City of Lincoln Council is alerting local businesses to a scam that has been attempted in Lincolnshire.
The council’s Licensing Team has been made aware of a licence fee scam in which fraudsters have posed as council officials and have contacted alcohol licence holders claiming that their licence has expired and that a renewal payment is required.
City of Lincoln Council wishes to make clear that it does not request licence fee payments over the phone. All legitimate annual fee payment requests are issued through official invoices followed by written reminders. These communications include full details on how to contact City of Lincoln Council to make payments safely and securely.
Should there be a requirement to do so, for example when a payment is late or a correspondence address has been changed and the Licensing Team has not been informed, a licence holder may be contacted by phone to investigate.
Payment would not be requested or taken during this call; rather further information would be provided in order to sign post you where and how to pay.
Ben Jackson, PPASB Licensing Manager, said:
“We are urging all licence holders to remain vigilant and to be cautious of any unsolicited phone calls requesting payment. If you are ever unsure, please report any suspicious behaviour to the relevant organisation.”
Licence holders who receive suspicious calls should not provide any payment details or make any payments. Instead, they are urged to contact the City of Lincoln Council Licensing Team directly on 01522 873714 to verify the communication.
City of Lincoln Council remains committed to protecting local businesses from fraud and encourages vigilance among all licence holders.