cause for concern. If you cannot park your car in a garage, if you can, please choose a well-lit location. Any information on perpetrators can be given to any member of our NPT or ring in on 101. Anti-social behaviour including stone throwing at vehicles and properties has been reported in the Mossgate and Meldon Road areas. Please report incidents with descriptions of the youths / juveniles involved where possible.

2 If possible use the FACE method. F = A = C = E = Facial description including hair colour / length. Age / gender. Clothing. Any other evidential information which may be useful. Issues raised at PACT meeting included; inconsiderate and illegal parking outside schools, parking in the passing bay on Barrows Lane adjacent to Half-Moon Bay and U-turns being carried out on Heysham Road by HGV tractor units at the parade of shops. ITK In The Know is the Lancashire Constabulary messaging system. You can keep up to date with information and crime alerts by registering for this service. It is free and you can chose to be kept informed by text, or voice message. You are in control of the messages you receive so you can tailor them to your specific interests and location. Sign up at Scams and Fraud Watch out for personalised scam text messages being sent out by fraudsters. The spoofed messages from Photo Image use your first name and contain a link that leads to a page purporting to be from Tesco, claiming you have won a 500 gift card. If you get one of these messages, do not click on any links or download any files. These scams are designed to steal your personal information and could leave you vulnerable to other types of fraud that include identity theft. The DVLA have issued a warning that there is a scam currently being circulated. The itself asks for your personal and bank details to claim a vehicle tax refund. Please ignore it if you receive it. Safer Internet Day 2016 will take place on the 9th February with the theme Play your part for a better internet! Coordinated in the UK by the UK Safer Internet Centre the celebration sees hundreds of organisations get involved to help promote the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology for children and young people.

3 For more information follow this link A local resident has reported receiving calls supposedly from BT who have stated that their internet is going to be turned off if they don t turn their computer on and following some instructions. BT were contacted and advised the resident that this was a scam. A local Co-ordinator has received numerous phone calls recently from someone offering to give them help with their computer. They have set up telephone preference service (TPS) so they believe the calls are being made from abroad. If you receive any phone calls of this nature, do not log on or do anything the caller asks you to do as they have software which can infiltrate your computer and find your bank and card details, which they could then use to defraud you. Do not give out any personal information and make it clear that you will not comply with their request. Good news from Action Fraud the Government has announced a crackdown on withheld numbers, in the future making it a legal requirement for marketing companies to provide a valid phone number that can be displayed when calling people. For more information follow this link Frost Jacking During cold weather it is often very tempting to leave your vehicle with the engine running and insecure as it de-ices ready for your journey. However, this leaves you vulnerable to being a target of crime and having your vehicle stolen while you are inside your house. Please plan your journey and allow yourself enough time to clear your car of ice and snow so you are not tempted to leave yourself vulnerable to crime. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) is warning people of the dangers of Recovery Room fraudsters targeting former victims of timeshare fraud. Recovery Room Fraud refers to a scam whereby fraudsters contact the victims of previous frauds, often by way of cold calling them, and claim to be able to recover previously lost funds. In July 2014 the Financial Services Authority (FSA) estimated that 30% of people who had lost money through Investment fraud would also fall victim to a Recovery Room

4 fraud. When Recovery Room fraudsters target victims of timeshare frauds they usually claim to be a legal professional or a representative of a government agency (normally within the country where the original timeshare property was based) in order to legitimise the scam. The fraudsters know personal details about the victim and their previous investment which gives them credibility. They claim that the advanced fees requested are for local taxes or litigation costs incurred during the recovery of the funds. It is suspected that the persons behind Recovery Room frauds are often the same people involved in the original scams even though these crimes may have occurred years earlier. Initially, a small fee, typically in the region of , is requested by the fraudsters which they often claim is refundable as part of a no-win no-fee basis. The fraudsters rely on the victims seeing this as a nominal fee compared to the amounts lost, which often run into the tens-of-thousands of pounds, and therefore worth paying if it facilitates the return of their money. Once paid, various excuses are made by the fraudsters to explain delays in the recovery of the funds. Subsequently, further larger amounts are then requested by the fraudsters. Needless to say, no refunds ever materialise and no money is ever recovered. Protect Yourself Never respond to unsolicited phone calls if in doubt, hang up. Always check that the details of the organisation or company contacting you (such as website, address and phone number) are correct the fraudsters may be masquerading as a legitimate organisation. Don t be fooled by a professional looking website as nowadays the cost of creating a professional website is easily affordable. Be wary of any firms or individuals asking for advanced fees. Consider seeking independent legal and/or financial advice before making a decision. If you believe that you have been a victim of fraud you can report it online: report_fraud or by telephone: Bogus traders are taking advantage of the continuing bad weather to cold call householders with offers to repair roofs, and guttering. Work is usually poorly done and/or extortionately priced. One older man was recently charged 8000 to fix ridge tiles and some guttering whilst another couple were tricked into paying an extra 4000 for repairs to their roof. One resident was charged 3,600 for repairs to flashing and some sealant round a skylight. The trader then continued to demand more money saying that extra work was needed and the householder had underpaid. The consumer was

5 eventually pressured into paying an additional 2,300. If you do recommend a reputable business or try our Safe Trader Scheme. find a trader to do work ask friends and relatives to Always remember to get two or three quotes. For more information visit about The Trader Scheme visit or call There have been several reports of doorstep callers saying the householder is entitled to a refund on their Council Tax due to a change in banding. The caller claims to be an agent of the council. Although the service is 'no win no fee', are charged around a third of any money received. If you are concerned that you may too much or your house is in the wrong Council Tax band contact your local Valuation Office Agency (VOA) on or visit counciltax-bands where you can check you council tax band free of charge. Telephone calls We are receiving calls about cold callers trying to sell a call blocking service. The caller usually suggests they are from the Telephone Preference Service or from BT. Residents are reminded that the Telephone Preference Service provides a free opt out service enabling you to record your preference on the official register and not receive unsolicited sales or marketing calls. For further information visit their websitehttp:// or call The 'Ministry of Justice' scam seems to be around again where the consumer is offered a refund from the government for mis-sold PPI. The caller usually claims the householder is entitled to 1000's but asks for administration fee to be paid up front. If you believe you have been mis-sold a PPI please contact the Financial Ombudsmen on or or visit can advise on how to make a claim free of charge. If you do decide to use a claim handler, carefully consider whether to pay an upfront fee before your claim is submitted - there is no guarantee it will be successful and you could be left out of pocket. Contact the Trading Standards Service via the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on January 2016

6

7 Heysham South, NPT (Neighbourhood Policing Team). PC 4150 Zac Holmes Heysham Community Beat Manager can be contacted on 101 Police Community Support Officer 7396 Andy Blayden Byrne can be contacted on 101 Police Community Support officer 7822 Dennis Nelson can be contacted on 101 Police Community Support Officer 7384 Hannah Mason Can be contacted on 101 Police Community Volunteer Graeme Austin