DVLA car tax scam could see cabbies as well as other motorists fleeced out of hundreds of pounds

It has been revealed that unsuspecting motorists are falling victim to DVLA car tax scams.

The Daily Express has reported that fraudsters pose as representatives from the DVLA, trying to extort money out of drivers.     

The fraudulent scams are usually manifested via a threatening text message or email to the motorist. The missives claim that there is either an under or over-payment of car tax, and that the driver must act immediately. The unwitting motorist is then asked to provide their bank details.  

The DVLA have re-assured motorists that they would never contact them via text message or email.

Chief Information Security Officer at DVLA, Dave Pope, issued some advice to motorists as to how to protect themselves from fraudsters, saying that motorists shpuld always use ".GOV.UK" when communicating with the DVLA. He also explained that people can protect themselves by not posting personal information on social media, and if in any doubt, report suspicious activity to Action Fraud.

Motorists are also advised not to click any links if they do receive a suspicious message but to immediately delete the message. The DVLA took to Twitter to give details of four separate car tax scams to explain what kind of messages motorists are being sent by criminals. The first scam is related to a failed car tax payment by the driver and threatens that the car owner could be fined £1,000 if they do not take action immediately. 

It reads: “Your latest vehicle tax payment failed. It appears that some of the billing details associated with you might have expired or otherwise changed. 

“Our system will automatically rely on the billing process one your billing details have been updated. “It can take up to 5 working days for the records to update. In order to continue to the update page, please use the following link. “Please note: If you don’t pay your vehicle ta on time you can be fined up to £1,000, on your details passed to a debt collection agency.” The second fraudulant email states that the driver is not up-to-date with their vehicle tax and the email was a ‘last chance’ reminder from the firm. 

The third email or text message claims that there is an ‘outstanding vehicle tax overpayment’ and a link to claim a refund. The fourth reads “ACTION REQUIRED: The DVLA have been trying to contact you, Click below for more information.” 

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