-
Scam Season again! Business Rates Reduction
We have a couple scams being tried locally this week. Thought I put it a warning on the site as it may turn up in your areas.
1st one is – Rate reduction Specialists. The hook on this one is “we can reduce your business rates by 50%” – We require payment in advance to do a survey and lodge an appeal on your behalf. The sting – you don’t hear from them again. 2 Local companies caught for around £450 each.
2nd one – Hook ” we are working with the police or local schools to promote drug awareness booklets, we would like you to support. With a small supporting advert £50 to advertise – and supprise yet another dissapering act.
-
8 Replies
-
Regarding the 50% reduction on business rates, As from April this year small businesses below a certain rateable value qualify for the 50% reduction but you have to apply. I did and my rates have dropped 50%
This scam could be to apply for you and charge for what costs you nothing if you do it yourself.Cheers
Jim -
quote SAR:2nd one – Hook ” we are working with the police or local schools to promote drug awareness booklets, we would like you to support. With a small supporting advert £50 to advertise – and supprise yet another dissapering act.We have had this scam going here since the early 90’s. The scam artists have changed it recently. After they take your money, if you ring and question when the books will be distributed, they send you a book with your advert in it. Only problem is, it is the only book they have print. Pretty easy with the good quality colour laser printers these days.
We got done for a lot more than 50 quid unfortunately. 😥
Shane
-
Almost Daily we get called by some broken English speaking morons asking if we want to change our Phone line rental from BT whereby we can save 50% on all calls etc.
We just hang up.
-
A similar thing was covered on “The Ferret” (HTV Wales consumer prog) last night, two business were fleeced for £450 over the Rate Reduction Thing. If you are going to look into it do it yourself with the Council (even though they are the biggest fleecers of all 😛 ).
-
We were being plagued by optic communications with a ‘phone deal’, here is how we dealt with it for a finish. I posted this on another board.
Our friend Brad (from Optic) rang us at lunch time Tuesday, following up on their fax from last week, I’d thought I’d share the gist of the conversation with you….
Brad rings and proceeds with his intro….and launches into the 20% off bit, I try to interrupt him by asking questions about ComReg and the location of his Irish office but just continued. After he finished I asked him where he was calling from to which he replied “New York Sir”, so I asked my own questions like was New York big and what was the sun shining.
He then asked if I had the fax with me (I rustled some papers actually my sandwich wrapper) and said yes, and off he launched again. After this claptrap I asked him was there a McDonalds in New York and why was NY called the big apple when there were no orchards, He then referred back to the fax, I told him I was reading the wrong fax, so the fool come back with the same story for the third time. After this I had to ask him if he had any sisters who weren’t married, and his opinions on the Kyoto Treaty. I was then put on hold and a manager came on the line, Marie I think was her name, I asked her to transfer me back to my friend Brad. She said that she would deal with MY queries. I asked her why she rang, she then got into the grove, 20%off…. I then asked her if she played Camogie, when I got it “thanks for taking the call sir, have a nice day” and she hung up. The call counter on the phone recorded 16 minutes.
I do not condone this behavior as we ourselves sometime do direct telephone sales when things are quiet, but after reading some of the antics of Optic on this thread I thought I’d try an innovative approach. I will let you know if we get any more calls.
H
-
How did you say all that without bursting into laughter
Excellent stuff – Well Done
You’re right you know there aren’t any orchards in NY :lol1:
John
-
When i ever get cold calls at home, I always say “Oh.. I let my son do all this sort of thing for me, Ill just get him”, I then hand them over to my 12 year old son who keeps them entertained for awhile before they hang up.
-
One of my mates a blacksmith and a “bit of a rough diamond” got a call for double glazing The started yapping away and he just said to him “tell me do you have a garden Yeah well would you like wrought iron gates for it I do a very nice line in these etc etc wasn’t long before the phone was put down.
I think if everyone started this approach telesales would eventually peter out.
I once had a company trying to sell me a patio. Told him I was very interested and the tripe went on and on he was well chuffed and my last question to him was Can I get one even though I live on the first floor?silence.
Goop
Log in to reply.
