Utilities Against Scams
Utility companies are working together with a focus on raising awareness around scams as it is a growing issue affecting people across the UK. This page features key information about how scams can affect utility providers and their customers with a focus on spotting, stopping and preventing scams. It also features interactive training for utility workers to complete to grow their scam awareness, and a sign up form to access the Utilities Against Scams Toolkit.
What is a Utility Against Scams?
With the digital age, it is becoming easier for criminals to pose as legitimate companies and scam people out of large sums of money. This not only impacts on customers both financially and emotionally, but also creates a reputational risk for businesses and the wider industry.
Therefore, utility providers can play a crucial part in combating these scams by becoming a Utility Against Scams company, to learn how to spot signs that a customer could need support and gain information on where to report these incidences to protect themselves and their customers.
The Benefits
Increasing employee scam awareness
Utilities Against Scams is designed to help employees wishing to improve their scam awareness and prevention by making simple changes. These might include increasing employees’ awareness of scams through our Utilities Against Scams interactive training.
Empowering customers
We can also have a positive effect on our customers through scam education and empowerment, and also by making sure we use the correct language when speaking to and about scam victims.
Collaborate & learn from others
Collaborate with other utilities to learn from each other and share examples of good practice.
Why the Work is Important
Only 5% of scams are reported. More than 50% of people aged 65 plus have been targeted by criminals.
There are now 11.8 million people aged 65 or over in the UK. The number of people aged 65+ is projected to rise by over 40 per cent (40.77%) in the next 17 years to over 16 million. By 2033 the number of people aged 85 and over is projected to more than double again to reach 3.2 million, and to account for 5 per cent of the total population.
Daily interactions
Utility companies have interaction with customers on a daily basis, whether this is face to face when carrying out work in a community or in a customer’s home, having a telephone conversation or communicating digitally.
Customer contact
Customer facing staff are in a privileged position, sometimes being the only person that customer will speak with that day.
Spot, Stop and Prevent: Utilities Interactive Training
Complete the online learning session for utility workers to learn how to Spot, Stop and Prevent scams that affect their companies and their customers. This training can be done in the comfort of your own home, at work or wherever is most convenient for you.
This is an interactive training session which should take approximately 30 minutes, with videos and audio to watch, and quizzes to test your knowledge!
This is an interactive training session which should take approximately 30 minutes, with videos and audio to watch, and quizzes to test your knowledge!
The UAS Toolkit: Registered Utility Resources
Register as a Utilities Against Scams organisation by using the red button below - It's completely free and gives you access to the UAS Toolkit, a range of resources that can help you to embed the scams awareness messages within your organisation. All materials are available as uneditable, print-ready PDFs and/or Jpeg which require no specialist software or licensed fonts to use.
Brochure
The Utilities Against Scams brochure has been created to give utility providers and workers all the relevant information regarding scams that affect their customers and how to provide support.
Informational Leaflet
A digital information leaflet can be printed out and handed out to customers and colleagues.
Customer Support Materials
Materials such as a Door/Window Sticker and a Notebook with tips to avoid telephone scams have been created to print out and hand to customers, along with a mobile phone lock screen ready to be downloaded by your customers.
Posters
An internal poster has been designed to grow awareness about scams for utility workers, and an external poster has been designed for customers to grow their scam awareness.
Infographic
An infographic showing some stats about how scams affect people in the UK, and how scams affect utility providers.
Social Media Pack
A social media pack has been created to help your organisation raise awareness of scams through your platforms.
Register as a Utilities Against Scams company here:
Registered UAS Companies:
