Lancashire man warns other motorists after fake parking QR code scam leads to £1,100 fraud attempt

A Lancashire man was left stunned after he received a text from his bank which was querying an unexpected £119 transaction.

After phoning his bank, he was told there had also been several other attempts, including a £99 transaction and a £1,100 purchase attempt at an Argos store. Both were deemed suspicious and-fortunately the payments did not go through.

But when Philip Miller, 68, from Accrington, was asked if he had used his phone for any kind of payment, he remembered he had.

It had been at the Central Car Park, off Central Drive in Blackpool, when none of the ticket machines had been working but a QR code seemed to offer a handy chance to pay the car park fee.

It turned out that the QR code had just been stuck on the notice and was fake. Scammers were out to fleece unsuspecting motorists and Philip, like many others, had no idea until it was too late.

The car park is owned by Blackpool Council, who are urging people to be vigilant.

Philip, said: “We’d just arrived for a day out in Blackpool to celebrate a 50th birthday.

“We love Blackpool, it’s just 45 miles away and there’s always something going on.

“I was a bit annoyed that the car park ticket machines were all out of order but then I spotted the QR code and i just paid it via an app on my phone. Nice and easy. But turned out to be a scam.

“At first I thought the fella at Morrison’s, where I bought the paper, was to blame and I was going to go and see him.

“But the bank told me he had nothing to do with it. These dodgy QR codes are everywhere, I was told.

“I think Blackpool Council could do more – make sure the ticket machines work, and get the traffic wardens to remove the QR stickers. If they can dish out parking tickets, they can just as easily peel off these stickers.

“Fortunately my bank was brilliant and I didn’t lose any money, but someone else might not be so lucky. And it did stress me out – I had to sort things with my bank and it kind of ruined the day.”

What the council says

A Blackpool Council spokesperson said: “We were made aware of a parking scam on Central car park at the weekend.

“Our team responded quickly to remove any fake QR codes. “Our parking system does not use QR codes. All of Blackpool Council’s tariff boards and machines carry signs stating that Blackpool Council does not use QR codes for taking payments and QR codes should not be used.

“Instead you can pay in the PayByPhone app, over the phone or in a payment machine.

“Along with the majority of the UK, QR scam stickers are something we have been targeted with numerous times, which is why our proactive teams are tasked daily with removing any that they find from council owned car parks in Blackpool. PaybyPhone will report and take down any fake URL landing pages.

“We urge everybody to doublecheck before making payments. These scams are designed to catch people off guard, and we don’t want anyone else to lose money to these fraudsters.

“If you have any concerns about payments recently made, please contact your bank and report to Report Fraud (formerly Action Fraud) at: https://www.reportfraud.police.uk”