Nowadays we are all too aware of how often internet scams, fraud and identity theft occur. What most of us miss is the level that these elaborate scams can reach.
In a recent article by the Daily Mail it was reported that a west London property worth £1.3 Million was sold without the owner’s knowledge. This incident follows a number of ‘high value home’ frauds across the country all of which have now come to the attention of the Metropolitan’s Police Cybercrime Unit.
You may ask yourself how such a scam could possibly take place… Surely both the solicitors and the estate agents must have measures in place to prevent such fraud? The truth of the situation is that professional fraudsters employ a combination of tactics including, identity fraud, cash payments and months of careful planning to achieve their goal. In this instance the female fraudsters impersonated the registered owner of the property by going as far as changing her names via deed poll. In doing so then managed to acquire a UK passport which was later used as ID with both the Estate agents and solicitors.
Professional fraudsters will also go to extreme lengths in researching potential properties to target which they know are un-mortgaged and have owners that do not live locally. This allows them to impersonate the real owner and initiate sale proceedings with an unsuspecting purchaser. The real victim of this fraud (The purchaser) will then proceed to transfer funds, which are usually swiftly re-directed to an offshore account.
The positive news in this particular case is that the Land Registry never actually registered the property due to a discrepancy on the paperwork. The property remained in the names of the original owners, however this scam has inevitably brought increasing pressure on both agents and solicitors to verify their client’s identification. Nevertheless it is all too clear that ‘high-end’ fraud is on the increase and a subject that is becoming all too common.
So what can we do as solicitors to combat this level of sophisticated fraud? The simple answer to this is get to know your client! Here at Newnham and Jordan we take the time to meet over 90% of our clients, which in turn builds up a more personal relationship as we progress your matter. This way we can be sure that the person presented to us in the passport photo is actually the person they claim to be. We also employ a number of additional protective measures when dealing with distant clients such as Anti-Money Laundering searches, bankruptcy checks and strict verification of both ID and address processing. All of which ensure that our clients avoid the kind of nightmarish situation described above.
This article is intended for general information purposes only and shall not be deemed to be, or constitute legal advice. Newnham & Jordan Solicitors cannot accept responsibility for any loss as a result of acts or omissions taken in respect of this article or any external articles it may refer or link to.
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