OFT Raises Alarm Against Massive Lottery Scams

Various bogus lottery scams have been afflicting some serious monetary damages to hundreds of thousands of Brits, a consumer watchdog has cautioned.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has raised alarms about these massive lottery scams which have been costing the Brits around £260 million every year, with as many as 140,000 adults being conned out of their money.

A typical victim loses around £1,900 in ‘admin’ or ‘custom’ charges before realising that the lottery claim is bogus. Despite these unprecedented numbers, only six percent of the victims report these frauds to authorities, the OFT claimed.

Fraudsters typically set off communication to their targets via a letter, email, or phone calls, informing them about their mammoth cash winnings, and eventually luring them to cough up a considerable sum for administration or custom fees.

Lottery firm Camelot, which operates the National Lottery, asserted that it never informed users in the manner explained above.

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Speaking about the gravity of this issue, Heather Clayton, senior director of Consumer Markets Group at OFT, said: “Lottery scams are a serious issue affecting 140,000 adults in the UK each year which is why we want people to recognise the warning signs. Remember that if a win looks too good to be true, then it probably is”.