We have been recently made aware of a small number of possible telephone-based scam attempts regarding community alarms (commonly referred to as Carelink), which have involved hard sell tactics and where attempts to obtain customers’ bank details have taken place.

The potential scam is based around the upcoming Digital Switchover. Callers may inform residents that their community alarm will stop working after the digital switchover. They may pose as a company that provides community alarms that are ready for the switchover. They are known to pressure people into agreeing to purchase their product by using scare tactics, and it has been noted that they may become verbally aggressive if the resident declines. Community Alarm Installers have been made aware of this scam and will alert residents around bogus calls and reaffirm that they will never call specifically to request payment.

Key information for residents:

• Organisations that provide community alarms including Manchester City Councils Carelink service, do not cold call. If a resident does not know who the company is, they should hang up immediately.
• Manchester’s Carelink service will never call residents and ask for their bank details. The resident should not provide any personal details if they are at all uncertain who they are speaking to.
• Manchester City Council is aware of the upcoming Digital Switchover, and we are already starting to exchange older community alarm units with devices that are ready for the digital switchover, but please be aware that due to the numbers involved, this will take time.

Finally, if you suspect that a resident has been a victim of this scam, then please support them to contact Greater Manchester Police on 101. Residents can also submit an online report of scamming via the GMP’s fraud report page.