October 2019 Counter Fraud Alert – Flu Jab Fraud Alert

It has been brought to our attention that patients may be targeted by this latest flu jab fraud scam. The fraudster’s aim is to trick unsuspecting patients, particularly the elderly or more vulnerable patients, into handing over their bank card details by claiming to be taking a nominal payment for a flu jab.

A fraudster is alleged to have called an elderly lady claiming to be a doctor from a local surgery. He advised that her usual surgery was short staffed and had therefore entered into an agreement with him to deliver flu vaccinations.

When the patient said that she was housebound and could not get to another surgery, he booked a home visit for the same day with a ‘nurse’. At the home visit, the ‘doctor’ suggested using a larger syringe at a cost of £1.50 and asked for the patient’s debit card details.

It is understood that almost £4,000 has been taken in a number of out of area transactions.

Patients and Staff are reminded to remain vigilant to protect themselves from fraud and cyber crime:

• Never give any personal information (name, address, bank details, email or phone number) to organisations or people before verifying their credentials.
• Always question unsolicited calls, texts or emails requesting your personal or financial information (name, address, bank details, email or phone number). Instead, contact the company directly using a known email or phone number.
• Be extremely wary of post, phone calls or emails offering business deals out of the blue. If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always question it.
• Listen to your instincts and be wary of unsolicited calls, emails or online ads offering deals that sound too good to be true.
• Genuine banks, or other trusted organisations, won’t pressure you into making a financial transaction, if something feels wrong then it’s usually right to question it.

If you receive any reports of patients experiencing a similar incident or if you receive any unauthorised requests for patient details, please report the matter to your local constabulary or to Action Fraud.