"As we return to something approaching normal there is a danger that people lower their guard and find themselves out of pocket."
The figures around push payment scams are astonishing. According to data from UK Finance for the first half of 2021, there were more than 106,000 such scams. That’s not only up by 60% year-on-year, but it’s almost double the number seen in the first half of 2019.
The amounts of money involved is eye-watering too, with the first six months of last year seeing frauds worth a total of £355.3 million, up by 71% on the same period in 2020.
These scams work through criminals impersonating a trusted organisation - like a bank, charity or solicitor - and convincing victims to authorise a payment into the scammer’s account.
It’s that latter example which can prove so more damaging for those buying or selling their home. We’ve seen examples of cases where a fraudster has managed to gain access to an email conversation between a conveyancer and their client around a housing deal. By posing as the conveyancer, they have then talked the client into paying thousands of pounds - perhaps the entire deposit - into an account run by the criminal, only to then make off with the money.
The victim is left enormously out of pocket, and could even lose their dream home.
Lowering our guard
Most of us think that we are pretty good at spotting a scam email, though there are times when even the most cautious among us can be duped. There are all sorts of reasons why our guard might be down, with the high stakes of a property deal chief among them. After all, if you have set your heart on a new home and you receive an email seemingly from your solicitor warning that the deal may collapse if you don’t act quickly, then it’s understandable that people may be duped.
The changing situation over the pandemic can also play a part here. It’s understandable that people may have been a little more cautious than usual as things have operated in a different way over the last couple of years, but as we return to something approaching normal there is a danger that people lower their guard and find themselves out of pocket.
Stepping up our security game
It doesn’t have to be this way, however. At eConveyancer we have taken steps to introduce more secure forms of communication between everyone involved in a housing transaction, in order to reduce the opportunities for a fraudster to insert themselves into a case.
That’s one of the big features of DigitalMove, our digital platform which brings together the stakeholders in a deal, from buyers and sellers to brokers and conveyancers. The platform opens up faster ways of uploading documents and verifying identities, as well as making sure that everyone is kept in the loop on the exact progress of a case, and what needs to happen next for it to continue moving forwards.
Crucially from a fraud perspective, it also provides homemovers and conveyancers with a secure message facility, ensuring that they can communicate freely without risk of a scammer posing as either party. In effect, DigitalMove not only makes the process of buying a home more transparent and swift, it also erects additional safety barriers around a transaction to protect it from criminal outside influences.
Partnering with firms that take security seriously
It’s difficult to overstate just how devastating it can be for the buyers and sellers when a housing transaction is upended by fraud. It’s not just the immediate financial impact - though that can be hugely significant - but the stress and upset caused as well.
Buyers and sellers alike trust mortgage brokers, and with good reason. The best advisers are seen as allies, there to help their clients do far more than simply pick out a competitive two-year fixed rate. That’s why it’s so important that brokers think carefully about fraud and security when determining the firms to partner with, particularly when it comes to conveyancing.
By picking the right partners, those firms who put security at the very heart of how they operate, you can ensure that your clients are far less likely to see their plans upended by scammers.
