Luz Pingree
While in Paris in December, my friend and I took a 30-minute taxi ride from Notre-Dame Cathedral to the Galeries Lafayette Paris Haussmann department store.
We were told the fare was €28 (£24). When I looked at my NatWest credit card statement on our return home, I found I’d been charged £2,503.
I complained to my bank and requested a chargeback but was refused. Please help.
J.B., Gillingham, Kent.
Sally Hamilton replies: Tales of this nasty Paris taxi scam are widespread, I’m sorry to say.
Money Mail has covered the subject in detail previously and I have tried to help readers who have been defrauded get their money back, with mixed success.
One woman was conned the same way as you in 2023 and had €777 rather than €7.77 charged to her card. Despite my best efforts, her bank – Sainsbury’s – refused to refund her.
NewDay, provider of the John Lewis credit card, was more compassionate and on my intervention in a case in 2024 reimbursed its scammed customer the €500 he had lost.
You explained to me how the rogue taxi driver played out the scam, which was a carbon copy of what happened in my earlier cases.
When you reached your destination, your friend offered the driver cash as payment. He said he didn’t accept cash.
Since the pandemic, there has been a growing trend across all kinds of retailers to request card payments rather than handling coins and notes, so this didn’t raise a red flag.
You proffered your NatWest credit card, expecting a contactless transaction to go through on the payment device.
But the driver said the transaction didn’t work and you would have to enter your PIN. His hand concealed most of the screen.
When you later saw the £2,503 debit on your statement you were aghast and quickly contacted NatWest.
It declined your claim with no explanation – but you did find out that the owner of the card machine that took the fraudulent payment was named ‘Monsieur B’.
When I asked NatWest to investigate, it came back after a few days to say the fraud team was on the case.
Some delays arose due to a missing piece of correspondence, although it didn’t elaborate on what this was.
The bank raised a chargeback claim on Monsieur B’s account. Chargeback is valuable protection for card users who have been defrauded or have not received the product or service they purchased.
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In a chargeback claim, the money is often sent back to the person who paid it relatively quickly.
However, if the receiver doesn’t agree that they should offer a refund, they can dispute this within 60 days and potentially get it back.
In your case, I thought this was a long time to wait without any certainty you’d get your money back.
But I am pleased to say NatWest has decided not to make you wait the 60 days, and instead has paid you £2,503 upfront, including foreign exchange charges, as a gesture of goodwill to avoid you facing any further delays and stress.
Perhaps the bank had an inkling that Monsieur B knew he didn’t have a leg to stand on.
A spokesman says: ‘NatWest is committed to tackling fraud and to make banking for our customers as safe and as stress-free as possible.
‘Given the situation and as a gesture of goodwill we have refunded her for her loss.’
The bank was keen to warn others not to fall into the same trap. The spokesman adds: ‘Falling victim to fraud is a challenging and upsetting experience at any time, especially when abroad.
‘If a driver won’t accept cash, then we would advise asking for an estimated cost of the journey when entering the cab and always make sure you check the payment device and amount before payment.
‘A receipt is always the best proof of payment, and if you feel that you have been the victim of fraud, then contact your bank or credit card provider immediately and provide them with as much information as you can.’
I would add that anyone who happens to fall for the same trick, whether in Paris or any other city, and realises immediately (which unfortunately you didn’t), should try to take a photo of the taxi number plate and report the scam to the local police and then their bank.
Boots thinks I’ve kicked the bucket My Boots Advantage card keeps failing and my accumulated points keep disappearing.
This is an issue with both the physical card and the digital version on the app. I have telephoned Boots five times and on each occasion I am given a new card number for my app, which will show my points for a few hours but then they disappear.
When I contacted customer service, they told me I was being flagged as deceased, which I am obviously not. Please help, as I am missing loads of points.
M.A., Shropshire.
Sally Hamilton replies: YOU can’t have found it amusing to be listed as deceased on Boots’ records. You are not an ‘ex-
customer’, to borrow from Monty Python’s legendary Dead Parrot sketch, but most definitely alive – and spending.
Equally annoying was to have nothing to show for your regular purchases made with the retailer.
Customers with an Advantage loyalty card typically earn three points for every £1 spent either online or in stores, and they
can use them to get money off future spending.
You recently bought hearing aids for your husband which cost more than £2,000, but you had no points to show for this outlay.
I asked Boots to update its records and retrieve your missing points. It responded promptly but, for a reason it did not explain, was unable to quickly resolve the glitch in its system that was causing problems for your account.
In the meantime, it has issued you a new card number digitally and you will receive a new physical loyalty card soon.
The retailer no longer hands out physical cards automatically, but customers can request them.
Following my intervention, Boots sent you a £70 gift voucher to make up for the value of your missing points.
It promised you it was working on rectifying the bug in its system that pronounced you dead.
In September, we switched our broadband and TV services from Sky to Virgin Media.
We cancelled our direct debits and Virgin said it would get in touch with Sky to end our contract.
However, in October, Sky said we owed £163.48 and asked us to set up a new direct debit or our services would be restricted.
We paid, but in November and December we were told we still owed £64.94. We were threatened with debt collectors, so we paid the bill.
L.F., Angus.
Sky says the new provider arranges the cancellation of the broadband services but not TV.
It says it emailed you to say your broadband had been cancelled and to let it know if you wanted to cancel other services.
It has now cancelled your TV package and will refund your payments.
***
I started my degree a year ago but haven’t received the first instalment of my student maintenance loan, worth £1,573.11.
I accidentally entered the wrong sort code for my bank account on the application form.
Student finance tried to trace the payment but hasn’t been able to find the money.
I’m worried it went to another person’s account and they have spent it. What can I do?
G.M, Birmingham.
Your bank has tracked down the payment and says it will send it to your account.
***
I have a BT broadband contract, but the internet connection to my TV and mobile phone is poor.
Engineers have visited and we’ve had three new hubs to no avail. We don’t want to change provider, so BT suggested we switch the hub off each night and reboot it.
We could do this, but it seems unfair for us to keep paying the full £104.78 a month.
J.M., Ilkley, W. Yorks.
BT apologises and says the issue lies with your existing line and set-up. It has agreed to reduce your monthly payments by £48.
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