According to Northamptonshire Police, scam postcards are currently being delivered to residents’ homes claiming that a parcel containing “jewellery” is awaiting the homeowner.
The personally addressed postcards say:
“The office is attempting to reach you. To claim this parcel and accept this offer, you must telephone the number below immediately and arrange for a delivery. The item is prepaid, but a processing and delivery free of £10 must be remitted. This fee can be paid only by telephone and only with a credit card (VISA or MasterCard). This is your only notification”
If you call the 020 number given, you are asked to pay £10.00 by credit card. Victims who have reported this to Action Fraud have said that an automated service has told them the package would be delivered the same day, but they have of course received nothing.
Action Fraud has received several recent reports of this fraud and this information has been assessed by National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) resulting in disruption of the fraudster’s phone number.
Also be on the lookout for slight variations of this scam, which use different phone numbers and delivery items.
Protection and Reporting Advice
If you receive one these postcards or something similar: