Investment scams

Hargreaves Lansdown never cold call investors offering investment opportunities.

Investment scams often involve high-pressure selling tactics in order to get investors to purchase investments that are either worthless or non-existent. The initial contact usually starts with a telephone call that comes from out of the blue, and fraudsters will often purport to be calling from well-established, regulated firms in order to appear legitimate. The FCA refer to these as ‘clone’ firms.

Hargreaves Lansdown will never:

• Call you out of the blue to promote an investment or offer you money in exchange for your shares.
• Ask you to send application forms by email. You can apply online via our website or by telephone by calling 0117 900 9000, and if you want to send a cheque please send your application by post to our registered address: Hargreaves Lansdown, One College Square South, Anchor Road, Bristol, BS1 5HL.
• Discuss detailed information regarding an application or transaction with you by unsecure email.
• Ask you to send money via bank transfer to a bank account, an overseas bank account or a currency exchange provider.

If you believe that you have received a cold call from anyone purporting to work for Hargreaves Lansdown, please contact our Investment Helpdesk on 0117 900 9000.

How to protect yourself:

• Reject cold calls.
• Always do your own research.
• Remember, if something sounds too good to be true it most likely is.

If you are in any doubt, put down the phone and call us on 0117 900 9000.

Boiler rooms are financial operations which involve high-pressure selling tactics in order get investors to purchase shares that are either worthless or do not exist. The initial contact from a boiler room will often start with a telephone call that comes from out of the blue. These operations will obtain your contact details from a variety of sources, for example the old share registers. In recent years boiler rooms have evolved to employ different tactics whereby they offer to buy shares. In this situation they will offer to buy shares at a premium, perhaps stating this is due to an imminent takeover. They can also contact you with an offer to buy your delisted shares. Once this has been agreed they will then ask for an upfront payment in order to complete the sale, which will usually be masked as an overseas tax charge or dealing fee. Boiler rooms are almost always based outside the UK. In order to promote or sell shares in the UK, firms must be registered with the FCA. It is illegal to carry out this activity whilst unauthorised. This includes any firm that is based overseas and is operating within the UK.

If you deal with an unauthorised firm, you will not be eligible to receive payment under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

If you ever receive an unexpected high-pressure telephone call and are concerned about the legitimacy of the company, you should always ask for the caller’s full name, company name, company registration details, their telephone number and where they are located. You should then conduct your own independent research to check if the details you’ve been given correspond to the information available publicly. Bear in mind however that some boiler rooms may use legitimate companies’ details as their decoy. You can verify any contact you have received by contacting the company directly, using the details you have found independently rather than the ones given to you by the caller. Where you are dealing with a call regarding investments, you should also ask whether they are authorised by the FCA and request their FCA reference number. You can check for FCA regulated firms by searching the Financial Services Register. You can also contact the FCA’s Consumer Helpline on 0800 111 6768.

How can I protect myself?

• Reject cold calls.
• Always do your own research.
• Remember, if something sounds too good to be true it most likely is.

Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud happens where victims are tricked by fraudsters into transferring money into an account in the fraudster’s control under false pretences. An example of this is where the fraudsters pretend to be a trusted organisation such as the FCA, HMRC, law enforcement, the victim’s bank or investment provider such as HL, or even someone the victim knows such as a family member or friend.

The fraudster will often tell the victim their money is at risk and they need to move it to a “safe” account. They may even ask the victim to lie to their bank or other financial institution regarding the reason for the withdrawals – this is a tell-tale sign of a scam.

This type of scam isn’t new but has become increasingly attractive to fraudsters. In the first half of 2021, losses to APP fraud in the UK hit £355.3mn, overtaking card fraud for the first time. As more of us use online banking these days to make it easier to transfer money in real time, it means more of us are at risk, as scammers can trick victims into using real-time payment schemes to transfer the money to them. Payments made using real-time payment schemes are irreversible, a victim cannot cancel the payment once they realise they’ve been scammed.

While banks are required to refund you for card fraud, there’s limited protection against APP fraud. It’s notoriously difficult for firms to detect as the victim authorises the payment themselves – making it appear a legitimate instruction. As such, knowing how to spot the signs of APP fraud is crucial.

Fraudsters come up with new tactics all the time. You can keep up to date with information across our Security Centre about the most common threats to be aware of.

Spotting the signs – what to beware of:

• Cold calls – Beware of unexpected calls claiming to be your bank, HMRC, or another reputable firm, such as HL.
• Pressure to send payments – If anyone asks you to send a payment or move your savings, and pressures you to do it quickly – this is likely a scam.
• Intercepted messages – Be mindful of the emails and messages you’re sending and receiving as they can be intercepted. Look out for anything unusual.
• Security details – Never disclose your full security details over the phone. We’ll never ask you to do that and it’s very unlikely other firms will either.
• Ask questions – Just because someone knows your basic details (such as name/address) it doesn’t mean they’re genuine. A quick online search and your own personal research around the contact you’ve received can quickly reveal if it could be a scam.

If you suspect it might be a scammer don’t try to catch them out. Stop contact with them and report your concerns straight away using contact details provided on the company’s website or letters they’ve sent you.

Most importantly, trust your instincts. If it feels wrong, it probably is wrong. Fraudsters are clever, and for many it’s a full-time job. They may sound convincing, authoritative or professional, and will employ numerous tactics to obtain your trust and ultimately your money.

If you think you’ve been scammed, you should report it to Action Fraud either online or by calling 0300 123 2040. You can also report it to the FCA either online or by telephoning 0800 111 6768.

What are clone firm investment scams?

Clone firm investment scams are financial operations which involve fraudsters using literature and websites that mirror the details of authorised firms, like pension providers or investment platforms.

They’ll try to convince you that they work for a genuine company and use high-pressure selling tactics to get you to buy ‘investments'. These ‘investments’ are worthless and often aren’t even offered by the company they’re pretending to be.

5 tips to help spot them

1. A seemingly genuine call to promote an investment – Scammers might call you promoting an investment or offer you money in exchange for your shares. We’d never do this.
2. Asking to send application forms by email – Scammers often ask you to send applications by unsecure email. Where possible, we’ll ask you to complete an application on our website, over the phone or by post. If you need to send an application by email, protect the attachment with a password and let us know what the password is separately.
3. Trying to discuss your personal information by unsecure email – If we need to talk to you about your HL account, we’ll contact you by secure message, which is sent to your online account.
4. Offering to invest in a product the genuine company doesn’t offer – HL will never call you to promote a particular investment or product. Scams on social media and search engines have become more popular with fraudsters recently.
5. Insisting you send money via bank transfer – Scammers often ask for money to be sent electronically to a bank account, overseas bank account or a currency exchange provider. The quickest and safest way to send us money is usually by debit card via our website or by calling us, but if you need to send us a bank transfer, you can contact us securely to verify the correct details before you make a payment.

For lots of fraudsters, this is a full-time job. They have the time and expertise to try and build a relationship with you. These scammers are extremely persistent and their aim is simple – to take your money. Remember, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Protecting yourself from scams

Check the firm contacting you is FCA-authorised

The FCA authorises almost all financial services companies in the UK. If they’re not authorised, it could be a scam. You can check the Financial Services Register to see if a company or individual is authorised or registered. If you’re contacted by a company you’re not familiar with, you should always check the register before you act.

Check the company contacting you is genuine

To make sure you’re being contacted by a genuine company, you should call their switchboard number which you can find on the FCA Register. If they phone you, it’s usually best to end the call, check the register and then call the company back on the number found on the FCA website.

If you can’t find any contact details on the FCA Register or if the firm claims they’re out of date, check by calling the consumer helpline on 0800 111 6768.

If you’re dealing with an overseas company, you should check with the regulator in that country and also check the scam warnings from foreign regulators.

Remember, phone numbers displayed on incoming calls are easily spoofed by fraudsters to make it appear they’re calling from the expected location or company. If you don’t feel comfortable then it’s completely acceptable to stop, think and check before taking any action.

Check the FCA Warning List

Use the FCA Warning List to see if the company is known to be operating without the FCA’s permission.

Even if a firm isn’t on the FCA Warning List, it might still be a scam – scammers will change names and details all the time.

Reject unexpected investment offers whether made online, on social media or over the phone. Be wary even if you made the first contact.

What to do if you think you’ve been scammed

Call your bank straight away – they’ll be able to help you with the next steps.

If you’ve been defrauded or experienced cybercrime you should report it to Action Fraud either online or by calling 0300 123 2040.

If you've started a pension transfer and now suspect a scam, call your pension provider straight away. They might be able to stop it.

You should also report what’s happened to the FCA either online or by calling 0800 111 6768.

If you’ve noticed any suspicious activity on your HL account or think your account might’ve been compromised, then please contact our Online Support team on 0117 980 9984 as soon as possible.