Bank Transfer Scam: 80-year-old Grandmother Loses £40k Life Savings

Doreen Kent was left “devastated” after she and her daughter Angie Coe – a Santander joint account holder with her mother – were targeted in a bank transfer scam.

The 80-year-old grandmother, of Ely, Cambs, had her £40,000 life savings stolen by a conman just days before Christmas. The bank said it will not replace the money.

The “smishing” trick was so convincing that Mrs. Coe agreed to reveal sensitive “passcode information” that allowed sizeable withdrawals to be made, not only from the joint account she shares with her mother but also a linked joint account she has with her husband Mark. In total, £45,200 was stolen.

Mrs. Kent said: “I am so worried – these are my savings. I’m devastated. It has been so stressful. “More should be done to warn customers about these scams. From what we have seen lots of people have been affected by ‘smishing’ scams, but we didn’t know anything about it.”

“Smishing” fraudsters send their victims a text message which typically says it is from their bank and they need to update their personal details or call their bank urgently. The text normally contains either a telephone number or a link to a website that asks victims to enter personal details or download a file to update their records.