Village Voice December 2012/January 2013 | Page 21

Last week he slammed the corner of the
boot lid of our new car down on his head,
and came in bleeding profusely. (Note to
self: why is ‘profusely’ only used to describe
blood flow?) Eager to use my first aid skills
(again) I rushed him into the bathroom and
applied antiseptics and dressing – quite hard
to apply flat over the egg that was rapidly
developing – but I managed quite a neat job,
though I say it as shouldn’t.
I did, however, lose marks for asking if there
was any damage to the car.
And then, you won’t believe this, a day later
he was bending over to put a log on the fire
and hit his head on the mantelpiece as he
straightened up. Are we starting to see a
pattern emerge? And not just on his head.
Belle Walker

FURTHER
SCAMS
WARNING
Hampshire County Council has issued the
following Trading Standards report, which we
pass on to you. Be warned!

China scam
Dozens of Hampshire residents have
received letters from China telling them that
they have been left large amounts of money
and shares by a long-lost relative who has
recently died without leaving a will.
To release the inheritance, the unsuspecting
victim is asked to carry out some
instructions, which include paying an upfront
fee or calling a premium-rate number. The
victim is also asked for their bank details in
order for the “transfer of inheritance money”
to take place. Money can then be deducted
from the victim’s account. The value of the
inheritance varies but has been as much as
£16 million. Residents are urged not to
respond under any circumstances and to bin

the letter. Report to: Action Fraud.
www.actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300
321 2040.

Business Scams:
Sign up for alerts
Unfortunately, in these tough economic
times, some unscrupulous businesses are
employing devious techniques to squeeze
money out of businesses. Hampshire
Trading Standards is urging small
businesses to be on their guard and to sign
up for alerts to the latest scam techniques.
One of the most common fraudulent methods
is an advertising scam. A recent case
involved a small B&B. After paying what they
thought was a one-off payment for an advert
in an online directory, the owners were
harassed and threatened by the advertising
company and a debt collection agency for
‘missed payments’ amounting to around
£1500. The calls were so threatening that
the B&B owners called the Police.
The B&B had never received any
confirmation of the contract and were never
provided with terms and conditions. Luckily
in the circumstances, the alleged debt could
reasonably be disputed.
The problem is widespread and in just three
months Hampshire Trading Standards has
received 24 similar complaints. Hampshire
Trading Standards is advising businesses to be
on their guard, to check all invoices carefully,
especially unexpected ones, and if targeted by
unsolicited telesales calls, to just hang up.
Hampshire businesses are also able to sign
up to receive electronic alerts of scams from
Trading Standards by visiting their website at
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/tradingstandards/
tradingstandards-businessadvice.htm.
Should you be the target of a business
scam, please let Trading Standards know
by calling 01962 833620.
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