Anyone getting phonecalls from a comp called UPI ?

nuttywoman

Twice now they`ve rung me saying they`ll claim back my bank charges for me - even quoted £ 49 i`m owed !!!!
Today when they rang i asked were they`d got personal info about me from & the call centre person said from The Ministry of Justice i told him we did`nt have one & were was he based - he said Wales, so i asked him were in Wales & all i got was "the middle" .
After i asked for an address , he said he would give me their phone number but he proceeded to tell me my number :mad:
Anyway i`m off into my bank tomorrow to see if they`ve given my details to anyone and take it from there.
Anyone else had dealings with them?

david17589

sounds like a prank to me or might be a scam i had someone call me about bank charges but i said i was not interested an dont remmember they company name my addvise HANG UP!!!

MothballsWallet

Ministry of Justice is run by Jack "The Gerbil" Straw, also known as the "Freeor of Traitors" who let the cow who helped the Soviets build their nukes from our weapons programme...

shopaholic2

sadly a frined of mine was taken in by them, they said they could claim back all their bank charges, on both bank accounts, for a fee of £49, per account.
My freind signed up, (and i was horrified!) then decided they couldn't afford it, so asked for them to not continue, but they did! They took the money anyway, and my freind has not seen the money or any work done since!
I told her she could do the job herself, but she seems to implicitly trust people!
Anyway, yes, be warned, its a rip off.
(May well be a genuine company, but still wouldn't touch them with the proverbial)

MothballsWallet

Had a leaflet for something like this through the door today, another "supposedly regulated by Ministry of Justice" one. Wouldn't touch them with a bargepole, especially since you can do this for almost free by following MSE/Consumer Action Group advice.

Ministry of Justice should be ashamed for regulating these firms/allowing them to say that they are regulated: Mr Straw, I'm looking squarely in your direction.

melorablack

If you want to check if a company really is registered with the MOJ then here is the link:

http://www.claimsregulation.gov.uk/search.aspx

BYALPHAINDIA

DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE (STRAIGHT AWAY)

I don't answer the phone (straight away) I check the number, Then if it is a number I recognise - Then I ring them back.

It's really quite simple.

Regards.

Boxdonkey

This is a fraudulent scam, and it won't be long until the guy in charge of it is eating prison food.

He's called Keith Penhalagan and is known for running a dodgy mobile phone scam called K&M (he was featured on the BBC Wales programme "X-Ray"). He also operates under the names of Cyril Penhalagan and Cyril Keith.

He's made his wife Julie Penhalagan the director of this latest venture, UPI (UK) Limited.

Keith has employed a call centre in India to cold-call people and obtain their debit/credit card details by deception, by pretending they are going to refund £1000's in unlawful bank charges into their accounts.

Keith then uses these card details to steal money from his victims.

Keith and Julie Penhalagan live at 33 Burrows Road, Skewen, Neath, West Glamorgan SA10 6AE.

(Important legal note - the public are 100% fully entitled to know their names and home address - this information belongs in the public domain and is available on the government's Companies House website. In fact it is actually a legal requirement that the public knows this information).

So, if your elderly relative has been a victim of theft by UPI (UK) Limited, you could go round to the Penhalagans' house and ask for your money back - you won't be breaking any laws by doing so.

Or alternatively report them to South Wales Police by e-mail at [EMAIL="NeathPortTalbot@south-wales.pnn.police.uk"]NeathPortTalbot@south-wales.pnn.police.uk[/EMAIL]

martyw

Looks like these scumbags have been going some time now, reported back in October 2008 on The Guardian website:-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/nov/02/bank-charges-claims-mangement-firms

I just got a call from them today so they are still going. Using an Indian call center. When I asked who UPI are the caller said 'a law firm'..!

The pitch is that 'you paid extra charges when a cheque bounced a few months ago...' or some such made up nonsense. I just said "no I didn't", and he said 'sorry to bother you' and hung up.

Note: they use specific amounts to try and con you into thinking it must be real.