Metro Bank ignored my report of attempted scam

Metro Bank did not seem to pursue a reader’s phone call about a scam.Photograph: Timon Schneider/Alamy

I am the treasurer of a small charity, and recently received an email that appeared to come from the chair asking me to send a £780 payment to a supplier.

I immediately realised that it was a scam – it wasn’t written in his style, and, when I looked closely, it hadn’t come from his email address. I replied asking what it was for, and then kept the dialogue going.

The fraudster eventually gave me a sort code and account number at Metro Bank to which I should make the payment. So I phoned Metro to report that one of its customers was conducting criminal activity.

Rather than thanking me, it was totally uninterested as I was not its customer. It kept repeating I should contact our bank, and not to worry as I hadn’t transferred any money.

I was astonished that a bank would not wish to pursue this. If I see a robbery in progress at Tesco should I just ignore it?

NF, by email

Just as your email arrived in my inbox I was reading another: a press release about scams from, would you believe it, Metro Bank.

In the release it says: “It is unfair that consumers have to be vigilant all the time. But, given the vast amounts of money the scammers can earn, they never stop, they never miss an opportunity to defraud, and we all need to work together to minimise the damage they can cause.”

I asked the company about your email, and it told me: “We are sorry that NF didn’t receive a more positive response when he contacted us, but I can reassure you we (have now) acted on the information supplied, and appropriate action has been taken against the account in question.

“We would encourage everyone who suspects fraud to report it to the relevant parties.

“We continue to work closely with other stakeholders, including banks, network operators and law enforcement agencies, to help prevent and protect customers from fraud.”

Fraudsters are increasingly targeting the treasurers of small charities, in part because they often post their details on the charity’s website. Be warned.

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