By Rebecca Smithers, consumer affairs correspondent
Scammers are targeting the elderly and vulnerable, says the
Office of Fair Trading. Photograph: Philippe Huguen/AFP
The elderly and vulnerable are being targeted by an array of increasingly sophisticated scams that are ripping consumers off to the tune of £3.5bn a year, the Office of Fair Trading warned today.
It has earmarked February as this year's "scams awareness month" to give more information about mass marketed scams sent by post, email, text, the phone and the internet, to which an estimated three million UK consumers fall victim each year.
One of the main themes of this year's campaign is to highlight the hidden misery of thousands of elderly and vulnerable consumers who repeatedly fall victim to scams such as bogus lotteries, deceptive prize draw and sweepstakes, fake psychics and "miracle" health cures.
Anyone can fall for a scam but the elderly are often hit hardest. OFT research shows that older victims are likely to lose nearly twice as much per scam as others. Victims were often socially isolated, over-trusting or afflicted by illnesses such as dementia and could be repeatedly targeted by the scammers.
Many lost their life savings and suffered depression and ill health as a result.
Regular victims may have their personal details added to a "suckers" list, which was sold amongst fraudulent marketers.
The OFT today unveiled a new leaflet for carers and care professionals, "Can you stop the person you care for from being scammed?" and an accompanying leaflet, "Don't Let them Con You".
It is working with partners such as Carers UK, Help the Aged, Age Concern, Citizens Advice, Action on Elder Abuse, Neighbourhood Watch, housing associations and local authority trading standards services to raise awareness of the plight of elderly serial victims of scams and provide advice on how to recognise and help such victims.
Mike Haley, the OFT's director of consumer protection, said: "Scammers use sophisticated psychological techniques to target people who are often the most vulnerable in society. Those who fall for these scams not only lose their savings but often live in fear, suffering debt and depression and being too afraid to tell anyone of their plight. We want to ask family members, carers and others to help spot the warning signs before it is too late."
The policy development manager of Action on Elder Abuse, Daniel Blake, said: "Scammers operate through a ruthless circle of psychological and financial abuse. They gain people's trust and exploit fears, insecurities and pain to steal as much money as they can from those who can least afford it. We are supporting this campaign to empower consumers and their support networks to stamp out scams."
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