Seeking justice over scam debacle

Scammers are everywhere these days, seeking to get their grubby hands on the life savings of retirees or those approaching retirement. This happened to Anna (not her real name) who fell victim to a scam that cost her an enormous amount of money. If you've read our initial article on scams, you may well remember Callun Blurton. He’s a lawyer specialising in financial services litigation whose aim is to help clients who have lost money through scams or bad financial advice.

Callun received a phone call from Anna who had read our article and wanted to tell him about a scam she’d fallen victim to. It turned out to be a very old type of scam. 

Anna was contacted by someone posing as an official telling her she had won a large sum of money. In order to get her money out, she had to pay fees, invoices, and taxes directly to them. 

She ended up being scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars—money she simply could not afford to lose. When Callun heard that Anna went into her bank branch to withdraw the money for the scammers, alarm bells rang in his mind.

“Our client was an elderly person who needed assistance processing the payments,” he says. 

“When Anna went into her bank branch to withdraw the money, the bank asked her about it and she told them what it was for. The teller warned her to be wary of scams, but they still let her withdraw the funds. Our case said they should have done more to protect her. 

“While a bank doesn't have an obligation to monitor each transaction, if they are ‘on notice’ of a scam, they have an obligation to the client to take the reasonable, prudent steps.

“Banks have to follow ‘know your client’—or KYC—obligations. They need to know their client and understand their needs and vulnerabilities. 

“They don’t need to know every detail about them, but seeing an elderly woman withdrawing large sums of money for what is clearly a scam should have triggered the bank to put a hold on her account.”

After taking on Anna’s case, Callun and his team worked diligently for 12 months before they heard the news—one of the banks had agreed to pay Anna back most of the money transferred to the scammers. 

“We ended up recovering most of her losses from one bank. The other complaint is still ongoing,” Callun says. 

And while it’s not always possible to recover money lost through scams, it’s encouraging to know that there are some positive outcomes for people who report these crimes and seek help. 

That said, it’s important to focus on prevention rather than the cure. If presented with an unusual text message, email, letter, or phone call, it’s absolutely imperative to treat it with suspicion and make no apologies for doing your due diligence. 

Callun says, “If you're unsure, give your bank a call and say, ‘Look, this is what I've been contacted about. Are you aware of this being a scam?’ 

“Ask them the questions. Say, ‘I don't know if this is a scam. Can you help me understand?’ 

“It’s important to never reply to the message or click on any links. 

“What you should do is go and find the number for that business or agency online. Then, using that number, call them directly based on your own investigations. 

“Never use the number or email or link that is provided in the original message.”

Despite scams being so common these days, with people of all ages falling victim, there is still a stigma that prevents people from seeking help from professionals. 

“I think the biggest thing that prohibits people coming forward is that they think, ‘What's the point? It’s my fault. I'll never see that money again’,” he says. 

“But the point of this story is that it is absolutely worth giving it a shot. It can be possible to recoup money lost to scammers and reporting the scam goes a long way to stopping these people, which is really important.”

In a recent development announced by the ACCC, the Australian Banking Association (ABA) and its member banks will be able to participate in discussions to develop an industry standard to prevent, detect, and disrupt scams affecting individual and small business customers, following a conditional interim authorisation issued by the consumer watchdog. 

“A coordinated response across government, law enforcement, and the private sector is essential to effectively combat scams that are evolving rapidly and with increasing sophistication,” ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said. 

“We have acted quickly on this interim authorisation because the proliferation of scams is causing significant detriment to consumers and businesses alike, and the banking sector has a key role in combating scams and recovering losses.” 

The interim authorisation applies to all ABA member banks, which currently includes AMP Bank, ANZ, Bank Australia, Bank of Queensland Limited, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited, Citigroup, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, HSBC, ING Bank, J.P. Morgan Australia and New Zealand, Macquarie Bank, MUFG Bank, National Australia Bank, Rabobank Australia, Suncorp Bank, and Westpac. 

Greta’s experience was one shared by many. Around the world, Richard O’Brien’s wild and camp creation found an audience through the accessibility of the music. 

I remember listening to the soundtrack as a child, far too young to understand what the lyrics meant or that there might be anything subversive in their content.

My parents had loved the songs when the movie came out, and they passed this love on to me and my brother.

By the time we were ‘old’ enough to watch the film, we understood vaguely why we needed to close our eyes during the 'naughty' parts, but we were largely unfazed by this. My

brother and I were simply excited to watch the songs we loved come to life in the form of a story. This was an experience that Greta also shared when she was first able to see the

film in the early 80s.

“The themes of the story did not enhance my enjoyment of the movie but they did not detract from it either,” Greta says.

“At the age of 15, I was too wrapped up in the music. I loved singing along and confess that I didn’t really pay much attention to the underlying meaning of the lyrics.”

At its core, the main message of The Rocky Horror Show is one of unabashedly being exactly who you are, regardless of what that looks like. 

“For me…the overwhelming message is that we should have the freedom to be who and what we want to be," Greta says.

“Another important message is that of acceptance—we need to accept people for who and what they are."

This article is featured in National Seniors Australia’s quarterly member magazine, Our Generation. 

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