IRDphonescamscammers

ALERT – IRD Phone Scam

We want to make you aware of the latest scam that is currently doing the rounds but growing in momentum …

Normally IRD scams have been via e-mail up until now BUT the latest is phone calling. We seem to have had a number of clients that have had the phone call or messages left for them which leads us to believe that the scammers are trolling the phone books!

What we can make out is that the phone caller will say that they are from the IRD legal department (in NZ is is called Collections so that is the 1st alert) and that you have tax overdue and unless you give them certain information that are going to put you in jail (2nd alert – they just can’t do that!). From the conversations the scammers are quite forceful.

So here is our advice ..

1. Tell them to ring us .. don’t need to tell them our contact details .. tell them to get them from “their IRD system” .. then hang up
OR
2. As 1 client put it “let’s play a game with them” and tell them that you are tracing their call .. or ask them how much you owe and when they tell you, tell them back that it seems quite low as you thought it was closer to $XX (really exaggerate the amount) – that was the 1 client did and the scammer hung up!

OR
3. Just hang up

Bottom line is, as your tax agent, the IRD will contact us first about any outstanding tax so please don’t fall for this scam. Remember .. if it smells fishy it probably is!