Fraud Recovery

Can You Really Recover Money Sent Overseas to Scammers?

There are a lot of companies offering services recovering monies from overseas scammers at the moment, typically claiming to be from Israel or the US, but which target European and Australian scam victims. Obviously these services are not free, but is there any truth in the idea that you can recover money from a scammer in Belarus or the Caribbean? How would they perform this act, and if they can, why can't they stop them doing business or have them arrested by Interpol or the FBI?

Let us address the most obvious points first.

Card Transaction Fraud

  • If you have sent money overseas using a debit card or credit card then you have a good chance of recovering your money by contacting the appropriate bank. There are ChargeBack services in place with most decent banks and, although this is not enshrined in law, it is a bonafide agreement that most card issuers will stand by. Credit cards are usually more capable of recovering funds as they are liable for the debt until the next statement, and will usually check on suspicious transactions. You are also protected under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act if you are a UK resident and the transaction is between £100 and £30k. If you are ever unsure, don't make the transaction, but if you're in a pinch, use  your credit card first. 
  • It is possible that specialist companies can reverse card payments made overseas but if they can then your bank can do it for free. Do not start paying a company for something your bank should be able to reverse. There are so many charge recovery companies now that the process really can't be that difficult to achieve and one call to your bank will almost certainly save you 20% of any money lost.

Bank Transfer Fraud

  • Bank transfers are more difficult to recover if they have been made overseas, but not impossible. If your bank has a relationship with the receiving bank then they can report the transaction as fraudulent and see if action can be taken to recover the funds. They may also be insured against such problems and be able to help you recover some of the funds, particularly if you do not often make overseas transactions.

 Cryptocurrencies

  • Our advice for cryptocurrency is just to avoid it. Getting into Cryptocurrency is easy, but getting out is very hard, and the only way is to pass the currency to someone else for money. If you are looking to invest find a company with a business that is pertinent to the near future and invest in their shares.

 Money Transfer Services

  • If your transfer was made using service such as MoneyGram or Western Union then you are going to struggle to get any sort of recovery. These services do try to prevent fraud but can do little to repair it. Keeping abreast of scams is the best way to avoid being taken for a ride.

So the truth is that there isn't much a private company can do, is there?

How could a company in Israel or the USA recover money from a company in St Vincent and the Grenadines? What would they do? Threaten to send the FBI? How would they contact them? The address is probably a forwarding service that has to protect the identities of its customers according to local law. How could they override that? If you send £5000 to Israel in good faith for a recovery what happens if they don't recover anything? Would you have a right to get your money back?

The simple answer is No

If you have been scammed then start with advice from your bank or card or service provider as they are the most responsible following yourself. Then you can search websites provided by people like which.co.uk who are admirably concerned with the consumer as their business model. 

Under no circumstances pay anyone overseas any money for a service promising recovery if your bank has failed to recover as they can only be in cahoots with the scammers or completely incapable of recovering any money.

If your bank is unwilling to recover the money or you believe that there is more they can do then get a solicitor/lawyer in your own country to open a no win no fee arrangement against the bank and the bank will definitely exhaust every possible alternative.

What Should I Do if I've Been Scammed?

If you have been taken in by a scam there are a few things to bear in mind. These steps for anyone who has been scammed in the UK could be useful:

  1. Collect all of the evidence that you have in reference to the fraud. This would include your:
    • Browsing and Internet History from your Devices Involved
    • Bank Statements and Bank App History
    • Email history and phone records and call recordings if you have any
    • Any screenshots of any relevant websites, ads or scams that you followed to reach a site where you were scammed, including any social media sites where adverts appeared for the scams
    • Any screen recordings you made whilst transferring funds or any other relevant records of computer activity that may be related to the scam or where the scam was advertised
    • Any crypto-exchange receipts or logs of any kind from exchanges or other relevant sites
    • Any login names or details you may have used to gain access to any platforms when your money was transferred to or from exchanges or wallets.
    • Any wallet backup codes you may have that now show as empty (obviously private wallets with currency should not be disclosed to anyone)
  2. Visit your bank with all of your documents and have them put you in contact with their anti-fraud department and explain exactly what happened. They can help you scan all of the relevant data over to them and inquire about any possibility of liability on behalf of the bank. They will advise you what you can do once you have registered your issues and bear in mind that they are not going to concede any possibility of wrongdoing without a lot of evidence on your part. If you have made a transfer or card payment to an unrecognised payee then they do bear some responsibility. You may just have to make a bit of a nuisance of yourself in this regard, but it is not their own money, so do not worry about it too much if they seem reluctant to help. You may wish to get a local debt-recovery solicitor involved at this point but make sure they are a proper, registered solicitor rather than anyone advertising scam recovery online.
  3. Depending on whether the receiving bank was overseas or within the same country is an important part of this process as it changes the responsibility of your own bank and the receiving bank. There is a charter that all of the banks in the UK agree upon and if it can be established that the transaction was carried out under circumstances where the payee was misrepresenting themselves then a chargeback can be made and you can recover your money from the payee. This may not even be the scammer themselves, it may be a cryptocurrency exchange or some other entity, but it could mean that you will have your money returned.
  4. If the bank cannot be held accountable for the transaction, or you cannot mount enough proof that you were being deceived whilst transferring funds or paying by card, you may need to engage a proper solicitor authorised & regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority required by the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002. Make sure that the solicitor has the correct authorization and registration codes, so you know you have a solicitor that you can properly verify.
  5. See if the solicitor can be engaged on a no-win, no-fee basis which will ensure they make every effort for a successful recovery. It may be more advantageous not to provide any funds upfront given your situation anyway.