Thousands of motorists are being scammed out of thousands of pounds every year after paying for tolls and emissions charges through fake websites that look like the official ones.
These scams can lead to fines of up to £70, with some offenders even adding extra charges on top of the actual fee. One pair of scammers was recently caught and sentenced to prison for operating over 40 fake sites that took in excess of £2.25 million from unsuspecting drivers.
To avoid falling victim to these scams, motorists are being advised to be vigilant when searching for payment websites. National Trading Standards has warned people to only pay through the official government website, which can be found on Gov.uk.
The easiest way to check if a website is genuine is to start at Gov.uk and search for the specific service you want to pay for. Some scammers have even created fake sites with similar names to the real ones, making it easy to get confused.
For example, "paydartcharge.co.uk" or "paylondoncharge.co.uk" may look like official websites, but they are actually scams. If you do realize you've paid through a scam site, try to get a refund through chargeback from your debit or credit card provider. Also, report the misleading website to Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 and take screenshots of the site and any payment confirmations.
By taking these precautions, motorists can protect themselves from falling victim to these scams and avoid paying unnecessary fines.
These scams can lead to fines of up to £70, with some offenders even adding extra charges on top of the actual fee. One pair of scammers was recently caught and sentenced to prison for operating over 40 fake sites that took in excess of £2.25 million from unsuspecting drivers.
To avoid falling victim to these scams, motorists are being advised to be vigilant when searching for payment websites. National Trading Standards has warned people to only pay through the official government website, which can be found on Gov.uk.
The easiest way to check if a website is genuine is to start at Gov.uk and search for the specific service you want to pay for. Some scammers have even created fake sites with similar names to the real ones, making it easy to get confused.
For example, "paydartcharge.co.uk" or "paylondoncharge.co.uk" may look like official websites, but they are actually scams. If you do realize you've paid through a scam site, try to get a refund through chargeback from your debit or credit card provider. Also, report the misleading website to Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 and take screenshots of the site and any payment confirmations.
By taking these precautions, motorists can protect themselves from falling victim to these scams and avoid paying unnecessary fines.
they create fake sites that look super legit and people fall for it its like they think we dont know the difference between a real website and one that looks made up 
anyway national trading standards is giving out some good tips on how to avoid getting scammed like only paying through gov.uk and checking if the site is genuine before you enter any info 
also getting a refund thru chargeback or reporting it to citizens advice can help you get your money back 
just be careful out there everyone
! It's just not fair that innocent drivers are getting ripped off every year. And the worst part is, some scammers are even making a profit from these schemes and gettin' away with it for years 
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. National Trading Standards is right, start with Gov.uk and search for the specific service you want to pay for. And if you do realize you've paid through a scam site, report it ASAP! Don't let these scammers get away with your hard-earned cash 
. We can all help keep each other safe from these scams by lookin' out for one another 
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I've heard stories about scammers making thousands of pounds from unsuspecting drivers and it's just not right. 
Instead, go straight to Gov.uk to check if the website is legit. And if you do end up paying through a scam site, report it ASAP! 
It's amazing how many resources are out there to help us navigate these online scams. Let's all just be more careful and look out for each other, okay? 
, it's just getting out of hand! People need to be more careful when searching for payment sites, I mean come on it's not that hard to spot a scam. These scammers are making off with thousands of pounds every year and it's just ridiculous. And the worst part is some of them even have similar names to the real websites, so you're actually paying for nothing 
. Anyway, I guess the tip about reporting the misleading websites to Citizens Advice and chargebacking through your debit/credit card provider might be a start...but we need more support for people who fall victim to this crap 
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. And omg don't pay through those fake sites like "paydartcharge.co.uk" - it's like they're trying to confuse people on purpose 
. If you do get scammed, report it and try to get a refund ASAP, and btw take screenshots of everything so you can prove it 
. I mean, who needs that kinda stress in their life? 
just had to pay £50 for a toll I didn't even use and it was through some sketchy website that looked almost identical to the real one 
. I mean, who creates fake websites that look identical to the real ones? 
. And if you do fall victim, dont panic just report it to Citizens Advice and get a refund through chargeback 
. Stay vigilant, mates! 
#FakeWebsites #ScamAlert #MotoristProbs
Like, what's going on?
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and it's like they think people are gonna fall for it right away 
and it makes sense to start from there 
. And yeah, those scammers are getting caught 
but it's like, they're just making it so easy for people to get duped 
and try to get that refund 
. Better safe than sorry 
like paydartcharge.co.uk or paylondoncharge.co.uk thats not how u pay ur tolls lol so yeah be careful out there check the site before u click & report any suspicious ones to citizens advice 
And then they add extra charges on top? That's just nasty.