Scammers are stealing home deposits in callous conveyancing scams
Scammers are impersonating solicitors and making away with victims’ house deposits just before their completion dates
We at Capital want to protect all buyers that have worked hard and saved for a deposit to buy a home.
One of our buyers have recently been a victim to this on Wednesday.
They had received an email from their solicitor with the correct email address and on letter headed asking them to send £10,200. They had a limit that they could only send £10,000 from their bank account. The bank had called them to confirm this was correct and as they believed it was from their solicitor they said yes. The next day they went to send the additional £200 and were unable to do so.
They contacted their solicitor and were made aware that it was not requested from them.
This scam is known as conveyancing fraud, and it's typically executed by a fraudster hacking into a solicitor’s or buyer’s email account and providing alternative bank details for deposits to be paid to.