The scammers are telling premises licence holders their licence has expired and a renewal payment is required.
The fraudulent claims aim to cause confusion for the licensees, who are required to pay for their legitimate annual fee, which needs to be paid on the anniversary date of when the initial premises licence was issued.
Earlier this month, Bedford Borough Council issued a warning after receiving reports of individuals posing as licensing officials and demanding immediate payment for licensing fees, often through suspicious methods such as bank transfers or cash payments via telephone calls.
It warned operators to remain vigilant and confirmed legitimate licensing officers would never request payment via bank transfer or cash.
Threatening consequences
The council explained in some cases, scammers have used mobile phone numbers to contact licensees, claiming that their fees are overdue and threatening consequences if payments are not made promptly.
Bedford Borough Council said payments should only be made through official, secure and verified channels, using the official council website.
It also confirmed it would always send written confirmation when licence fees are due and urged licensees to make sure they verify the identity of anyone claiming to be a licensing officer by requesting official identification.
The council also highlighted that licensees should avoid making payments through unverified methods or to unfamiliar accounts.
Criminals taking advantage
Councillor Phillippa Martin-Moran-Bryant, portfolio holder for housing & regulatory services said: “If you are in any doubt about whether a request for payment is legitimate, please do not hesitate to contact the Council.
“All our businesses should be free to operate without criminals looking to take advantage of them.”
This isn’t the first case of licensees being targeted in this type of fraud.
North Kesteven District Council’s Licensing Team recently issued a similar warning locally about the scam which it said is taking place nationally.
At the end of last year Bury Council said pub and shop owners who pay an annual licensing fee were being contacted by crooks who are contacting licence holders by telephone using a mobile number requesting the payment of the annual fee to a bank account.
A Bury council spokesman said: “We will never contact you via a mobile number asking you to make payment to a bank account. You will always be asked for the invoice number from the documentation sent to you, and payment can be made through various methods as detailed on your invoice.”
