A dentist and business owner nearly fell for an invoice scam which would have ‘devastated’ his business.
Saagar Patel, who runs Dentristry100 in London, received a call from someone claiming to be a long-established supplier who he was due to pay.
They explained that there had been fraudulent activity on their account and that Patel would need to change the payment details to pay, and urging him to make the payment over the phone.
Saagar Patel nearly fell for an invoice scam after scammers urged him to update payment details
Patel was convinced by the scammer, as they referred accurately to his details, including the bank he used and the business account’s sort code.
As he was in the middle of working, Patel wrote down the new details for the supplier.
When the fraudster phoned again and asked him to make the payment, Patel became suspicious and hung up the phone.
He called the company directly to request the change and quickly discovered that he was moments away from being scammed.
Although he had updated the new account details, fortunately, he hadn’t finalised the payment.
‘I almost fell a bit ashamed in that moment because I always considered that I wouldn’t fall victim to a scam like this,’ he said.
‘If the scam had been successful, it really would have been devastating for the business.’
He says if the scammers were successful, he would have lost around £3,000.
Patel is one of over 40 Santander customers known to have been targeted by this type of scam in 2024 so far, with a total value attempted of more than £1.3million, according to the bank.
In an invoice or mandate scam, the victim tries to pay an invoice to a legitimate payee, but the scammer intervenes to convince them to redirect the payment to an account they control.
They often pose as conveyancing solicitors or estate agents with new bank details provided to complete on a property acquisition, or receiving a fake invoice from a supplier.
Sometimes the scammers can even moonlight as an employee who has asked to change their bank details for their next wages payment.
Patel says he remembers being asked unusual questions like ‘Do you have enough money in your bank to pay?’, ‘Are you going to make the payment now?’ and ‘Are you going to stay on the phone to make the payment?’
This type of fraud usually involves intercepting emails or compromising an email account, with UK Finance research showing that 80 per cent of the scams originated via an email.
While the number of invoice scam cases fell 7 per cent from 3,340 to 3,110, their value rose from £49.5million to £50.3million, according to UK Finance.
Santander is warning its customers to be cautious when paying suppliers and third-parties reminding people to ‘never feel rushed into making a payment’.
Chris Ainsley, Head of Fraud Risk Management at Santander UK said: ‘Payment redirection scams, also known more simply as ‘redirection scams’, are being used by criminals to take millions from UK businesses each year.
‘Even if it is from a third-party or supplier they know very well, businesses should take extra care in checking for legitimate contact details, and make sure to question any requests contacting your existing service provider or supplier with a contact number you’ve used for them before, to check whether it is genuine.
‘Don’t use the contact details in the email or letter as this could lead to you making the checks with the fraudster themselves.
‘If businesses think they have fallen victim to a redirection scam, they should contact their bank as soon as possible.’