We are working hard to maintain the best service we can for you. As you can imagine our telephone lines are exceptionally busy at the moment. So we are asking for your help too.
In the interests of the health of both our customers and our staff, please avoid visiting our branches unless necessary. Please telephone your local branch direct if you have any queries or to register to use our online services.
To reduce the risk to our branch staff and customers, from 1st April, branch opening hours will temporarily be reduced to 9am – 12pm Monday to Friday and closed on Saturdays.
We have also temporarily reduced our telephone opening hours at Principal Office to 9am – 3.30pm Monday to Friday and closed on Saturdays.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Please beware of the following phishing email scam – National Trading Standards have passed on an alert about a phishing scam based on impersonating correspondence from the Government’s Job Retention Scheme.
An example message is provided below – the typos are the fraudsters’ own work:
“Dear customer, We wrote to you last week to help you prepare to make a claim through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. We are now writing to tell you how to access the Covid-19 relief. You will need to tell your us which UK bank account you want the grant to be paid into, in order to ensure funds are paid as quickly as possible to you.”
According to data from the Home Office and charities supporting victims, the pressures of living under COVID lock-down have caused a rapid increase in cases of domestic abuse. Abuse can take the form of coercive control, deliberate neglect and verbal or physical aggression. It often involves economic abuse (coercive control of the victim’s finances to steal their money and / or deny them the right to spend it). We’re supporting the Government’s campaign to raise awareness about help for victims of domestic abuse. You can find further guidance on how to get help here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/domestic-abuse-how-to-get-help
Scammers are sending emails posing as the Zoom download manager asking the recipient to complete their download by clicking “next”, which releases malware when clicked. The only safe way to set up Zoom for personal use is to go on the Zoom official website and download it yourself.
Please beware of a new text scam purporting to be from the Government which informs the recipient via a text that they have been issued a £250 fine for leaving the house during the lock-down as the Government have been tracking their movements using their phone. The recipient is told that if they don’t pay immediately they will incur a heavier fine and encouraged to click on a link to make the payment which may deliver malware as well as taking the payment and their account details.
During the coronavirus outbreak, many companies and organisations have sent emails containing COVID19 updates to their customers to make them aware of their current response and status. As these types of emails have now become increasingly frequent, criminals have started to use this familiarity to their advantage. These fraudulent emails, framed as a corporate COVID-19 response, contain malicious attachments and are targeting individual consumers and companies alike…
Emails may also be disguised as coming from a hospital that inform the recipient they may have come in contact with an individual who tested positive for COVID-19. The email instructs the recipient to download an attached Excel file, complete a form, and bring it to the nearest hospital. Once the attachment is downloaded, the malware has been activated and the attackers may be able to access your data.
Please keep in mind that typically, legitimate COVID-19 response emails have a message only in the body of the email and do not contain attachments.
There is some evidence that criminals are attempting to use the current COVID-19 situation as an exploitation opportunity, so please be extra vigilant before clicking on an email about the coronavirus outbreak. If a claim sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Criminals use exceptional circumstances like the current situation as a chance to pose as employees of a genuine organisation such as building society, bank or police and target you for fraud scams. They may claim they are dealing with coronavirus-related issues that require you to respond by paying money or providing personal information that will allow them to access your account. They often use pressure tactics to stop you thinking about want they want you do for them.
To help you stay protected, here are some things that we will never do:
Please remain vigilant.
Stop – Take a moment to think.
Challenge – Don’t be afraid to ask questions or to say “No” and end the conversation.
Protect – Contact the building society or the bank from which you have made a payment immediately if you think that you have been the victim of fraud.
We understand that some customers may be worried about the effect that contracting the Coronavirus (COVID-19) could have on their finances, for example due to a drop in income as a result of contracting the virus or because of the measures imposed to stop it spreading. If you have any concerns about how this could affect you and your mortgage, please click here to read the leaflet produced by the Building Societies Association and National Debtline or please get in touch on 01664 414141.
Please click here to see a list of Frequently Asked Questions for our members.
The Melton Building Society
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