In this Weekend Essay episode, Momodou Musa Touray explores the growing issue of scams. With more people falling victim to fraud every day, he shares personal stories and alarming statistics, illustrating the point that scams can ensnare even the savviest individuals.

As Scams Awareness Week comes to a close, it’s time to examine how prepared we really are. Are you doing enough to guard against these threats? Tune in to find out!

THOUSANDS of parents can get free cash worth up to £125 to cover the cost of food this half term.

The help comes via the latest round of the Household Support Fund which is worth £421million.

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The fund has been shared by the Department for Work and Pensions between councils across England.

They have until the end of March next year to distribute their share of the cash.

Each local authority gets to decide who to give help to, and what type of help to offer.

Some are paying people money direct into their bank accounts while others are handing out energy vouchers.

But some are also handing out food vouchers to families in need over the coming months, including this half term.

Here are all the councils giving out help to hard up parents.

West Berkshire Council

West Berkshire Council is distributing a swathe of support to thousands of residents in need.

It is giving eligible households direct cash payments worth up to £300 as well as cash payments to pensioners.

It is also sharing £189,000 between 4,200 young children via free school meal vouchers, meaning each child on average will get £45 in vouchers.

Eligible children will receive three weeks’s worth of vouchers from their school to cover the Christmas holiday period and February half term next year.

Reading Borough Council

Nearby Reading Borough Council is handing out food vouchers to families whose children are on free school meals or pupil premium.

Around 3,900 households are expected to receive the vouchers, which will be sent from December and are worth £125.

Councillor Ellie Emberson, lead for corporate services and resources, said: “The Council has designed a local package of support which directs this invaluable funding to households in Reading who will most need it this winter, which again includes families claiming pupil premium free school meals, care leavers and pensioners.”

Devon Council

Devon Council, in the South-West of England, has been given £5million to share among hard-up households.

It is using part of the multi-million pound share to carry on giving children eligible for free school meals holiday vouchers to cover school half term breaks.

The food vouchers will be distributed by schools to 22,000 pupils to spend during this half term, Christmas and February half terms.

Hackney Council

Hackney Council is also distributing food vouchers to households in need over school half terms between now and next March.

The London authority said children eligible for free school meals in state-funded primary and secondary schools will qualify for the vouchers.

If you fall into this category but don’t receive any vouchers, Hackney Council said to contact your child’s school.

Warwickshire Council

Warwickshire Council is offering out support to families with children eligible for free school meals.

The help will come in the form of vouchers although details are limited at the minute.

The best thing to do if you live in the area and your child is on free school meals is contact their school or the council.

What about if I don’t live in these areas?

You might not be able to get school vouchers if you live outside these areas, but you may be eligible for other help.

Each council across England has been allocated a share from the £421million HSF pot.

But each local authority gets to decide its own eligibility criteria.

That means what you are entitled to will vary depending on where you live.

Not all councils have decided what they will do with their share of the £421million yet either.

The best thing to do is contact your local authority to see if any help is currently on offer.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

Dubbed the ‘greatest humourist the United States has produced’, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known better by his pen name Mark Twain, is probably best known for the characters of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.

For investors, it’s one of Twain’s lesser-known creations, Pudd’nhead Wilson, the titular character who gives his view on the month of October when investing:

“October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August and February.”

Although Twain’s views on the stock market are meant to be sarcastic, they do in fact have a ring of truth to them. Since the beginning of the 20th century, plenty of market cycles have seen a dip in performance during this month.

The idea could have gained traction after the great Banking Panic of 1907, an event that led to multiple bank runs and heavy selling at the US stock exchange. All that prevented a serious financial crash was the work of a banking consortium to provide major funding to New York itself, during what was a notoriously cold October in the Big Apple.

The stock market crash that led to the US Great Depression of 1929 – a financial disaster on an unparalleled scale – began on 24 October, Black Thursday, with the market losing 11% of its value in frantic trading. Black Tuesday occurred the following week, seeing a loss of over 23% in just two days.

The black days of October have continued in more recent times, with Black Monday in 1987. On 16 October that year, all markets closed in London due to adverse weather but, after they re-opened, the speed of the crash accelerated. By midday, the UK blue chip index had dropped by 14% and a further 11% the following day – some of the largest losses on record.

Domestic stocks then continued to fall, albeit at a less precipitous rate, reaching a trough in mid-November at 36% below their pre-crash peak, not recovering until 1989.

Although October has had its fair share of market mishaps over the years, it’s interesting to note the month has historically heralded the end of more bear markets than the beginning. In fact, October gets a poor rap when considering most investors have probably lived through a range of highly volatile months.

The fact of the matter is that terrible market events do not all cluster in one particular month. If they did, it would make an investor’s job that much easier.

Maybe it’s Mark Twain’s fault, maybe it’s just investor psychology but, October, despite hosting Halloween, should be no scarier for investors than any other month of the year.

Perhaps it’s just a difference in lexicon between the British and our American cousins. After all, anyone from North America will tell you with glee that October hails the start of the fall – just not necessarily for financial markets.

Of course, despite volatility and extreme market events, investing over the long term remains a tried-and-tested route for investors and good outcomes.

Thomas Watts is senior investment analyst on Abrdn’s MPS team

MARTIN Lewis has issued a passionate plea to Rachel Reeves to change winter fuel payment rules ahead of the Budget next week.

The consumer expert appeared as a guest on the The Rest is Money podcast this week and revealed what he thinks the government needs to do in the statement on Wednesday.

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Martin revealed that he has had two meetings with Chancellor Rachel Reeves since Labour came into power.

His main concern is the changes to the winter fuel payment rules which were announced in the summer.

In July the Government announced the payment would become means-tested meaning only those on certain benefits are eligible.

This includes those on income support, tax credits, Universal Credit, and largely Pension Credit.

This means that around 10million pensioners will no longer get the cash, which can be worth up to £300.

Martin said he believes the Chancellor is “listening” to his thoughts.

He said: “I wrote an open letter to the Chancellor that mirrors my thoughts – the difficult bit is I can’t tell you what she’s saying back to me although she is listening.

“Clearly on winter fuel payment, I think they need to do some adaption and we need to see some mitigation coming into the Budget.

“For me, I have no problem getting rid of the universality of the winter fuel payment – millionaires don’t need it.”

Outling the issues he has with the move, he said firstly that the level of means-testing at an income of £11,400 a year is too low – and that it should be higher than that, closer to the “early £20,000s”.

The second point, and what he says is probably the more “urgent and difficult one”, is that he thinks the method of means testing is wrong.

Martin explained: “Because pension credit – something I’ve been trying to shout about for the last decade – is a benefit that we currently think around 800,000 of the poorest in society do not claim.

“They are entrenched into not claiming often due to mental capacity or dementia type issues or the 240-page form.

“So we are to use a critically underclaimed benefit to be the means-test – is something I have a real problem with.”

He added that he has spoken with the government both “publicly and privately” on this and that even if it managed to cut the number to 700,000, that’s still hundreds of thousands of people who are the most vulnerable earning under £11,400 who will lose winter fuel payment.

What is the Winter Fuel Payment?

Consumer reporter Sam Walker explains all you need to know about the payment.

The Winter Fuel Payment is an annual tax-free benefit designed to help cover the cost of heating through the colder months.

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Most who are eligible receive the payment automatically.

Those who qualify are usually told via a letter sent in October or November each year.

If you do meet the criteria but don’t automatically get the Winter Fuel Payment, you will have to apply on the government’s website.

You’ll qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment this winter if:

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• you were born on or before September 23, 1958
• you lived in the UK for at least one day during the week of September 16 to 22, 2024, known as the “qualifying week”
• you receive Pension Credit, Universal Credit, ESA, JSA, Income Support, Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit

If you did not live in the UK during the qualifying week, you might still get the payment if both the following apply:

• you live in Switzerland or a EEA country
• you have a “genuine and sufficient” link with the UK social security system, such as having lived or worked in the UK and having a family in the UK

But there are exclusions – you can’t get the payment if you live in Cyprus, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Malta, Portugal or Spain.

This is because the average winter temperature is higher than the warmest region of the UK.

You will also not qualify if you:

• are in hospital getting free treatment for more than a year
• need permission to enter the UK and your granted leave states that you can not claim public funds
• were in prison for the whole “qualifying week”
• lived in a care home for the whole time between 26 June to 24 September 2023, and got Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or income-related Employment and Support Allowance

Payments are usually made between November and December, with some made up until the end of January the following year.

Pensioners still left out in the cold

Martin outlined the calculations “And if we look at the maths of what’s going on here and we actually look at the numbers of winter fuel payment, energy bills this year will be around £100 lower than last year from the October to March period, so you’re £100 up.

“But last year, you got the cost of living payment of £300, so now you’re £200 down, plus if you take away winter fuel on top of that – which is either £200 if you’re under 80 or £300 if you’re over – you’re now £400 to £500 down.”

While the triple lock uprating of the state pension will boost payments for some people next year, Martin believes because it’s so few people it won’t make a difference.

This is because: “the number that is stated is the full new state pension which is around £460 it’s going to go up – but first of all only 1 in 4 pensioners are on the ‘new’ state pension – 3 in 4 are on the ‘old’ state pension – which as it’s smaller is seeing an uplift of around £100 less.

“And second the word ‘full’ – you only get that if you have your full National Insurance contributions and by definition, most people eligible for pension credit do not have their full National Insurance contributions so their rise will be proportionately less than the £360 odd figure.”

Martin pointed out that after adding all of this up, those 780,000 pensioners missing out on pension credit will “almost certainly be materially worse off” this year despite the triple lock increase in April.

He expressed his disappointment with the decision: “I just feel and I’ve never phrased it this way but I’ll be honest because this is a different type of podcast – I just find it quite difficult that it is Labour doing this.

“I can’t understand why Labour is allowing 780,000 of the poorest and most vulnerable pensioners that they believe should get the winter fuel payment to not get it.”

He then explained that a potential “workable but imperfect” solution he had suggested to the government is the payments should be given to those on pension credit, as well as those pensioners in council tax bands A to C

This would cover off around 80 to 90% of those who are the poorest pensioners, he said.

Martin explained: “It wouldn’t save the government as much, would be between £1 and £1.2billion as opposed to £1.8billion, but the great thing about council tax is you’re either in band A to C or you’re not – you’re either a pensioner or you’re not – it’s a very easy means test.

“I am hopeful, that Rachel will put some form of increased mitigation measures in – she’s never going to U-turn.”

The Sun’s Winter Fuel S.O.S Campaign

THE Sun’s Winter Fuel SOS Campaign is here to support households during these challenging times.

Due to government cutbacks, ten million pensioners are set to lose the £300 Winter Fuel Payment.

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Since opening our phone lines to thousands of pensioners in October, we remain dedicated to providing tips and advice on how to stretch your finances further.

That’s why we have partnered with the poverty charity Turn2Us to launch a free benefits checker, helping you ensure that you are claiming all the benefits to which you are entitled.

Don’t miss our latest Sun Money coverage, which includes essential information on key deadlines, applying for support, and everything you need to know about Pension Credit.

If you have a story to share or wish to get in touch with our team, please email us at money-sm@news.co.uk.

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What Martin Lewis would like to see in the Budget

As well as the changes to the winter fuel payment eligibility rules, Martin also briefly outlined each of the things he would like to see discussed in the Budget.

• Carer’s Allowance – taper needed to avoid thousands having to pay back benefits due to earning slightly over
• LISA penalty – removal of the fine if you buy a property above the £450,000 limit
• Standing charges – standing charges on energy need to be reformed
• Tax-free childcare – name needs to be changed as too difficult to understand, should be called the “working parent childcare top-up”
• Smart meters – regulations need to change so that companies are fined based on those which are working, not installations
• High-income child benefit charge – needs to be a household assessment rather than an individual assessment
• Mortgage prisoners – need to bring help in for the 200,000 affected

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

Scams are on the rise. Not a day goes by without us receiving scam messages via email, telephone or social media.

It is pervasive, persistent and annoying. We have learned to ignore these scam messages. But the problem hasn’t gone away.

The fraudsters are determined to get us to part with our monies. They have devised all manner of ploys to defraud us. From romance to investment scam, no area is off limits to these swindlers.

All we can have is eternal vigilance and hope we don’t run out of luck. But is it always possible?

Last week, my wife confided to me that she was the victim of fraud. Scammers had accessed her personal details and opened several credit-card accounts.

Four of the 10 accounts were active by the time she received an Experian fraud alert.

Luckily, she was able to cancel the accounts before any money was taken. She was angry and embarrassed that this had happened to her.

“I never imagined I’d be a victim of a scam,” she said.

I reassured her that she was not alone.

Lois Vallely, a colleague of mine, was also recently targeted by a scammer who hacked into her work email account.

Most times, we assume scams happen to the naïve and the vulnerable in our society. But that’s not always true. Smart people fall for these scams too.

In fact, one in five people across the UK has fallen victim to a scam. An estimated nine million people were affected by financial scams in the past year, according to Citizens Advice.

Scammers are stealing more than £3m a day from victims. Nearly £1.2bn was stolen from customers in 2023, latest data from UK Finance shows.

Research from WEALTH at work found that the average amount people lost to financial scams was over £1,000. It also found that more than a third (34%) of those who had lost money to a scam in the last year had done so to two or more types of scams.

Nearly £1.2bn was stolen from customers in 2023, latest data from UK Finance shows

The study revealed the worrying impact losing money to a financial scam had on people. Two out of five (40%) find it difficult to trust that any financial information is legitimate, more than a quarter (27%) say it has had a negative impact on their mental health, and almost a quarter (24%) do not feel safe investing their money.

Losing money to financial scams has also meant that more than a fifth (22%) have had to change their plans for the future.

WEALTH at work has identified the common financial scams that people lost money to in the last year.

They include purchase scams (27%), investment scams (19%), friends or family scams (18%), bank-account scams (18%), tech-support scams (15%), befriending/romance scams (14%), pension scams (13%), tax-refund scams (10%) and lottery scams (9%)

Jonathan Watts-Lay, director of WEALTH at work, said: “Financial scamming is rife and it’s shocking that many people have lost money not just once, but multiple times to scams.

“People need to be on their guard as fraudsters use many convincing techniques to persuade their victims they are genuine. Many of these scams look completely legitimate and are not easy to spot. People often get seduced by the promise of investment returns that are too good to be true.

“Those that run scams are clever and may have been able to get hold of personal details. They often have very professional-looking websites and literature that makes it hard to distinguish from the real thing. They will also use technology and try to contact individuals through various means, such as social media, texts, telephone calls and emails.”

People often get seduced by the promise of investment returns that are too good to be true

Consumer champion Martin Lewis dubbed social media as the ‘wild west’ for online scams.

He recently warned that scammers are using a fake interview of chancellor Rachel Reeves to trick consumers into sharing their bank details before the budget.

His warning comes as another survey from Barclays shows the growing reliance on social media as a source of financial guidance. This is driven largely by its accessibility and the cost barriers associated with professional financial advice.

The study found that 23% of respondents turn to platforms such as social media, community messaging apps and online forums for investment tips, and 19% are attracted by the ease and speed of obtaining financial guidance through these platforms.

Over half (51%) of Brits who consult social media for investment advice fail to regularly verify the credibility of finfluencers and their content.

However, the Financial Conduct Authority has taken a zero-tolerance approach to unauthorised financial promotions online.

On Tuesday, the regulator interviewed 20 finfluencers under caution for touting financial services products illegally. It also issued 38 alerts against social-media accounts operated by finfluencers that may contain unlawful promotions.

A survey from Barclays shows the growing reliance on social media as a source of financial guidance

In May, FCA brought charges against nine individuals in relation to an unauthorised foreign exchange trading scheme promoted on social media. The individuals, many of whom were former reality TV stars, had appeared in shows including Love Island and The Only Way is Essex.

This week is Scams Awareness Week (21-27 October), a campaign set up by Citizens Advice to create a network of confident, alert consumers who know what to do when they spot a scam.

The charity says it wants individuals, families and organisations looking to protect themselves from scams to be #ScamAware all year round.

“Anyone can fall victim to a scam, and we know scammers aren’t only targeting those looking to invest money, but also those simply going about their day-to-day lives,” Dame Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, told Metro.

“It’s particularly worrying to see the impact on people’s finances afterwards, especially if they have to borrow to get by. It’s important for us all to be on our guard – if you’re not sure about something, take your time and get advice.”

THOUSANDS on Attendance Allowance and PIP could qualify for the Winter Fuel Payment through a DWP loophole.

The up to £300 payment was previously available to everyone aged 66, the current state pension age, and above.

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But the Government has now made the payment means-tested which means you only qualify if you are on certain benefits.

This includes Income Support, Tax Credits, Universal Credit and Pension Credit.

You usually only qualify for Pension Credit if your weekly income is less than £218.15 if you are single and £332.95 if you are in a couple.

However, you can still claim Pension Credit, and therefore the Winter Fuel Payment, even if you are over the weekly income threshold.

If you receive an Attendance Allowance (AA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP), the weekly income thresholds rise.

If you are someone on AA or the middle or highest rate care component of PIP, the weekly threshold goes up by £81.50 to £299.65 if you are single or £414.45 if you are in a couple.

The DWP has confirmed to The Sun if you are claiming either of the two benefits and your state pension payment by itself is over the weekly income limits, you could also qualify for Pension Credit.

The DWP said whether you would qualify for Pension Credit in this circumstance depends on a range of other factors.

This includes whether you have a carer who receives a carer’s benefit or if someone else lives with you and their specific circumstances.

If you are on either AA or PIP and over the weekly thresholds for Pension Credit, it’s worth checking if you might qualify.

There are several free-to-use calculators which will help decipher whether you could be eligible for Pension Credit:

What is Pension Credit and who is eligible?

Pension Credit is a Government benefit designed to top up your weekly income if you are a state pensioner with low earnings.

The current state pension age is 66.

There are two parts to the benefit – Guarantee Credit and Savings Credit.

Guarantee Credit tops up your weekly income to £218.15 if you are single or your joint weekly income to £332.95 if you have a partner.

Savings Credit is extra money you get if you have some savings or your income is above the basic full state pension amount – £169.50.

Savings Credit is only available to people who reached state pension age before April 6, 2016.

Like with Attendance Allowance and PIP, you may also qualify for extra cash, even if your weekly income is more than the £218.15 or £332.95 weekly Pension Credit thresholds.

For example, you can get extra help covering your ground rent if you live in a leasehold property or if you have caring responsibilities for a child.

The rules behind who qualifies for Pension Credit can be complicated, so the best thing to do is just check.

You can do this by calling the Pension Service helpline on 0800 99 1234 from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday or by using free online calculators.

Those in Northern Ireland have to call the Pension Centre on 0808 100 6165 from 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday.

It might be worth a visit to your local Citizens Advice branch too – its staff should be able to offer you help for free.

Pension Credit is known as a “gateway” benefit which means it opens up a host of perks, like the winter fuel payment and a free TV licence if you are 75 or older.

It also unlocks discounts on your council tax and the Warm Home Discount, if you are on the Guarantee Credit part of the benefit.

The Sun’s Winter Fuel S.O.S Campaign

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THE Sun’s Winter Fuel SOS Campaign is here to support households during these challenging times.

Due to government cutbacks, ten million pensioners are set to lose the £300 Winter Fuel Payment.

Since opening our phone lines to thousands of pensioners in October, we remain dedicated to providing tips and advice on how to stretch your finances further.

That’s why we have partnered with the poverty charity Turn2Us to launch a free benefits checker, helping you ensure that you are claiming all the benefits to which you are entitled.

Don’t miss our latest Sun Money coverage, which includes essential information on key deadlines, applying for support, and everything you need to know about Pension Credit.

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If you have a story to share or wish to get in touch with our team, please email us at money-sm@news.co.uk.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories