Sheffield crackdown on rogue trader scams
Scams by rogue traders are getting so sophisticated that young people and even ex-police officers are getting caught out, Sheffield councillors have been told.
Sheffield City Council is at the forefront nationally of taking action to deal with scams that catch consumers out, the council’s environmental services and regulation policy committee heard on Friday (December 12).
Council officer Ian Ashmore said that doorstep crime has dropped since Covid and rogue traders now focus more on working online. He said that it is easy now to create a convincing-looking website, update it regularly and take it down quickly.
“Historically, vulnerable people are over-represented as victims,” he said. “Isolation and loneliness can be another factor.”
Mr Ashmore said that effect of being conned can push people who were living independently into needing social care support.
He said the council’s safeguarding partnership and adult social care teams work with police, banks and the voluntary sector to tackle problems.
Trauma
“The trauma that the victims are going through is really sad,” said Mr Ashmore. “Some of the victims can’t then afford to get work redone so we need to focus on prevention.”
He said that the council is working on a new consumer advice toolkit. A report to the committee said that this would give guidance for residents to identify and avoid rogue traders and scams so that they can make informed decisions.
“Some of the victims we’ve seen coming through are working people who are quite busy. Some are in their 20s,” added Mr Ashmore.
“They’re social media literate on one level but overly trusting. They’ll see someone advertising on Facebook and think ‘I’ll just message them’.
He said it was “quite shocking” that a number of ex-police officers have also been caught out by scams.
Actors
Some criminals are Oscar-worthy actors who are very accomplished at convincing people that they are genuine, he added.
Councillors agreed to back a two-year rogue trading and doorstep crime reduction strategy running from next year.
As well as spreading the word about the consumer toolkit, this will involve financial investigations, website monitoring, data sharing with police and intelligence teams and applying for prosecutions in suitable cases.