Last Christmas people in the UK were scammed out of more than £11.5m, figures show, almost £1m up on the same period in 2022
Any last minute Christmas shoppers in Suffolk are being urged to avoid panic buying, and make sure presents are bought from reputable retailers.
Suffolk Trading Standards says we can look out for simple signs when buying toys for children, like checking if the instructions are in the box – and the importers details are on the packaging.
Last Christmas people in the UK were scammed out of more than £11.5m, figures show, almost £1m up on the same period in 2022.
Fake clothing or high-end tech listings on social media were among the ploys used to dupe people.
Suffolk Trading Standards has issued guidelines for shoppers:
Buy from traders you know and trust – When it comes to shopping online, it’s always safest to stick to familiar shops and brands that you know you can trust
Do some digging – There are some stores online that aren’t mainstream brands but are still trustworthy places to shop. If you must shop with an unknown trader, make sure you research them first.
Look for reviews – Reviews of the website and a reliable way to contact the site owner that isn’t just email in the event your delivery goes wrong.
The quality of the website – The most obvious things to look out for that signal a scam website are website quality and copy/editorial quality.
Pay securely – Always use a secure form of payment. This means opt for a credit card, a debit card, or even PayPal over any direct money transfers. Credit card is probably the most secure option in terms of shopper rights as you can dispute charges made if your item never arrives or dispute any suspicious charges generally.
Avoid strange links – Whether you’re on your laptop, your phone, or whether the link appears in your email inbox or pops up on your Facebook News Feed, don’t click any strange or unfamiliar ad links
Last year in the UK £85.9 million was lost to purchase fraud cases. However, the actual figure is believed to be considerably higher, as many purchase frauds go unreported by their victims.
More than 16,000 reports of online shopping fraud were recorded between November 2023 and January 2024, with each victim losing £695 on average.
Sasha Watson from Suffolk Trading Standards said: “Has it got a UK CA or CE mark on it? Sadly, these marks can be counterfeited as well, so the biggest thing is making sure you’re buying from a reputable retailer so you know it’s been through the safety checks that it needs to have gone through,”
“When purchasing online, make sure you’re doing lots of research into the company, researching the price – is it too good to be true? And making sure that if you can, pay buy credit card is you’re paying for something over £100.”
Sasha also told us how important it is to check for recalls, when buying children’s toys: “If you go onto the Central Government website, you can just search recalls. All you need to do it put in the type of toy – and it will come up with anything related to that, that has been recalled.”