The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency is warning that criminal scammers are sending text messages about fake DVSA parking penalty charges.
The text messages warn people that they have a ‘parking penalty charge’, and that if they do not pay on time, that they might:
- be banned from driving
- have to pay more
- be taken to court
This is an image of the scam text that people have been receiving.
The initial text message has been followed up with scam reminders:
DVSA Fixed Penalty Office:
Today is the last day to pay your ticket due to your long term delinquency, if you do not pay your ticket on time you may be required to pay more in the future and we reserve the right to prosecute you. Please be patient and open the link below to process your ticket.
Thank you again for your co-operation.
Another scam reminder says:
DVSA Fixed Penalty Office last notification :
You have not paid your ticket within the stipulated time. Today is the last time to notify you to pay. We will ban your car from driving on the road starting tomorrow and transfer your parking ticket to the court. Please wait until you receive the information. Process your ticket as soon as possible in the link.
The DVSA does not issue or deal with parking fines.
What to do if you received a message
You can report scam text messages to the National Cyber Security Centre.
You do not need to contact DVSA if you have received the text message.
If you’ve been tricked into sharing personal information with a scammer, you can take immediate steps to protect yourself.
Find out what to do if you think you’ve shared personal information.
If you’ve lost money or have been hacked as a result of responding to a suspicious text message, report it:
- at www.actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040 (in England, Wales or Northern Ireland)
- to Police Scotland by calling 101 (in Scotland)
RAC spokesman Rod Dennis said, “This new text message trick is the latest in a series of nasty scams where criminals are catching drivers out by imitating online payment methods.
“In the short-term, the cost is unnecessary and expensive as drivers end up paying a fine for an offence they didn’t commit. The long-term implications can be even worse if scammers use their bank or personal details elsewhere.
“It’s incredibly unusual to receive a text about a parking fine if there wasn’t a ticket on your car in the first place – and the ticket normally includes information on how to pay. To be safe rather than sorry, we’d advise any recipients of the text to first check if they need to pay a fine with the authority rather than following the URL in the SMS. If a fine is due, ask for the payment options and, if you choose to pay it online, make sure the website is the genuine one and that any details you enter are sent securely.”
There are several indicators that the messages are scams and can be ignored: They do not include identity of the recipient, badly worded and have spelling errors and of course do not contain the vehicle’s registration mark but filling in that detail along with any credit or debit card details will lead to further scams after the fraudsters sell-on those personal details and lead to bank accounts being hacked, possibly within hours.
