The fake-police courier scam: how it works and how to stop it

How the courier scam works

The call almost always follows the same script. Knowing the shape of it in advance is the single best protection.

1. The opener.A caller introduces themselves as a police officer (sometimes from the “fraud squad” or “National Crime Agency”) or as someone from the victim’s bank. They sound calm and professional. The number on the victim’s phone may show as 101, a real police number, or the bank’s real number, because scammers spoof caller ID.
2. The hook.“Your account has been compromised. A member of bank staff has been arrested. We need your help to catch the criminals.” The story varies but always paints the victim as someone who is being helpful or doing their civic duty.
3. The verification trick. The caller asks the victim to hang up and dial 999 or the bank to verify the call. But the scammer stays on the line — older phones can keep the line open even after the victim has hung up. When the victim picks up to dial out, the same scammer answers and pretends to be 999 or the bank confirming the story.
4. The instruction.The victim is told to withdraw a large sum of cash, buy high-value goods, or hand over their bank card and PIN to a “courier” or “plain-clothes officer” who will arrive within the hour. Sometimes the victim is told to stay on the phone until the courier arrives so they don’t have time to think.
5. The collection. Someone polite arrives at the door, takes the envelope or card, and disappears. Within minutes the account is being drained.

The red flags, written for an elderly relative

Print these out and stick them next to the landline. Make sure every protected person you know has read them at least once.

• The police will never phone you to ask for your bank card, your PIN, or for you to take money out. Ever. There are no exceptions. If a caller asks, they are a scammer.
• Your bank will never send a courier to your door. Not to collect a card, not for any reason. If a courier is on the way, it’s a scam.
• You cannot trust the number that shows on the screen. Scammers can fake (“spoof”) caller ID. The only way to verify a caller is to hang up, wait five minutes, and dial a number you already trust — the number on the back of your bank card, or 159.
• If you feel rushed, it is a scam.Real police and real banks are happy to wait while you check. Anyone insisting “don’t hang up” or “there isn’t time” is trying to stop you from thinking.

If you suspect the call right now

If a call is in progress and you believe it’s the courier scam, the right move is the simplest one:

1. Hang up.You don’t owe the caller an explanation.
2. Wait at least five minutesbefore making any outgoing call. Older landlines can keep the line open even after you hang up — the scammer can still be there when you pick up. Better still, use a mobile, or a neighbour’s phone.
3. Phone 159(the official Stop Scams UK short code for verifying who’s calling about your bank) or the number on the back of your bank card.

If a card has already been handed over

Time matters here. The faster the bank knows, the more likely they are to recover the money.

1. Phone the bank immediately on 159 or the number on the back of the card. Ask them to freeze the account and cancel the card.
2. Report it to Action Fraud— the UK’s national fraud-reporting centre — on 0300 123 2040 or at actionfraud.police.uk. You’ll be given a crime reference number; keep it.
3. Tell the bank that a courier collected the card. UK banks are signed up to the Contingent Reimbursement Model code and will often reimburse the victim of an authorised push-payment scam where the customer was tricked. Being clear that this was a scam (not a mistake) helps the case.
4. Don’t delete anything.Voicemails, missed calls, texts, photographs of any “courier” or paperwork — keep all of it. The police and the bank will want it.
5. Tell the family. Once someone has been a victim they tend to be re-targeted — names get added to so-called sucker lists traded between criminal groups. Make sure the family knows so they can watch for follow-up calls.

Why this scam targets older people

Older adults are not gullible — they’re isolated and polite. The courier script weaponises both traits. It exploits the fact that someone living alone has nobody in the room to say “hang on, that sounds odd.” It exploits a lifetime of being raised to be polite to authority. And it exploits the fact that a phone call feels intimate and urgent in a way that an email never does. Any phone-scam advice that boils down to “just don’t answer” or “ignore them” misunderstands the problem — a vulnerable person can’t spend their life refusing every call in case it’s a scammer.

The fix that actually works is putting a second pair of ears on the call without taking away the protected person’s phone.

How Zivlo helps with the courier scam

Zivlo is a UK phone-monitoring service designed for exactly this scenario. When an unknown number calls the protected person, up to three nominated family members are alerted on their own phones in real time. They can silently listen in to assess what’s being said, join the call to challenge the caller, or end the call instantly with one tap. The caller and the protected person both hear a short notice that the call is being monitored, which is usually enough on its own to make a scammer hang up.

Crucially, calls from trusted numbers — the GP surgery, the chemist, close friends — can be added to a SafeList so guardians aren’t alerted for normal calls. The protected person doesn’t lose their independence, and the family doesn’t have to confiscate the phone.

See Will it work for me? for the device and call-forwarding requirements, or get started to set up an account for a relative.

Useful UK numbers to keep written down

• 159— Stop Scams UK short code. Connects you straight to your bank’s fraud team. Free from any UK phone.
• 0300 123 2040— Action Fraud, the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime.
• 101 — Non-emergency police.
• 999 — Emergency police (only if someone is at the door right now and you feel unsafe).
• 0808 223 1133 — Citizens Advice consumer helpline.
• Age UK — practical scam-protection guidance written for older adults.