Scam Alert!

If you receive any telephone calls or correspondence asking you for money, bank account or which you believe to be fraudulent or believe any of the following has happened to you, please contact us. You should also report the details to Action Fraud (details below).

The Resort Group (TRG)

We have been made aware of attempts by scammers to defraud members of the public who hold TRG assets, including those who hold their assets within a pension.

The scammers make contact saying that they have buyers lined up to purchase the asset and offer a very attractive amount of money.  When they get interest, they say that there will be some up-front costs, such as taxes and solicitors’ fees, which you will need to pay first in order to complete the deal.  They promise documents will then be signed and the money sent on.

In this case, the firm who made contact were Dixon Collins, a firm based in Malaysia, who said there was a firm in China who would purchase the property (however the scammers may use different names or countries eg Euro Resales Limited, travelandleisure.co.uk).  As is usual with these types of fraud, there is no further contact once the money is paid, and frequently, that money will be lost.  This is known as a Payment in Advance scam.

GPG Partnership (formerly Dolphin)

It has recently come to our attention that a number of clients who invested in GPG loan notes have recently received further unsolicited contact from companies purporting to represent Rowanmoor, requesting personal contact details and referring to the recovery of funds invested from Rowanmoor.  One of these is a company claiming to be The Chartered Trading Standards Institute. You should decline to speak to or communicate with anyone purporting to represent this firm.

There are also companies purporting to represent the liquidator for GPG or GPG itself mentioning monies held that are due to you (may mention escrow accounts) but these are false.  The names used may include CSL Finance, Acebuche Administration, German Property Group Limited with a Birmingham address, BN3 Asset Management, Investment Claims Limited, Asgard Management PLC,  M.G.E. Holdings and Oakwell Capital Partners.

Please be aware that no third-party company alleging to represent GPG’s liquidator or Rowanmoor will be in contact with you. Any returns from the investment will only be available once the liquidation has been completed by the German liquidator.

Storefirst

We have been made aware of attempts by scammers to defraud members of the public who hold Storefirst assets, including those who hold their assets within a pension.

The newest scam is to claim to be representing buyers of Storefirst called Dubai Investment Fund through London Bridge 2 PCC.  None of this is real and this is a scam to get you to purchase ‘indemnity insurance’ that does not exist.  If you have been contacted, please report it to Action Fraud and take no action.

A previous and re-occurring scam involves the scammers pretending to be The Insolvency Service and may use an email address the same as or similar to investigation@insolvencyservicegov.com.  It will claim that Store First overcharged its customers or did not purchase Store Pods and that the monies from this were held in an escrow account.  They will claim a section 25 has been filed at the High Court against store first ltd and that Falcon Holding Limited are managing the refund of monies from this account.  If you have received one of these emails please contact the real Insolvency Service on 0300 678 0015 or via their online contact form which can be found at General Enquiry (bis.gov.uk) as well as contacting Action Fraud as outlined below.

An old scam is to confirm that Storefirst is in liquidation, which is not the case, and then offer to facilitate a sale and / or valuation.  To do this they will ask for monies.  Do not pay any monies to them.  Scammers will use many different names but some of them are Sutton Johnson Holdings, MG Finance Consulting, Marbler Gerhard, KB Financial Solutions, Karel Besta, London Commodity Traders, Boston Public Law Office, Stoneford Holdings and Caledonian Equity Group (this is not all the names they use but are examples).

Rowanmoor

It has come to our attention that a number of clients who held pensions with Rowanmoor have been contacted about the purchase of their shares in Rowanmoor Trustees Limited.  The company offering this is Segment Capital LLP.  This has been identified as a scam – you did not ever own any shares in Rowanmoor Trustees Limited.

Members have also received unsolicited contact from companies purporting to represent Rowanmoor and / or their administrator (Evelyn Partners), requesting personal contact details and referring to the recovery of funds invested from Rowanmoor.  One of these is a company claiming to be The Chartered Trading Standards Institute. You should decline to speak to or communicate with anyone purporting to represent this firm.

Please be aware that no third-party company alleging to represent Rowanmoor or it’s administrator will be in contact with you.

Action Fraud

Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime where you should report fraud if you have been scammed, defrauded, or experienced cyber-crime in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. You can report fraud or cyber-crime using their online reporting service at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040.