Investigations

Factory seconds

2009-07-17T11:39:17Z

Now this is ambitious. Thieves in Sagunto, near Valencia, Spain, have stolen an entire factory.

Police estimate it would have taken four or five days to dismantle and remove the three-storey building worth £175,000.

The tale begs a number of questions, one of which is when is it going to turn up on eBay?

(Thanks to Jason Hazeley for pointing out this story in the Costa Blanca edition of Euro Weekly News.)

Car World Direct.com and Penney Holdings liquidated

2009-07-17T08:53:45Z

Two car firms have been shut down after the High Court heard claims that they were run by a disqualified company director.

Details on the liquidation of Chester-based Car World Direct.com Ltd and Penney Holdings Ltd from the Insolvency Service here.

SOCA's 21 e-crime prosecutions in three years

2009-07-17T08:09:36Z

Victims of online criminals often tell us that police don't seem interested. Some recent stats suggest they are right.

The much-criticised Serious Organised Crime Agency has made over 5,000 arests in its first three years, according to the latest Home Office report. Nice work. It also has an impressive 94% conviction rate.

Yet of those convictions, just 21 were made by the e-crime unit. Home Secretary Alan Johnson revealed the pathetic figures in a written answer to an MP's question.

Johnson argues that prosecution is "only one of a number of tools available" and that SOCA also uses "new intervention techniques, to disrupt and deny criminal opportunities worldwide".

The truth is that Government and police are yet to get properly to grips with the fact that most fraudsters have become e-fraudsters and have found countless new ways to make money.

The Government admits it is the biggest victim of fraudsters, losing as much every year as private individuals and firms combined.

Yet, the entire police force in England and Wales has about as many fraud investigators as just one major UK bank. That's not my guess - it's in the same Home Office report.

And meanwhile e-crime gets handed around as the hottest potato. SOCA was set up just three years ago and then last year the Home Office established a new Police Central e-crime Unit.

Now a newly-created Office for Cyber Security within the Cabinet Office gets in on the act.

The Home Office gets the problem:

New technology in communications is increasingly being exploited by organised criminals. The internet enables them to commit traditional crimes - theft or fraud, for example - in new and sophisticated ways.

But it's still grappling with the solution. How about starting with 'tough on e-crime, tough on the causes of e-crime'.

False promises by wannabe agency Go Models exposed

2009-07-15T23:05:00Z

We've come across dodgy wannabe agencies before but this one has upped the ante big time.

Instead of the usual £200 or so to get on their books, Go Models & Talents International demands no less than £1,725.

We heard about it from Mina Voynova, who joined after the agency dangled the tantalising prospect of showbiz work. "The lady told me she would find me work, she could not guarantee it would be in the first month, but she would find it," Mina tells us.

"When I got home I read the contract again and I tried to cancel, but Go Models said I couldn't because I didn't cancel the following day.

"It seems so unfair, they haven't done anything, they haven't even taken my picture."
No wonder she wanted to cancel. The contract makes plain that, despite paying all that money, it will be up to you to find showbiz jobs.

Your payment is for your pictures to be taken for the website "and for that purpose alone".

The contract goes on: "Go Models does not undertake in writing or verbally to prove work opportunities for the client. It is also understood that the client is aware that any future work engagements or opportunities depend on the personal efforts on the part of the client only."

So why pay so much for a set of pictures for the obscure www.gomodels.co.uk site?

Answer: because what you are told at the "audition" is very different.

Posing as a hopeful, Penman went along and after reading an extract from Huckleberry Finn was told he'd been accepted by Go Models and, who knows, might end up in the next Harry Potter film.

Despite the contract's warning about finding work yourself, a Go Models rep called Tracey insisted that the firm would do its best to get you through the front door.

"There's definitely something we can do, don't worry about that," she said. "What we do is we market you, we manage you."

And: "We provide castings. One month there might be 10, one month none, one month two. It all depends."

Even better: "You will earn £150 to £1,500 a working day" - which makes paying £150 a month plus VAT for 10 months suddenly seem attractive.

But how does this outfit explain the gulf between the contract and what they say at the "audition".

Despite its Central London office, the company's sole director, Orin Cohen, lives in Israel. He's not responded to our questions.

Tracey did answer one, an important one too. Penman, when posing as a hopeful, asked if he could take the contract away to show to a solicitor before signing.

Tracey's response? No.

Clive Hurst of acting union Equity told us: "Charging £1,725 for 10 months' representation and having to find your own modelling work - takes some beating.

"It's the highest agency charge I have ever seen in over 12 years of campaigning over these cruel scams.

"My question is: when is the Government going to put a stop to it?"

Advertising conman Frank Beaumont sentenced for fraud

2009-07-15T23:01:34Z

Hopefully this is good news for painter/decorator Mike Simpsom of Rochdale, Lancs.

He's told us how last year he paid £3,055 to a firm called Black Pearl UK to advertise his business.

But Black Pearl, which changed its name to Coast 2 Coast Publishing, has gone into liquidation, Mike's got no advertising and his bank won't return the money because it says no fraud has taken place. Coast 2 Coast was run by cadaverous conman Frank Beaumont and sidekick Anthony Collier.

We first exposed 56-year-old Beaumont of Lytham St Anne's, Lancs, in 2006 when his Ad Plaz TV outfit was claiming to have plasma screens in hospital waiting rooms where businesses could advertise.

It went bust owing £108k and Beaumont and Collier, 41, were this week sentenced to 120 hours unpaid work for making false and misleading statements.

Mike, this doesn't mean what happened at Coast 2 Coast Publishing was fraud, but it does prove it was run by fraudsters.

Regency Porcelain in court over cancellation rights

2009-07-15T23:01:23Z

Show this article to your bank - it may change its mind ...

Watchdogs are prosecuting a firm which hires hotel conference rooms to sell crockery sets to mass audiences at around £3,000 a time.

Regency Porcelain (www.regentporcelain.com) is charged with failing to explain customer cancellation rights.
The firm and its French directors Jeremy Abitbol and Laurent Le Du have pleaded not guilty.

The case, brought by Surrey Trading Standards, is set for September.

Conmen hijack yahoo account to net £1,000

2009-07-15T23:01:00Z

We've warned of the dangers of sending cash to strangers by Western Union or Moneygram - if the deal goes sour you'll have no way of recovering your money.

But Val Corbett felt safe wiring cash to Nigeria because it was going to a close friend who was also a nun.

Sister Faith apparently sent an email asking for money to help her leave the country, saying: "I got myself into a serious trouble here". "She even signed off with 'Peace and Joy' - her normal ending," Val said.

But Sister Faith was in the UK all the time. Hackers had broken into the her email account and sent the fake plea for help to all her friends.

Val, from Piccotts End in Herts, is remarkably philosophical:

"I'm down £1,000 but no one has been killed so I am trying to keep this in proportion," she said. "Nigeria did strike a warning note but the email came from Faith's own address.

"The fall-out is that if another friend is in trouble I'll be suspicious."

Watchdogs slate Thermoflow "energy saving" magnets

2009-07-15T23:00:00Z

At the risk of opening the floodgates to another tsunami of scientifically illiterate loons, we return to the subject of magical magnets.

Ecoflow Plc flogs its Thermoflow magnets for around £55 through independent distributors.

According to one distributor called Eco Patch, fitting the magnets to your home heating system makes the gas burn more efficiently, saving 5-15% on fuel bills.

But, as we said in January, magnets won't help for one simple reason - domestic gas is not magnetic.

Thermoflow believers swamped us with abuse and jargon - our favourite being that the magnets work through "central reverse polarity".

Ecoflow boss Paul Markland admits he hasn't asked the Energy Saving Trust to test Thermoflow, but insists it is "fantastic".

So we asked the Advertising Standards Authority to adjudicate - and this week it issued its ruling.

Although Eco Patch said that a 1996 test proved that Thermoflow works, the ASA said:

"The advertisers were unable to provide a full copy of that test or tell us the manufacturer that commissioned it."

The watchdog also said individual testimonials are not enough to prove the energy-saving claims.

"The advertisers were unable to provide evidence to show all consumers, irrespective of energy provider or tariff, would have lower prices as a result of using the device," it ruled.

In short: "Because Eco Patch did not provide robust, independent evidence...we concluded the ad was likely to mislead."

£100k fine over Jackpot UK scratchcard competition

2009-07-15T10:53:12Z

A nationwide scratchcard competition that was promoted in more than 300 publications have been fined £100,000.

Called Cash Attack, if you matched three symbols on the card you could call an 090 number to claim a prize, or text a keyword printed on the card.

Premium rate phoneline regulator PhonepayPlus received 95 complaints from people who said they replied by text, only to received further unsolicited texts at £5 per week.

The "service" was provided by Cheshire-based Jackpot UK on lines courtesy of Mobile Interactive Group Limited of London.

Besides the fine, PhonepayPlus has ordered Mobile Interactive to refund victims and has banned it from scratchcard competitions until it implements "compliance advice".

Hope for Michael Jackson ticket-holders

2009-07-10T15:23:25Z

Experts at the Trading Standards Institute say that Michael Jackson fans may have the legal right to refunds not just for their tickets but also for any travel or hotel costs already paid.

But getting the hotel and travel costs refunded depends on whether you were sold a package and the seller knew it was part of a Michael Jackson concert deal.

More advice from Trading Standards here.

Premium rate phones league of shame

2009-07-10T12:58:20Z

The regulator for the premium rate phoneline industry PhonepayPlus has today published a list of dodgy service providers that have been fined but have refused to pay up. All of them - there's about 150 - have been banned from the industry.

The list is published here.

Foxtons loses key court battle over unfair terms

2009-07-10T12:49:10Z

The Office of Fair Trading has won what it's calling a landmark court battle against estate agents Foxtons.

The watchdog went to the High Court to fight what it said were unfair terms in Foxtons contracts.

In his judgment given today, Mr Justice Mann accepted that all the terms that the OFT brought before the court were unfair, including Foxtons' use of terms:

*Requiring a landlord to pay substantial sums in commission, where a tenant continues to occupy the property after the initial fixed period of the tenancy has expired - even if Foxtons plays no part in persuading the tenant to stay, and does not collect the rent or manage the property,

*Requiring a landlord to pay commission to Foxtons even after it had sold the property,
Allowing Foxtons to receive a full estate agents' commission for sale of the property to a tenant.

*Allowing Foxtons to receive a full estate agents' commission for sale of the property to a tenant.

The ruling, following a three-day hearing in April, found that the charging of repeat renewal commission by Foxtons represented a "trap" or a "timebomb" for consumers.

The judge held that such important terms must be flagged prominently not just in the contract, but also in any sales literature and processes. He said a typical consumer would be unlikely to read standard terms with a great degree of attention and would not expect important obligations to be tucked away in the small print and not specifically brought to their attention. He also found that Foxtons had used language in its contracts which is not "plain and intelligible".

On the use of a term providing for sales commission to be payable on the sale of a property to a tenant, the judge said consumers would not merely be surprised but "astonished" by the potentially large financial liability to Foxtons in relation to a transaction in which Foxtons played no material part.

OFT chief executive, John Fingleton, said: "This ruling sends out a clear and unambiguous message that businesses offering services need to ensure unexpected or surprising terms are not hidden away in small print.

"Contracts need to be written in clear and straightforward language with important provisions, particularly those which may disadvantage consumers as in this case, given prominence and actively brought to people's attention.

"The OFT prefers to work with businesses to agree solutions where concerns are raised but we will not hesitate to take court action where this is not possible and especially where there is serious harm to consumers."

The watchdog says that it expects the letting industry to comply with this ruling and will take the necessary steps to ensure this where appropriate.

Sureshield alarms collapse

2009-07-09T17:02:14Z

A series of alarm companies face being put into compulsory liquidation, leaving customers who have paid in advance potentially losing their money.

Birmingham-based Sureshield Security Systems Limited, Sureshield Monitoring & Maintenance Limited and Green Capital have been abandoned by their directors.

The Insolvency Service warns that there are a "significant" number of business and residential customers who have paid upfront for alarm monitoring. More details here.

End of the line for Merchant Retail Supplies scammers

2009-07-09T17:02:14Z

To the relief of businesses nationwide, Merchant Retail Supplies are set to be shut down by the High Court.

As we exposed in 2006, this lot foist unwanted stationery such as till rolls on firms and then charge exhorbitant prices.

Although using addresses in York and London (these were just branches of Mail Boxes Etc) it was at one point run by a Canadian called George Haligua - until the day that three gunmen walked into his office in Montreal and shot him in the legs.

Now the Department for Business has petitioned the High Court to have Merchant Retail closed in the public interest. The Official Receiver has been appointed provisional liquidator pending a hearing on August 13.

Free Mobiles 4 U accused of mobile switching scam

2009-07-08T23:01:58Z

The great mobile phone cashback scam is back - with a nasty little twist.

We've previously exposed many companies that conned mobile users into switching to costly new phone contracts by promising cashback deals - which never materialised.

Now the scam has mutated, judging by complaints we're getting about Free Mobiles 4U Limited.

It contacts people with 02 accounts and persuades them to change to 3, with the promise of a refund on any outstanding part of their existing contract.

Mark Eyre of Goole, East Yorks, told us: "Free Mobiles informed me my current O2 contract was coming to an end and offered me contract deals with their company.

"The phone arrived a few days later and I called 02 to cancel my contract and they said it was not due to end for another four months."

Furious, he tried to cancel his new contract with 3 but was told this wasn't possible.

Patricia Jephson was phoned about an upgrade for her son's 02 mobile and assumed that it was 02 calling.

Only later did she realise that it was Free Mobiles, which signed her up to 3.
"I'd never knowingly have taken out a second contract because I can barely afford the one with 02," she told us.

Patricia was promised cashback on her outstanding 02 contract if she sent monthly proof of payment.

"I've not received a refund even though I sent three sets of bills to them," she said.

At least Elaine Humphrey of Grantham, Lincs, knew her current mobile contract was still running when she was contacted by Free Mobiles. She agreed to a new deal with 3 - but only after it promised a refund of three months because she was switching early.

Now, 18 months later, she's still waiting, saying: "Each time a cheque is promised by Free Mobiles it never arrives.

"3 say they cannot take this up as the complaint is not about them."

Free Mobiles 4 U has four directors: Joseph Fusco and Dean Howell of Swansea and Robert Collins and Kirk Mills of nearby Ammanford. Collins and Mills were previously directors of Mobiles 4 You Limited, which was liquidated earlier this year owing almost £100,000 to the taxman.

Despite being a shareholder as well as a director, Kirk Mills, 29, told us: "To be
honest I'm not involved in the day-to-day running of the business."

But he still insisted that complaints of customers being promised cashback cheques would be "rare" and he was not aware of any problems.

"The only way we would agree to give customers cash would be if they wanted to cancel another contract to come to us but couldn't," he said.

"It would have been as a goodwill gesture, not something we have to do as part of a contract.

"Even so if we've promised to give cash then that's something we should have done."

A spokeswoman for 3 said: "We take any complaints that we receive seriously. We are aware of the situation and are looking into it."