Scammers targeting residents over landline switch

Lorraine Sencicile, 78, told the BBC she had received up to three calls a day

A deaf woman says she has been inundated with calls from suspected scammers while awaiting her landline’s digital switch.

Lorraine Sencicile, 78 from Dilton Marsh, Wiltshire, said she has had up to three fraudulent calls a day, falsely telling her that her telephone will not be compatible with an internet-based connection.

The UK's telephone network will switch to digital by 2027, with lines that have been used for years are set to be effectively, turned off and replaced with broadband in homes.

Mrs Sencicile told BBC Radio 4’s You and Yours programme that the callers tell her that they can make her landline compatible for a fee.

“The first phone call I got was round about August time. It was a genuine sounding lady. They said my company will come and provide you with an alternative, but it will cost around £60.”

“I felt that my arm was gently being pushed up my back to send them money. And I said no, this is rubbish,” said Mrs Sencicile.

“I knew my phone was compatible when we bought it. I made that clear.”

Mrs Sencicile says her specialist telephone is compatible with the switch from analogue to digital

A spokesperson for Wiltshire Council confirmed that they believed the people contacting Mrs Sencicile were part of a scam, adding: "As with any suspected scam call, it is important not to give out personal information, bank details, and instead hang up.

"If members of the public are not sure if the person, they are speaking to is genuine they can ask for the name of the person, their contact information, along with the company they represent."

A spokesperson for the communications watchdog, Ofcom, explained that what Mrs Sencicile has been receiving are “almost certainly scam calls”, adding that “and providers will never ask for money upfront for a residential switch to a digital landline”.

They say, “customers will be contacted individually by their landline provider to be given a digital switchover date, along with instructions on what to do.”

Ofcom adds that the switchover “usually just involves plugging your landline phone into your router”.

They advise customers receiving similar calls to immediately hang up the phone and get in touch with their provider, reporting any suspected scam calls to Action Fraud.

Action Fraud can be contacted on 0300 123 2040.