Scam cases solved: how we helped victims in 2023

Which? has helped scam victims recover £600,000 in losses this year. 

Through working with case studies and our member helplines, we've investigated and advised on all kinds of strange, clever and callous scams. 

Read on to find out how we've helped victims get their money back in 2023. 

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Which? scams support in 2023

Whether it was investigating how an £8 camera sold on eBay led to a hack costing over £6,000 or how criminals can bypass bank security, our journalists helped scam victims recover more than £160,000 in 2023. 

Our scams research and investigations seek to uncover scams and shine a light on individual experiences, but the support Which? offers to scam victims is far more extensive.

The Which? Money Helpline is a service offered to Which? Money members. It advises on all kinds of money-related issues, and has helped members save millions of pounds over the years. 

Between January and November 2023, the Money Helpline handled 405 requests for help from our members about scams and fraud, which included helping members navigate the aftermath of scams. During this time, members reported to the Money Helpline team that they had recovered losses of £436,000.

Our Which? Tech Support team also helped resolve over 350 technology-related scam problems.

• Read more: the latest scam alerts from Which?

‘An investment scammer told me to take out a loan’

Emily, a pseudonym, invested £250 with a company she'd read about online in the hope that the money she made would enable her to buy a car. A few days later, she was told her investment was performing well and was encouraged to put in a further £2,250.

The requests for cash continued. Emily was contacted again and badgered to invest £10,000. When she told the caller she didn’t have that much, he said she should take out a loan to fund the investment. She declined.

A couple of months later, Emily attempted to withdraw her money but hit a stumbling block. She was told she must pay a 20% fee to transfer the money to her bank account, which she agreed to.

She was then informed the fee had mistakenly been added to her investment account and was told she must pay a further £750 to access her money. Again, she did so, but to no avail.

Finally, Emily was asked to pay a £2,000 ‘investment tax’ bill to withdraw her money. At this point, she realised she’d been scammed and ceased contact with the company, ignoring all subsequent calls. 

In total, she lost £4,311. She contacted Which? and told us ‘I am spiralling into a black hole - I have very little money in my bank account and bills to pay’. 

Emily came to Which? for help and we supported Emily in appealing to her bank, NatWest. She was then fully reimbursed.

• Read more: the strangest scams of 2023

‘I didn’t want to believe that I’d been scammed’

Amita, a pseudonym, was groomed by a romance scammer she met on an online dating app. Over eight months, the scammer repeatedly messaged her telling her he loved her and sent her gifts.

He posed as an intelligence officer working abroad and asked her not to reveal the relationship to anyone until he was back in the UK. This allowed him to lay the groundwork before claiming that his credit card had been stolen while working in Ukraine.

The scammer told Amita that nothing could be done until he returned to the UK, and he asked to borrow money in the meantime for expenses including living costs, laptop repairs and hospital fees.

There were warning signs – including his insistence on keeping the relationship a secret and repeatedly inventing new reasons to ask for money – but Amita fell victim to the scammer’s advances and sent a total of £26,000.

She told us: ‘I very much didn’t want to believe that I’d been scammed and was completely distraught when I realised. I honestly thought I was being asked for money for believable purposes’.

When Amita contacted her bank, Halifax, to ask for reimbursement, it ruled that she'd ignored a series of red flags and rejected her request. 

We contacted Halifax citing Amita’s vulnerability due to circumstances including work-related stress, medical issues and living costs.

On further review, it decided to reimburse Amita in full.

A Halifax spokesperson said: ‘We carefully look at the individual details of each case reported to us in line with the industry code. We consider a number of factors, including whether the bank could have taken any additional steps to help prevent the scam taking place and if the customer took reasonable care when making payments. We will be providing Amita with a full refund.'

New APP fraud rules from 2024

The Contingent Reimbursement Model (CRM) Code guides banks on consumer protection standards when it comes to Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud - this is when you’re tricked into sending money to a scammer.

The code is voluntary for banks to sign up to, but after years of Which? campaigning it will become mandatory in October 2024.

Banks signed up to the CRM code commit to protecting their customers from APP scams and reimbursing blameless victims.

How to get your money back after a scam

If you have fallen victim to a scam, call your bank immediately using the number on the back of your bank card. Report the scam to Action Fraud or call the police on 101 if you’re in Scotland.

When contacting your bank, make sure to provide as much evidence of the scam as possible, including any correspondence you have had with the scammer.

The Financial Conduct Authority provides guidance for banks to follow regarding vulnerable customers. 

The guidance outlines four key drivers of vulnerability:

• health
• life events
• resilience (a low ability to deal with unpredictable financial situations)
• capability (not having much knowledge of financial matters).

These factors affect many people at different times in their lives. So while you may not consider yourself to be vulnerable, you might have been vulnerable at the time you were scammed. If this could apply to you,  you should mention this to your bank.

What to do if you're refused reimbursement

If you and your bank can’t reach a satisfactory resolution, you can escalate your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service. 

You can find more information in our guide on how to get your money back after a scam.

To stay on top of the latest scams, sign up to our Which? Scam Action and Alerts Facebook and WhatsApp Groups. 

Make sure to regularly check our tracker for the lowdown on the latest scams.