Warning issued over 'convincing' licensing scam

Businesses are being urged to be vigilant after a spate of scams in which fraudsters posed as council officials.

The City of Lincoln Council said criminals had contacted holders of alcohol licences to ask them to pay to renew them.

The authority has advised anyone who receives a suspicious call to refuse to provide personal details or make any payments.

Ben Jackson, the council's public protection and licensing manager, said: "Some businesses are struggling as it is, so for them to be targeted and to lose money makes the scam even worse."

Mr Jackson said the scam was "convincing" and a few people had made payments to the fraudsters.

The authority became aware of the incidents after people contacted them, but Mr Jackson said he was unsure how the fraudsters had obtained their personal contact details.

He described the con as "quite creative" and urged people to remain cautious and to "end the call straight away".

"If you are ever unsure, please report any suspicious behaviour to the relevant organisation," he added.

The council said it did not request licence fee payments over the phone. All legitimate annual payment requests were issued on an official invoice, followed by written reminders.

Officers might contact a licence holder by phone if a correspondence address had changed and the council had not been informed, but payment would not be requested or taken on a call, the authority added.

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