'Crooks prey on elderly with building work scams'
A major bank is seeing a jump in criminals using building works as a ruse to steal customers’ money.
Criminals may ask for hefty deposits for work around the home or garden to be carried out before disappearing. They may make false claims to have qualifications and leave work behind that is severely shoddy or even dangerous. Santander UK highlighted the issue in its quarterly “scamtracker”, which tracks trends in authorised push payment (APP) scams, where people are tricked into transferring money directly to a fraudster. Purchase scams accounted for more than half (57%) of claims received between April and June, Santander said.
Within this, there was a 22% increase in the volume of scams involving building works in the second quarter of this year compared with the previous quarter. The bank said this is the fastest rising tactic it is seeing being used by scammers and the most common driver of purchase scams for customers aged 35-plus. A significant jump was seen among customers aged 80-plus, with building works making up more than half (58%) of all purchase scam claims received from this age group, up from just over a third (36%) in the first quarter of 2025.
The bank’s data also indicated that criminals are homing in on works linked to roofing and gardening or landscaping.
Looking beyond just building scams, the scamtracker found that £15.7 million was stolen overall from customers between April and June 2025, which was a 15% decrease compared with the previous three-month period.
Chris Ainsley, head of fraud risk management at Santander UK said: “While the total amount stolen by scammers has declined over the last quarter, don’t let this lull you into a false sense of security.
“With longer days and warmer weather, it’s a popular time for us all to think about jobs around our homes and gardens, and criminals are capitalising on this, parting customers with more than £700,000 between April and June alone.
“Don’t let scammers cast a shadow over your summer and; stay alert to anything that sounds too good to be true.”
The bank suggested that, to help guard against scammers, people seek recommendations from friends and family, source several quotes before agreeing to work and be wary of anyone cold calling. It said people should not feel under pressure to agree a deal on the spot.
Alongside building scams, Santander also highlighted a growing trend of criminals sending scam text messages purporting to be from organisations such as utility companies, government bodies, or linked to winter fuel payments or penalty charge notices.