AN ISLANDER is warning people to be wary after almost falling victim to a new “completely convincing” scam which requests payment for updated insurance policies.
On Tuesday morning at around 11am, 79-year-old Arthur Falla, from St Saviour’s Hill, received a call to his home landline.
The person calling told the couple that an insurance policy that they took out three years ago, had just expired and needed renewing.
“Apparently the original premium was included in our water bill and covered all leaks and water related problems,” said Mr Falla.
The scammer then proceeded to say it could be extended for a month for a fee of £11.50, before deciding whether to continue for the full year.
While Mr Falla said he would normally be skeptical of unexpected call, he said there were odd coincidences that made the scam more convincing.
“It was the fact it happened at the same time we had the plumber around – and exactly the same day, within an hour of Jersey water sending us our quarterly account,” he said.
However, despite the caller sounding “completely convincing, articulate and intelligent”, there were red flags that stopped Mr Falla from sharing any of his details, including their website “being down”, them “not being able to call them back” and them suggesting they would send plumbers “all the way from England”.
Jersey Water has said some customers have reported receiving calls about “water insurance” supposedly on behalf of the firm.
However, a spokesperson for the company said: “We are aware that customers have received unsolicited calls to renew “water insurance” on our behalf.
“We can confirm that we do not offer water insurance and would not contact customers to request payment or personal information for this reason.”
“It was the fact it happened at the same time we had the plumber around – and exactly the same day, within an hour of Jersey water sending us our quarterly account.”
Arthur Falla
In response to the latest scam, Chief Inspector Chris Beechey, who chairs the Jersey Fraud Prevention Forum, has also urged Islanders to remain “vigilant”.
He said: “Scammers do this on a full-time basis – their job is to deceive you and steal your money.
“They often catch you off guard and may impersonate people you trust, such as trusted organisations, banks, family members or close friends.
“They may request financial or personal information over the phone.
“Stay vigilant, hang up immediately if you receive such a call and report it to us – keep yourself and your loved ones safe from scams.”
