National conference tackles prepayment meter fraud

Members of police forces across the country were joined on 16 May by representatives from Crimestoppers, the Serious Organised Crime Agency, local government and the country's biggest energy companies at a national crime conference in Birmingham.

Conference delegates were at the West Midlands Police training centre in Edgbaston to share intelligence and coordinate a national approach to tackling prepayment meter fraud, where criminal offer cut-price electricity meter top-up.  It was the first conference of its kind and delegates heard from the Serious Organised Crime Agency and some of the police forces who have raided premises and arrested the criminals involved.

A nationwide campaign, Top-up Safe, is alerting customers to the risks of purchasing illegal top-ups on the doorstep. Energy companies never sell electricity top-ups in this way, only through official outlets: PayPoint, Payzone and the Post Office.  Awareness of the fraud in certain hotspots, especially London, has brought crime rates down, but the crime is spreading to other areas previously unaffected.

Christine McGourty, Director of Energy UK, which runs the Top-up Safe campaign, said "Energy companies are working together to tackle prepayment fraud under the national 'Top-up Safe' communications campaign.  However, the crime is now spreading to new areas of the country not previously affected. It's therefore crucial to bring police forces on board across the country and stamp it out.

"The people selling these illegal top-ups are criminals and although it might seem like an easy way to save money, not only will you be letting a criminal into your home, you will end up having to pay twice for your energy. The only people benefitting from this scam are the fraudsters and the only way to get the energy you pay for is to buy top-ups from official outlets: PayPoint, Payzone or the Post Office."

Graham Clarke, Chair of the industry's meter fraud security group, said: "The conference was an opportunity for police, industry and others to work together to crack down on the fraud. While cities like Birmingham and London are the biggest national hotspots for this crime, we're concerned about new pockets of activity across the country."

DCI Darren Miles from West Midlands Police, said: "West Midlands Police fully support the aims and objectives of this seminar in bringing people together to find joint solutions to reduce the risk of this escalating fraud. Creating effective working partnerships is crucial in tackling criminality at all levels but especially crime linked to organised groups. Frequently these organised groups are responsible for targeting the most vulnerable and hard pressed sections of our community and we all need to do everything we can to prevent this.  Such criminality also leads to higher costs for the public." 

The industry's national "Top-up Safe" campaign includes posters and leaflets and a dedicated website. Further information can be found at www.top-upsafe.com.

 Customers can contact their energy company direct or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.